The Oxford handbook of opera

Part I. What is opera? What is opera? / Tim Carter ; Genre / Emanuele Senici ; Musical theater(s) / Derek B. Scott ; Operatorio? / Monika Hennemann ; The concept of opera / Lydia Goehr

Part II. Words, music, and meaning. The libretto and the score. Oft-told tales / Vincent Giroud ; The language of national style / Marina Frolova-Walker ; Musical dramaturgy / Damien Colas ; Versification / Andreas Giger ; The German libretto of the early nineteenth century / John Warrack ; Analysis / William Drabkin

Humanism, verisimilitude, and voice. Opera between the Ancients and the Moderns / Wendy Heller ; Verisimilitude / Thomas Betzwieser ; Voice / Michal Grover-Friedlander ; Characterization / Julian Rushton ; Meaning / Lawrence Kramer

Part III. Performance and production. Divas and Divos / Hilary Poriss ; Castrato acts / Martha Feldman ; Rehearsal practices / Mark Everist ; Acting / Simon Williams ; The chorus / Ryan Minor ; The orchestra / Alessandro Di Profio ; Dance / Linda J. Tomko ; Production aesthetics and materials / Katherine Syer ; Costumes / Veronica Isaac ; Regietheater/Director's theater / Ulrich Müller ; Historically Informed performance / Mary Hunter

Part IV. Opera and society. Opera composition and cultural environment / Marianne Betz ; Patronage / Valeria De Lucca ; Audiences / Georgia Cowart ; Autographs, memorabilia, and the aesthetics of collecting / Daniela Macchione ; Politics / Marc A. Weiner ; Religion / Jesse Rosenberg ; Race and racism / John Graziano ; Gender / Alexandra Wilson ; Exoticism / W. Anthony Sheppard ; Censorship / Francesco Izzo

Part V. Transmission and reception. How opera traveled / Louise K. Stein ; The operatic canon / James Parakilas ; Critics / Paul Watt ; Soundings offstage / Thomas Christensen ; Visual media / Marcia J. Citron ; Operatic images / Helen M. Greenwald ; Sources / Linda B. Fairtile ; Reconstructions / Charles S. Brauner ; Editing opera / Patricia B. Brauner ; Writing the history of opera / Philip Gossett

Part VI. Opera on the edge. 1900-1945 / Joy H. Calico ; After the canon / Robert Fink

Epilogue. Composing opera / Jake Heggie.