All this notwithstanding, we know—Lohengrin being an opera—that even as the greatest of conducted performances can be brought low by inadequate singing, so can an indifferently conducted one be rescued by musically imaginative, vocally exciting singing. As always, evaluation of that depends on the standard being applied, which necessarily  depends in large part on an awareness of standards set in the past. And of late, I have been concerned equally by thoughts that, on the one hand, some readers could be wearying of the constant application of my standards and, on the other, that most of my fellow critics seem either to not know or not care about those set in even the recent, let alone a more distant past, so that “going forward”—if that is indeed the direction we’re headed— it appears that evaluation may have for context only impressions of the moment at particular junctures in the lives of persons in divers states of operatic education and experience, which is to say no context of any critical value at all. In our rapidly approaching posthuman future, though, presumably no one will care about that, and some will welcome the more objective, data-driven and conflict-mediated judgments of our AI oracles, entertainingly set in Petrarchan sonnet form, Wagnerian Stabreim, Edward Lear nonsense verse, or whatever else they have gorged on at feeding time from the hands of their human designers. Evidently seized with such possibilities amid all the amazements of ChatGPT, and perhaps a little worried that we few remaining mortal critics may be superseded before our time has quite run out, a friend of mine made a quick pilgrimage to that new temple of wisdom and assigned it two tasks of immediate interest here.

Task No. 1: “Write two paragraphs on the decline in Wagner singing in the style of Conrad L. Osborne.” Smoke rising, the oracle labored briefly but profoundly, if also clumsily, and pronounced: “Once regarded as a top musical accomplishment, the complexity and considerable vocal range required for performing Wagner’s intricate works has made participating in such productions a difficult task.” As if that weren’t enough, ” . . . other musical forms, such as contemporary musicals and operas, have displaced Wagner singing in certain areas of the music industry.” In turn, this has meant ” . . . fewer opportunities for younger singers to gain experience in this style of singing,” and ” . . . the rich tradition of Wagner singing is in danger of being forgotten in years to come.”  Sounds bad, but:

Task No. 2: “Write two paragraphs on the revival in Wagner singing in the style of Conrad L. Osborne.” A warming glimmer, and then: “In recent years, there has been an increased level of interest in Wagner singing . . . the complexity and vocal ranges required to perform these compositions have made them an increasingly desired challenge in the music industry,” resulting in ” . . . an ever-growing collection of singers qualified to sing these renowned works.” And then, from the little slot marked “Take Prophecy,” a slip reading ” . . . this new level of appreciation for Wagner singing  . . . is paving the way for its future as a relevant and flourishing art form.“