The Metropolitan Opera Stories of the Great Operas, Volume 2

This companion to the first volume of The Metropolitan Opera: Stories of the Great Operas, published 13 years after its mate, offers a guide to 125 more operas. Most of these are early and Baroque operas that have been rediscovered (Monteverdi's Il Ritorno d'Ulisse in Patria, Handel's Semele). Also included are modern operas (Glass's The Voyage), some of which have even enjoyed several productions; obscurities by standard repertory composers (Verdi's Attila), usually exhumed at the behest of opera stars seeking star vehicles; assorted miscellaneous oddities; and titles left over from the first book. The writing is clear and concise, and the story summaries are detailed enough to be of real assistance. Freeman's first book of opera story lines is a standard in the field; his second is a worthy extension and addition.