TECHNES Encyclopedia Database

The Metropolitan Opera, the instigator of high-definition, live transmissions of operas in movie theatres, is a fundamental case study for understanding the phenomenon of what we might call the live transmission. Since its foundation in 1883, this New York opera house has stood out for its bold programming initiatives and for the good use it has made of dissemination technologies with the avowed goal of extending its reach beyond its walls. Its history is closely linked with the appearance of a panoply of image, sound and audiovisual dissemination and transmission techniques, technologies and media, with a predilection for live events.