Opera and musical are both forms of expression of music, and both use music to express emotions. Opera is an important factor in the origin of musical, which inherits and develops the elements of opera. They all contain the art of singing, and they all need stage scenery, performers and bands to accompany them. It can be said that the musical form of musical is opera, which is a modern inheritance of classical opera art, so it can be said that musical is a new art form, but it is better to say that musical is a modern musical that inherits opera art. Although it is comprehensive in artistic techniques, it still has a unique traditional opera in artistic forms.
Features: comprehensive modernity, diversity, flexibility and high commercial operability.
The difference between opera and musical;
1. The time and elements of its origin are different: the origin of opera is earlier, which can be traced back to medieval dogmatic dramas, mysterious dramas, pastoral suites and pastoral dramas that show a series of related scenes. The most direct source of opera is interlude drama, and the direct inspiration comes from ancient Greek drama. Musicals appeared relatively late, which is the product of the development of opera to a certain extent. It originated from comedies, vaudeville and funny performances in Qing drama.
2. The emphasis is different: singing plays a major role in opera. Although he also has dramatic conflicts in the script, it is far less than musicals. Musical is a comprehensive art composed of vocal music, dance, stage art and script. , more balanced, the aria is more popular.
3. Different musical forms: most operas use bel canto, and a large number of arias and recitations are used. Traditional Chinese opera singing requires much more voice and singing skills than popular songs. The music of opera is mostly classical music composition techniques based on more traditional orchestras. Musicals belong to the category of pop music, and most of them adopt popular singing methods that best meet the needs of contemporary audiences. Many popular songs on the list are musical episodes. For example, many of Weber's works are widely circulated in the form of pop songs, such as Memory in Cats. Musicals are more free in the choice of musical styles, and often involve pop music factors such as jazz and rock, and instruments of electro-acoustic bands are often used extensively in orchestration.
4. Different stage performances: In opera, dance is often used as an interspersed and colorful factor, but musical is a performing art and entertainment product based on drama, with music as the soul and dance as an important means of expression, and tells stories and depicts characters through the integration of music, dance and drama. For example, in Cat, Weber tried many different styles, such as country, tap dance, opera, pop and even hymns. The insertion of Scottish bagpipes is particularly brilliant. All the actors have to sing and dance on the stage, and the dance fully shows the characteristics of all kinds of cats. Musical has no dogmatism, is bold and free, pays attention to fast pace, is good at creating tension and pursues a warm and hot stage atmosphere. The characters in the play explain the plot in white characters, feel the emotional agitation inside the characters, and the dramatic contradictions are sharp.
5. The stage layout is different: the musical is luxurious, magnificent and colorful, which meets the needs of the plot, responds to the tastes of the audience, and is bold and exaggerated, such as the garbage dump in Cat. And use advanced stage technology. Compared with opera, it seems a bit simple.
6. The requirements for actors are different: most people who sing bel canto are not in good shape, and the requirements for their dancing are not so high. If an opera singer has a big belly and an actress has a full figure, it will not affect their performance and the audience will accept it. However, musicals emphasize the overall effect of various artistic elements, so when performing a musical role, actors must take into account various performance elements at the same time. In short, they must be proficient in singing and dancing.
7. The styles of songs are different: many songs in musicals are not solo; The songs in musicals are shorter, simpler and easier to sing. People can sing these songs while walking or taking a bath. Opera leads the whole situation with solo arias. Generally speaking, every dramatic turn of aria will push the whole play to a climax. Although the songs in musicals are easier to be independent of the whole drama and more suitable for singing alone in bars and other entertainment places, these songs are not necessarily suitable for the development of the plot, and the actors need to set off the atmosphere through dancing or other performances to drive the plot to a climax.
8. Musical solo and opera aria occupy different positions in the audience's mood: they are also solos expressing romantic love. In musicals, their tunes can be sentimental, but in operas, they must be full of passion; In terms of lyrics, musicals tend to express painful experiences, such as "love-whether you whip me or hurt me;" Cheat me or abandon me, I will always be yours! "Opera is always a poetic language, expressing joy and joy.
In short, opera is more serious, with songs as the mainstay; Musical is the main form of expression, and dance is accompanied by songs. Opera and musical have profound connections and similarities, but there are also considerable differences. However, art has its own characteristics and is comparable in the field of art. Opera and musical learn from each other. I believe that in this way, opera and musical can continue to develop, improve and mature, and usher in another glory.