What's All the Shouting About? An Easy Guide to Opera for Young People

While written in a light-hearted style for young people, this short but thorough introduction to the basics of opera will benefit anyone new to the world of classical singing.

More children (and adults!) would enjoy opera if they knew more about it. With cartoons and other humorous touches, this guide answers all the questions a beginning opera lover might have. The author uses stories from the lives of composers and singers to show the development of the art from when Handel threatened to throw a soprano out a window to works about a real-life Zulu princess and the first atomic bomb. The book describes what a night at the opera will be like; lists competitions that young singers may enter; includes a glossary of common operatic terms; and provides summaries of the most famous works. All unfamiliar words and names are accompanied by pronouncing aids.