Famous opera masterpieces | Featuring many great opera singers
Opera is fairly familiar in Japan, even being included in school textbooks.
Still, many people may recognize the melodies without knowing much about the famous opera pieces themselves.
For those readers, we’ve selected a number of renowned opera masterpieces.
In addition to introducing the works, we explain them from various angles—the background of their creation, the appeal of the opera singers performing them, and more—so both regular opera listeners and those less familiar with opera can enjoy the content.
Please take your time and enjoy it to the very end.
Playlist
| Famous opera masterpieces | Featuring many great opera singers | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| show_chart | Title | Playlist | Review |
| 1east | Queen of the Night ariaDiana Damrau |  play_arrow | Among soprano opera pieces, the most famous piece is... |
| 2east | Nessun DormaGianfranco Cecchele |  | When asked about famous opera pieces, this is the song that comes to mind... |
| 3east | CarusoLuciano Pavarotti |  play_arrow | A masterpiece, ‘Caruso’... This song is ope... |
| 4east | La donna è mobileThe Three Tenors |  play_arrow | A composer of Romantic music who represents Italy, ... |
| 5east | Core ‘ngratoFranco Corelli |  play_arrow | In Japan, the title is “Katari Katari”… |
| 6east | O sole mioMario Del Monaco |  play_arrow | A renowned masterpiece representing Italian canzone, “… |
| 7east | MattinataLuciano Pavarotti |  play_arrow | A great opera composer who produced numerous masterpieces... |
| 8east | Che gelida maninaRamón Vargas |  play_arrow | The com… who has created numerous operatic masterpieces |
| 9east | L’amour est un oiseau rebelleElina Garanca |  play_arrow | The opera created by Georges Bizet… |
| 10east | Frühlingsstimmen Op. 410Isyana Sarasvati |  play_arrow | Johann Strauss II’s famous piece, “Frü…” |
| 11east | O mio babbino caroMontserrat Caballé |  play_arrow | Giacomo Puccini’s opera ‘Giann…’ |
| 12east | Torna a SurrientoFranco Corelli |  play_arrow | Familiar in Japan as well—being adopted in school textbooks, for example… |
| 13east | Casta DivaMaria Callas |  play_arrow | It was made by Vincenzo Nibali... |
| 14east | GranadaMario Lanza |  play_arrow | Agustín Lara, a composer from Mexico… |
| 15east | Gelido in ogni venaCecilia Bartoli |  play_arrow | Antonio Vivaldi’s opera “Fa…” |
| 16east | E lucevan le stelleJonas Kaufmann |  play_arrow | The famous piece composed by Giacomo Puccini, “E…” |
| 17east | Ave MariaLuciano Pavarotti |  play_arrow | Franz Schubert’s lied, “Ave …” |
| 18east | Una furtiva lagrimaL’Elisir d’Amore |  play_arrow | A representative Italian musician of the first half of the 19th century… |
| 19east | Cantique de NoëlEnrico Caruso |  play_arrow | A masterpiece based on Placide Cappeau’s poem… |
| 20east | E lucevan le stelleJosé Carreras |  play_arrow | I'd like to take a moment here to introduce a somewhat unusual piece of music... |
| 21east | Opera Dido and Aeneas (by Henry Purcell)Uīn Kontsentsusu Mujikusu |  play_arrow | From the harmony of a beautiful melody to the orchestra’s… |
| 22east | Wagner: Ride of the Valkyries, conducted by Karajan / Bayreuth Festival Orchestra (1951)Richard Wagner |  play_arrow | Born in 1813, a German composer and conductor… |
| 23east | Overture to the opera “Ruslan and Lyudmila”Mikhail Glinka |  play_arrow | Born in 1804, the Russian composer Mikhail… |
| 24east | Bridal ChorusSurovakia Firuhāmonī Gasshōdan |  play_arrow | From one of the pieces in the opera Lohengrin, ... |
