Opera makes me happy, and it has made
me happy since I was very young. The seeds must have been planted by
my dad, who made us listen to it on the radio Saturday mornings
(and boy did I think he was a genius for knowing what they were
singing about even though it was in another language). But my true
love of opera bloomed when I watched the end of Madam Butterfly on
KBYU with my Grandma when I was no older than about 6 years old.
Learning the reasoning behind the frightening silhouette of the
dagger rising and falling made me horribly sad (but in a
sad-is-deep-people's-happy sort of way). It was most likely my first
exposure to a tragic love story, and it was something I thought about
for years-- not quite sure how to voice the turmoil, internal
anxiety, and fascination the narrative brought me. But then I learned I didn't have
to. When I familiarized myself with the arias a few years later, I
realized words alone were not a fit medium for description, and the
best way to illustrate how the story made me feel was through the
music that always had accompanied it. Experiencing the glorious
sounds that make up Un Bel Di in particular was the perfect cathartic
baptism that offered me closure (and closure, and closure, and
closure). The younger version of me learned something awfully
remarkable from this: sometimes life is really not fair, and often
times it is very sad, but we can turn that horribleness into beauty
to make others feel not so alone.
So far in my 24 years of living, I
still haven't quite found a better interpretation for certain
emotions than opera listened to with headphones in and eyes closed. I appreciate much more than I will list here,
and I really don't care if any of you opera snobs out there poo-poo
my somewhat cliché selection, but these songs are important to
record as a great value to my life so far.
For longing and hopeful loneliness,
it's Un Bel Di Vedremo from Madame Butterfly by Puccini.
For love at first sight, it's O Soave Fanciulla from La Boheme by Puccini.
And for the excellence that is a
Bromance, Au Fond du Temple Saint from Bizet's Les Pêcheurs de Perles. This song is more or less an operatic "bros before hoes".
Ah, everything just feels so beautiful
after listening to opera. :-)
