'Music has learn’d the discords of the state' : The Cultural Politics of British Opposition to Italian Opera, 1706-1711

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2006
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Haverford College. Department of History
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Thesis
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The History Department Senior Thesis Prize
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eng
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Open Access
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Abstract
In the years leading up to the 1711 premiere of Handel's opera Rinaldo, the first Italian opera composed specifically for the London stage, British writers hotly contested the merits of this new art form. At a critical time politically, socially, and culturally, British writers never opposed Italian opera solely for its music, but in relation to the larger political and cultural context of early eighteenth-century Britain. The authors John Dennis, Joseph Addison, and Anthony Ashley Cooper, Third Earl of Shaftesbury each reveal different fears that crystallize in their arguments against Italian opera. Despite their warnings, Rinaldo was a tremendous success due to its excellent visual spectacle and music, and the British people found a place in London musical life for Handel and his Italian operas amidst ongoing criticism.
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