| 25east | Carmen (by Bizet)Hanburuku Kita Doitsu Hoso Kokyo Gakudan |  play_arrow | Carmen, who lives passionately and freely, and the man who loved her, but... |
| 26east | Rossini: The Barber of Seville • OvertureGioachino Rossini |  play_arrow | Born in 1792, the Italian composer Gioa... |
| 27east | Sea and Land of ProvenceDietrich Fischer-Dieskau |  play_arrow | From Verdi’s La Traviata, Germont’s (Act 2) … |
| 28east | Light Cavalry OvertureFranz von Suppé |  play_arrow | Born in 1819, an Australian composer… |
| 29east | ‘Triumphal March’ from Verdi’s opera AidaGiuseppe Verdi |  play_arrow | Giuseppe…, an Italian composer who represents the 19th century |
| 30east | Candide Overture – Leonard BernsteinLeonard Bernstein |  play_arrow | Born in 1918, an American composer and conduct… |
| 31east | Intermezzo from the opera Cavalleria Rusticana (Mascagni)Pietro Mascagni |  play_arrow | Born in 1863, an Italian opera composer… |
| 32east | Scene of frenzyJōn Sazārando: Uta |  play_arrow | Due to my older brother’s scheme, my marriage to the one I love could not... |
| 33east | Opera ‘Pagliacci’ (by Ruggero Leoncavallo)Doresuden Kokuritsu Kagikyokujo Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | Lively music plays, and at the beginning of the opera the clown character... |
| 34east | Opera Orfeo ed Euridice (by Gluck)Furaiburuku Barokku Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | Orpheus’s beloved wife, Eurydice, ... |
| 35east | Song of GemsRosu Anheresu: uta |  play_arrow | It’s a song sung in the opera “Faust”… |
| 36east | Opera La Traviata (Giuseppe Verdi)Tōkyō Firuhāmonī Kōkyō Gakudan |  play_arrow | Dramatic and with an outstandingly large number of performances, O... |
| 37east | The Champagne SongEzio Pinza |  play_arrow | From Mozart’s Don Giovanni, Act I… |
| 38east | Pourquoi me reveiller / O spring breeze, why do you awaken me? (O spring breeze, why do you awaken me?)Jonas Kaufmann/yonasu·kaufuman: song |  play_arrow | Based on the novel The Sorrows of Young Werther, o... |
| 39east | Mozart – The Marriage of Figaro Overture (K.492) – Wiener Symphoniker – Fabio Luisi (HD)Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart |  play_arrow | Born in 1756, an Australian composer... |
| 40east | Comic opera The Elixir of Love (by Gaetano Donizetti)Uīn Kokuritsu Kagekijō Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | The story revolving around the strategies of love is intriguing... |
| 41east | The current singing voiceTeresa Berugansa: Uta |  play_arrow | A de… picting events prior to The Marriage of Figaro |
| 42east | Opera Der Freischütz (by Weber)Hanburuku Firuhāmonī Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | The structure of the prelude is amazing—“The Hunters’ Chorus”… |
| 43east | Batti, batti, o bel Masetto / Beat me, Masetto (/ Beat me, my dear Masetto / Beat me, beat me please, hey Masetto / Strike me, Masetto) |  play_arrow | One of the pieces from the opera Don Giovanni... |
| 44east | Casta Diva / O pure goddessRenee Fleming/ Rune Furemingu: Uta |  play_arrow | A song from the opera Norma, in which the Roman Emp— |
| 45east | Let me weep Opera ‘Rinaldo’ Michie Nakamaru 0001Georg Friedrich Händel |  play_arrow | Born in Germany in 1685, and later in England... |
| 46east | Elsa’s Procession to the Cathedral from the opera LohengrinWilhelm Wagner |  play_arrow | Solemn music, beautiful melodies, and moving emotion |
| 47east | Whoever has won a lovely wife (who has married a good wife) |  play_arrow | Beethoven’s only completed opera, “F… |
| 48east | Go, my thoughts, borne on golden wingsArturo Toscanini |  play_arrow | The chorus sung in Verdi’s Nabucco… |
