I seem to write an opera about every 20 years; if you live long enough you can write four operas. read more

I seem to write an opera about every 20 years; if you live long enough you can write four operas. I finished my third in 1970.

Opera: the graveyard of melody

Opera: the graveyard of melody

An opera begins long before the curtain goes up and ends long after it has come down. It starts in read more

An opera begins long before the curtain goes up and ends long after it has come down. It starts in my imagination, it becomes my life, and it stays part of my life long after I've left the opera house.

Opera is where a guy gets stabbed in the back, and instead of dying, he sings.

Opera is where a guy gets stabbed in the back, and instead of dying, he sings.

Critics complained it wasn't opera, it wasn't a musical. You give someone something delicious to eat and they complain because read more

Critics complained it wasn't opera, it wasn't a musical. You give someone something delicious to eat and they complain because they have no name for it.

Opera is when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of bleeding, he sings.

Opera is when a guy gets stabbed in the back and, instead of bleeding, he sings.

I'd like to see a nude opera, because when they hit those high notes, I bet you can really see read more

I'd like to see a nude opera, because when they hit those high notes, I bet you can really see it in those genitals

Any subject is good for opera if the composer feels it so intently he must sing it out.

Any subject is good for opera if the composer feels it so intently he must sing it out.

Give me a laundry-list and I'll set it to music.

Give me a laundry-list and I'll set it to music.