There are few things I love more than opera, and I’m not talking about the Web browser.
This may sound silly, but opera has truly contributed a lot to my life.
At first, I thought the singers sounded strange, but I’ve really come to enjoy the sound of a well-trained voice.
It’s an acquired taste, but it’s well worth acquiring.
I recall someone once saying rhythm and blues is raw and emotional, whereas Baroque and Classical music are controlled and dull.
I wholeheartedly disagree.
I challenge any reader to find a piece more lovely and conveying more longing than “Dido’s Lament” from Henry Purcell’s “Dido and Aeneas.”
I challenge any reader to find a scene more grand and haunting than the Commendatore’s scene from Mozart’s “Don Giovanni.”
I challenge any reader to find a more flirty and refined tune than the famous Habanera aria from Georges Bizet’s “Carmen.”
Part of what makes opera great is precisely the controlled quality my unfortunate acquaintance was referring to.
Many people come together from different fields of the arts, oftentimes having dedicated their lives to their art, and make spectacles that to this day stand among the most noble of art forms.
If you’re bored and have two hours to spend, you should spend those hours on the movie “Amadeus.”
That’s how I was introduced to opera, and it’s a great primer.
You know what else is good?
I promise it is.
“Battlestar Galactica.”
I have literally never seen anything better than “Battlestar Galactica.”
Really, though.
Nothing has ever been more excellently done, in my opinion, and I don’t hand out such a designation lightly.
Not a science fiction fan?
That won’t matter.
This series transcends such petty boundaries to deliver a supremely human story.
If you’re bored and have another two hours to spend, spend them on the pilot miniseries called “Night.”
You won’t regret it.
So, why have I decided to write a column about things that I like?
Because I genuinely think these things are awesome and that anyone who comes into contact with them will benefit from them.
Also, it’s because I’m continually baffled at how much attention twits get.
Now, I’m not about to make the mistake the out of touch Wednesday columnist made.
He seemed to say that rappers, without exception, “spew filth and objectify women.”
Although there are rap artists who do engage in such senselessness, there are also rap artists out there who arguably do just the opposite.
There’s a big problem, though.
I think too few of the talented rap artists get too little attention, while too many of the untalented rappers get too much attention.
Why is this?
I think part of it has to do with the fact that as a culture we’ve, at least to some extent, turned away from what is wholesome and beautiful.
Instead, we’ve turned more toward whatever garbage can be mass produced at a low price and successfully marketed.
And there’s a problem with this.
There’s no lack of talent in the world.
Humanity is brimming with people who express their souls through art.
They dedicate their lives to something excellent.
They throw themselves onto their instruments.
But they are only heard by very few.
Meanwhile, Justin Bieber sighs and much of the world sighs with him.
I just don’t know anymore.
So, if you are inclined to agree with the aforementioned Wednesday columnist and have even a couple of minutes to spend, I encourage you to spend them looking up some of the underground rap artists out there.
Trust me.
You’ll almost certainly be astonished.
I was.
Brandon Lee Gagne is an anthropology senior at UF. His column usually runs on Fridays. You can contact him via opinions@alligator.org.
