David Pogue had a musical career on Broadway before he became one of the nation's top technology gurus. Scott Speck has conducted orchestras around the world and is coauthor of Ballet For Dummies. Together, they also wrote Classical Music For Dummies.

Foreword. Introduction. PART I: Larger Than Life. Chapter 1: Curtain Up! Chapter 2: The Librettos the Thing. Chapter 3: The Scores the Other Thing. Chapter 4: Opera Singers and Their Equipment. PART II: The Story of Opera. Chapter 5: A Little Greece, a Little Italy. Chapter 6: The French Connection. Chapter 7: English Channels. Chapter 8: Opera with a German Accent. Chapter 9: The Russian Evolution and the American Way. PART III: A Night at the Opera. Chapter 10: How to Go to an Opera. Chapter 11: A Spin through Your Free CD. Intermission: Backstage Tour. PART IV: A Guide to the Worlds Most Beloved Operas. Chapter 12: The 50 Big Kahunas. Chapter 13: The Best of the Rest. PART V: The Part of Tens. Chapter 14: The Ten Most Common Misconceptions about Opera. Chapter 15: The Ten Best Opera Terms for Cocktail Parties. Chapter 16: Ten Great Opera Jokes. Chapter 17: Ten Ways to Keep Discovering Opera Forever. PART VI: Appendixes. Appendix A: Getting Started. Appendix B: Opera Timeline. Appendix C: Glossary. Index.