Italian opera of the early 1700s developed into 2 basic types: opera seria, or serious opera, & this, comic opera
In 
traditional opera, singers do two types of singing: recitative, ... Opera seria was 
the most prestigious form of Italian opera, until Christoph Willibald Gluck reacted 
against its... [DOC] [TLE] Comic opera - Wikipedia [PAR] Comic opera denotes a sung dramatic work of a light or comic nature, usually 
with a happy ending.