Lizensierung
Photo copyright by Eurokick
Scene Changes
A Voyage through the landscape of Italian opera
Documentary, 43.30 minutes, DigiBeta, 16:9, stereo
Year of production: 2006
Director: Reiner Penzholz
Cameraman: Oscar Nani
Production: EUROKICK Milan Italy
Produced for: ZDF/3SAT Germany
Versions: English, German, Italian
The history of opera music is the history of Italy. It begins at the end of the 16th century with the appearance
of a document written in Florence in the form of a musical score. From there it spread to Mantua and Venice.
Within a few decades, a theatre together with a good court orchestra became a basic feature of every
aristocratic court. In the north and the south, opera-houses sprang up like mushrooms. Italian architects sat
construction standards throughout Europe: the horseshoe ground plan, the framework of the proscenium
arch and the stage with stage settings that could be moved.
For nearly 200 years Italy ruled over this new artistic genre. The Italian language would become the
language of this new genre. The opera-houses were to become temples for the muses, meeting places for
society and their architecture reflected the pride of their cities. La Scala in Milan, Santa Cecilia in Rome, San
Carlo in Naples remain today in the international limelight. But there were also smaller theatres built in the
17th century. They covered Italy and made opera a popular form of music. Over the last two decades many
of these jewels of architecture have been restored.
SCENE CHANGES is a voyage through the world of italian operas and its witnesses in stone. Guided by
Prof. Lorenzo Bianconi, we travel through centuries of music and architectural history of opera. We
experience its climax, its decline due to the appearance of the cinema and its resurrection. Opera which was
born in Italy nearly 400 years ago still has a vital home in there.
For licensing and more information please contact:
Björn Jensen
email: jensen(at)gingerfoot.de
© 2006 by EuroKick, Reiner Penzholz
Photo copyright by Euro Kick Filmproduktion