| 49east | C. Saint-Saëns “Henry VIII” in 4 Acts, Imperial Theatre of Compiègne (France), 1991, Part 2/2Camille Saint-Saëns |  play_arrow | Camille Saint-Saëns’s opera Henry VIII. It is characterized by church music and choral writing. |
| 50east | Weber: Opera “Der Freischütz” J.277 — Huntsmen’s ChorusCarl Maria von Weber |  play_arrow | Born in 1786, a German composer and conductor… |
| 51east | Agitata Da Due VentiCecilia Bartoli |  play_arrow | From Vivaldi’s Griselda. A modern re... |
| 52east | Gluck Orfeo ed Euridice OvertureChristoph Willibald Gluck |  play_arrow | Born in what is now Germany in 1714, and in what is now O... |
| 53east | It’s a dream, it can’t be real / It’s like a dreamDiana Damrau/Deiana Damurau: uta |  play_arrow | It’s one piece from the opera Der Rosenkavalier. The girl… |
| 54east | Song of the ApothecaryElisabeth Schwarzkopf |  play_arrow | From Mozart's Don Giovanni, Act 2… |
| 55east | That or thisEnrico Caruso |  play_arrow | From Verdi's Rigoletto, Act I, the mantle... |
| 56east | The Song of the CatalogFernando Corena |  play_arrow | The opera Don Gio... composed by Mozart |
| 57east | Opera ‘L’Arlésienne’ Ordinary Story Salvatore LicitraFrancesco Cilea |  play_arrow | I will introduce Federico’s Lament from Cilea’s opera “L’arlesiana.” |
| 58east | Cold handsFrancisco Araiza |  play_arrow | From Puccini’s La Bohème, Act I: Rodo… |
| 59east | Put on your costume.Franco Corelli |  play_arrow | From Leoncavallo’s Pagliacci, Canio’s Ar… |
| 60east | Ranko Edogawa (soprano) Lehár: from the operetta “The Merry Widow,” “The Merry Widow Waltz” (“Vilja Song”/“On the High, High Mountain”)Franz Lehar |  play_arrow | Born in 1870, in Austria and Germany... |
| 61east | From the opera ‘Carmen’: ‘Toreador Song’ by G. Bizet — ‘I gladly accept your toast’ (Akiyama Takanori) Bizet: Carmen — Toreador Song ‘Votre toast’Georges Bizet |  play_arrow | Born in 1838, a composer of 19th-century France… |
| 62east | Pavarotti: Nessun dorma (Puccini: from the opera Turandot)Giacomo Puccini |  play_arrow | Born in 1858, the Italian composer Giaco... |
| 63east | G. C. MENOTTI | Amelia al Ballo: FinaleGian Carlo Menotti |  play_arrow | Born in Italy in 1911, active in the United States… |
| 64east | O, how many timesGraziella Sciutti |  play_arrow | Julietta’s aria, despairing over an unwanted marriage… |
| 65east | My daughter or my cute wifeHermann Prey |  play_arrow | From Mozart’s The Magic Flute, Papageno in Act 2… |
| 66east | Winter storms have yielded to the blissful moon.Klaus Florian Vogt/ Kurausu Furorian Fōkuto: uta, The Bavarian State Orchestra/ Baiyerun Kokuritsu Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | A pair of long-separated twin brother and sister reunite and find themselves drawn to each other… |
| 67east | Live for song, live for loveLeontyne Price |  play_arrow | From Puccini's Tosca, Tosca's aria in Act 2... |
| 68east | Tears unseen by anyoneLuigi Alva |  play_arrow | From Donizetti's The Elixir of Love, Nemorino in Act 2... |
| 69east | Recondita armoniaPlacido Domingo |  play_arrow | From Puccini's Tosca, Act 1, Cavarad— |
| 70east | You devil, you fiend.Renato Bruson |  play_arrow | From Verdi's Rigoletto, Rigoletto in Act 2… |
| 71east | The current singing voiceRita Streich |  play_arrow | From Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, Act 1… |
| 72east | Largo al factotumThomas Hampson |  play_arrow | A demanding Rossini piece that requires a baritone to sing in a high range and deliver rapid-fire passages. |
| 73east | My fatherAna Maria Marutinesu: uta |  play_arrow | One of the pieces from the opera Gianni Schicchi... |
