Singing Speech and Speaking Melodies: Minor Forms of Musical Theatre in the 18th and 19th Century

This volume addresses the complex variety of stage works with sung and spoken sections, such as "vaudeville", "singspiel", "opéra-comique", "zarzuela" or "operetta" in different European countries from the eighteenth century to the beginning of the Twenties. Beyond a multifaceted perspective, twenty-one essays investigate the nature of these musical theatre forms, attending their origins, literary sources, relationships, vocality or cultural transfers, features that in some cases have made them become a mass phenomenon. The dissemination and adaptation of these genres through different national contexts, confirms the significance of the long-standing relationship between them and the contemporary dramatical and musical repertoire, revealing significant synergies, always conditioned by the market evolution.