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sharp_as_knives ([personal profile] sharp_as_knives) wrote in [community profile] fandomhigh2014-05-13 11:32 am
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Music Appreciation, Tuesday period 2

Hannibal nodded at the students once they were seated. "Today we will begin with a bit of opera. For those of you who may not be aware," he nodded at the students from other worlds, "opera is a musical form of drama. It tells a story in song, accompanied generally by an orchestra."

He wrote a title on the board. "Today we will listen to some of La Bohème, an opera by a composer named Giacomo Puccini. It was originally performed in 1896, and set in Paris in the 1840s." He smiled briefly at Cosette assuming she's there. "It follows a story of several bohemians - artists and such - and the romance of two of them, Rodolfo and Mimi."

He explained the plot briefly and then played excerpts from a traditional production. When that was done, he said, "Also, there has been a more recent production, set in the 1950s. As one example of how to modernize opera, we have this."

//On the other end of the spectrum,// Jono said, leaning back against a desk and holding up a CD for the class to see, //we have a more modern retelling still, prevalent on the Broadway stage, by the name of meta for RENT. They took it, set it in New York, and then worked in current themes and issues, such as drug abuse and homosexuality, and had AIDS taking the place of the tuberculosis from the original.// He wasn't going to launch into an explanation of those things for the less modern students in the class, because they would never get through the syllabus otherwise. He was learning! //The result is a rock musical that draws parallels to La Bohème in everything from plot elements and character names to samples of the music itself. Here...//

Jono put the disc into the CD player, hit a few buttons, and stood back, letting La Vie Bohème begin to play. Not work school appropriate? Did Jono look terribly as though he cared?

Did Hannibal? These were clearly the coolest teachers in school, you guys.

//Anyway, now that you've listened to three examples of the same, or at least a very similar story told differently over the years, I want us to take some time to discuss it. Talk about what emotions the three pieces made you feel, or discuss the differences in the lyrics and themes between them. If you want to listen to more of one or the other, feel free to ask, and we'll play whatever we have time for through the class period. If you have questions about any of the themes in any of the above, again, ask, and we'll do our best to answer whatever we can.//

Re: Eat Hannibal's food!

[identity profile] likes-ducklings.livejournal.com 2014-05-13 07:48 pm (UTC)(link)
"I don't blame them," Rapunzel said, shaking her head and sending her hair fluttering. "But I'd love to learn to cook like you, even if I'd probably never stop eating because of it."

Re: Eat Hannibal's food!

[identity profile] never-dull.livejournal.com 2014-05-13 09:03 pm (UTC)(link)
Hannibal chuckled. "I believe food should always be a delight. We all must eat; why not make it an experience?"

Apparently all that warning about ruffians and cannibals never took, did it?

Re: Eat Hannibal's food!

[identity profile] likes-ducklings.livejournal.com 2014-05-14 02:00 am (UTC)(link)
It helped that Hannibal was easily the least ruffian-ish man Rapunzel had ever seen. Cannibals didn't look that refined, okay? She was pretty sure. There was a drawing of a man with pointy teeth on the floor of her tower, and he looked nothing like that.

"Absolutely," Rapunzel agreed, nodding vigorously. "I mean, I don't know so much of the food here, honestly, so it's usually kind of an experience no matter what I'm eating. But your food? Is the best experience."

Re: Eat Hannibal's food!

[identity profile] never-dull.livejournal.com 2014-05-14 04:10 am (UTC)(link)
"Thank you," he said, smiling. "I've worked very hard for it to be so. And I look forward to having you in another of my classes. Although," he added with a nod, "you might wish to find a way of tying your hair up; we often work with open flames."

Talk about a disaster waiting to happen.

Re: Eat Hannibal's food!

[identity profile] likes-ducklings.livejournal.com 2014-05-14 01:23 pm (UTC)(link)
Rapunzel's eyes widened in immediate fear, and she nodded, sending said hair fluttering around her. "I will," she promised. "I'll...braid it back, or something. I'm not really, um, used to having to worry about it catching fire, all that often."

Because she usually lived in a very controlled environment. Fandom was presenting all sorts of hair-related challenges for Rapunzel.