Opera in Hi-Def

The curtain will soon open on the School of Music’s performance of Threepenny Opera, and with it opens a new era of collaboration between the School of Music and Northwestern University Information Technology (NUIT).

Northwestern University Advanced Media Production Studio (NUAMPS), a division of NUIT Academic Technologies, will record three School of Music opera productions in High Definition Video (HDV) each year. Following a trial collaboration last spring to record The Magic Flute, directed by Professor Noel Koran, NUAMPS will again work with Professor Koran on Threepenny Opera, Bertolt Brecht and Kurt Weill’s epic opera portraying the shadowy side of 1928 London.

Threepenny Opera will be recorded by a four–camera crew, and a NUAMPS audio specialist will also be on hand to assure top–quality sound. The video will be edited at the highest resolution possible to create the sharpest finished product and will insure the work will continue to meet the ever–increasing requirements of advancing exhibition technologies.

“This is one of the most exciting opportunities I’ve been involved with for documenting and recording the enormous student talent we have at Northwestern,” said Professor Koran. “The dedicated and talented people at NUAMPS brought our production of The Magic Flute to vibrant visual life, and we’re looking forward to working with them again.”

As with The Magic Flute, Threepenny Opera will be available in on–demand streaming formats from the NUAMPS Web site, on DVD through the Marjorie I. Mitchell Multimedia Center, and as a rotating program on NU Channel 1 Student Television (NUCH1).