Accessible opera : overcoming linguistic and sensorial barriers

The desire to make media available for all has been rapidly accepted and implemented by most European countries. Opera, as one of the many audiovisual representations, also falls under the category of production which needs to be made accessible and this article aims to analyse how opera has gone through a complete transformation to become a cultural event for all, overcoming not only linguistic but also sensorial barriers. The first part of the article analyses the various forms of translation associated with opera and the main challenges they entail. The second presents different systems used to make opera accessible to the sensorially challenged, highlighting their main difficulties. Examples from research carried out at the Barcelona's Liceu opera house are presented to illustrate various modalities, especially audio description. All in all, it is our aim to show how translated-related processes have made it possible to open opera to a wider audience despite some initial reluctance

Translating Music: towards a social, cultural, and linguistic accessibility of musical texts in the 21st century

The primary goal of this Research Innovation project is to contribute to new developments in the interlingual and intralingual translation of texts comprising musical elements. The core research questions of this project are the following: (1) First, the project aims to investigate how music can be made available across sensory barriers, in which cases it should be mediated and what routines could be heralded as best translation practice in these instances. This project aims to find out the type of translation provision that will work in musical contexts and hopes to build upon the little research that already exists on the translation of music, both for sighted and hearing audiences, as well as for visually and hearing-impaired. (2) The second research question explores the relationship of musical texts and new technologies, considering how the latter are crucial for enhancing the mediation of musical texts and inspiring new ways of translating music. he third overarching research question of this project seeks the improvement of knowledge and techniques of how vocal music is best translated. What are the trends in the translation of musical texts? How can the training of translators with limited expertise in music be enhanced? In what circumstances should musical input be transferred or left out? What are the reasons for the current inconsistency of translation provision in texts involving music? In what circumstances and to what degree might it be appropriate to suggest the impact that music has on a text? How much do new trends in copyright legislation affect the provision of the translation of songs? These are some of the questions that researchers aim to find answers for