| 74east | I wonder what love is like.Inguritto Keruteshi: Uta |  play_arrow | In the opera The Marriage of Figaro, the Countess Rosina... |
| 75east | Opera La serva padrona (by Giovanni Battista Pergolesi)I Barokkisuti Okesutora |  play_arrow | The story of this opera is that the wealthy master... |
| 76east | Opera ‘Martha’ (Friedrich von Flotow)Shutātsukapere Berurin Kokuritsu Kagijō Ōkesutora |  play_arrow | A romantic comed—portraying the love intrigues of court ladies in an amusing way… |
| 77east | Hunters’ Chorus: The Joy of the HunterSurovakia Firuhāmonī Gasshōdan |  play_arrow | An incident at a shooting tournament where marriage to a loved one was at stake... |
| 78east | 手紙の場<だめになってもいいけど、そのまえにわたしは>Dinaara Ariiewa: Uta |  play_arrow | From the opera Eugene Onegin... |
| 79east | Song of a Woman’s HeartDeru=Monako: uta |  play_arrow | It’s one of the songs from the opera Rigoletto. Compo… |
| 80east | Opera Hamlet (by Ambroise Thomas)Tūruzūzu Kyapituru Kokuritsu Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | Among Shakespeare’s many tragedies, Hamlet... |
| 81east | Comedy The Mastersingers of Nuremberg (by Wagner)Bairoito Shukusai Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | “Die Meistersinger von Nürnberg” is … |
| 82east | Opera Rinaldo (by Handel)Fenīche Gekijō Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | Woven with the architectural beauty of a beautiful symphony… |
| 83east | Tosca (by Puccini)Berurin Firuhāmonī Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | The opera Tosca, accompanied by the orchestra… |
| 84east | The Bourgeois Nobleman (composed by Jean-Baptiste Lully)Mujika Furōrea |  play_arrow | The comic opera-ballet The Bourgeois Gentleman, as a merchant… |
| 85east | Comic opera The Merry Wives of Windsor (by Otto Nicolai)Yōroppa Shitsunai Kangengakudan |  play_arrow | The comedy “Wi…” by William Shakespeare |
| 86east | On a sunny dayRichia Arubanēze: Uta |  play_arrow | It is an aria sung in the opera Madama Butterfly. |
| 87east | Tears unseen by anyoneRuiji Aruva: uta |  play_arrow | From one of the arias in the opera “L’elisir d’amore,” the farmer Ne... |
| 88east | Lady Macbeth of the Mtsensk District (by Shostakovich)Roiyaru Konserutohebou Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | Katerina, who married into the wealthy Ismailov family... |
| 89east | Opera Fidelio by BeethovenRōma Kagekijō Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | The opera that Beethoven completed is this… |
| 90east | Opera: The Rescue of Ruggiero (by Francesca Caccini)Vuwadisuwafu Kuwoshievichi |  play_arrow | The earliest opera composed by a woman is the Baro… |
| 91east | Matador’s SongHoriuchi Yasuo |  play_arrow | From Bizet's Carmen, Escamillo in Act 2... |
| 92east | Smetana: The Bartered Bride Overture / Israel Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by István KertészBedrich Smetana |  | Born in 1824, a Czech composer and conductor… |
| 93east | Eri tu che macchiaviDmitri Hvorostovsky |  play_arrow | From Verdi's Un ballo in maschera, Renato’s Act 3… |
| 94east | Pelléas and Mélisande (by Debussy)Uīn Hōsō Kōkyō Gakudan |  play_arrow | A faint, delicate feeling as you watch while enjoying a world of fantasy and imagination... |
| 95east | Opera: La sonnambula (by Vincenzo Bellini)Kariari Gekijō Shiriko Kangengakudan |  | Bellini’s specialty—his exquisite, elegant melodies—are… |
| 96east | The Bartered Bride (by Smetana)Cheko Firuhāmonī Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | Smetana’s The Bartered Bride is a Czech na... |
| 97east | Peter Grimes (Benjamin Britten)Rondon Kōkyō Gakudan |  play_arrow | It is said to be the greatest masterpiece of British opera… |
| 98east | What kindness! (What tranquility! / How sweet the April evening is! / How pleasant the April evening is.) |  play_arrow | One of the pieces from the opera Don Pasquale... |
| 99east | Ombra mai fuAafje Heynis |  play_arrow | From Act 1 of Handel’s Serse. As for Serse itself, it’s current… |
| 100east | My name is Mimi.Anna Moffo |  play_arrow | Giacomo Puccini’s opera “La bo…” |
| 101east | Libiamo ne’ lieti calici / Drinking Song (Brindisi)Carlo Rizzi／Karuro Rittsi: shiki |  play_arrow | The young man Alfredo, born into a distinguished family, and the high-class courtesan V... |
| 102east | I Gioielli della Madonna Intermezzo ~’The Jewels of the Madonna’ – Intermezzo~Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari |  play_arrow | Born in 1876, the Italian composer Erma... |
| 103east | Dialogues des Carmélites de Poulenc – Les grands moments – Atelier d’opéra UdeMFrancis Poulenc |  play_arrow | Born in 1899, the French composer Fran... |
| 104east | Anja Silja – Janacek – Vec Makropoulos – Final part 1.wmvLeoš Janaček |  play_arrow | The eighth opera by the composer Janáček, Compos… |
| 105east | O god of love, grant us peace.Maria Callas |  play_arrow | From Mozart's The Marriage of Figaro, Act 2... |
| 106east | Overture to the opera “The Merry Wives of Windsor”Otto Nicolai |  play_arrow | Born in 1810, a German composer and conductor… |
| 107east | Tchaikovsky: Polonaise from the opera Eugene Onegin, Op. 24Pyotr Tchaikovsky |  play_arrow | Born in 1840, the Russian composer Pyotr... |
| 108east | my fatherRenée Fleming |  play_arrow | From Puccini's Gianni Schicchi, Lauretta… |
| 109east | Rachmaninoff – The Miserly Knight, Op. 24Sergei Rachmaninov |  play_arrow | Born in Russia in 1873, he was a composer and pianis... |
| 110east | I don’t understand myself.Teresa Berganza |  play_arrow | From Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro, Act I… |
| 111east | Opera Orfeo (by Monteverdi)Jorudi Sabāru & Ra Kapera Reiaru De Katarūnya |  play_arrow | From the trumpet’s brilliant prelude, it soon becomes quiet and... |
| 112east | Overture to ‘Heaven and Hell’Surovakia Kokuritsu Kositsue Firuhāmonī Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | Opera “Orpheus in the Underworld (Orpheus of the Underworld)”… |
| 113east | Samson and Delilah (by Saint-Saëns)Pari Operaza Kangengakudan |  play_arrow | Saint-Saëns composed 13 operas over the course of his life... |
| 114east | Ravel: España (Maurice Ravel)Pari Kokuritsu Kagekijō Kangengakudan |  play_arrow | Ravel's distinctive qualities as an Impressionist are strongly expressed... |
| 115east | Chorus of TriumphHeruberuto Fon Karayan: shiki, Uīn Firuhāmonī Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | An Egyptian warrior and a princess of enemy Ethiopia... |
| 116east | To live for song, to live for love (To live for song, to live for love)Maria Karasu: Uta |  play_arrow | It’s one of the pieces from the opera Tosca. Napole... |
| 117east | Opera The Magic Flute (by Mozart)Mirano Sukara-za Kangen Gakudan |  play_arrow | The magnificent and grand “The Magic Flute” is one of Mozart’s... |
| 118east | Quel guardo il cavaliereAnna Netrebko |  play_arrow | From Donizetti’s Don Pasquale, No. 1… |
| 119east | Faust (by Gounod)Uīn Kōkyō Gakudan |  play_arrow | Gounod’s Faust is, overall, brimming with elegance… |
| 120east | Marquis, someone like youRita Shutoraihi: Uta |  play_arrow | It’s one of the pieces from the opera “Die Fledermaus.” “Ko… |