Music of a wonderful world

The magnificent world of vocal artistry: a special feature on popular vocal works from opera to art songs.

Piano-playing singer-songwriter / Executive Committee Member, Special Music Festival in Rinku OsakaHousui Sachiyo
I learned to hit the keys on a toy piano, started Electone lessons at six, and began piano at ten. I loved the piano so much that I declared, “I want to go to a music college!” and from junior high I studied vocal music, ear training, and music theory (though I never even took the entrance exam in the end). In my childhood, my saxophone-playing father introduced me to jazz, and my mother to rockabilly. I was utterly obsessed with classical music in junior high. In high school, my grandmother took me to hear live tango performances, and before I knew it I’d become an eclectic listener. Lately, influenced by my high-school-aged daughter, I’ve been listening to koto music and nagauta. I hold the rather rare qualification of ‘Music Proficiency Test Level 3, Western Music track.’

In vocal music, the singer’s body itself becomes the instrument.

Perhaps many of you haven’t really had the chance to listen to it properly?

Vocal music includes a variety of forms such as opera and art songs, and we’ve gathered some famous pieces we highly recommend even for beginners.

You’ll surely be moved, thinking, “Can such rich expression really come from the human body?”

We also recommend listening while paying attention not only to the melody but also to the lyrics and the story.

The world of magnificent singing voices: A special selection of popular vocal works from opera to art songs (41–50)

“Song to the Moon” from the opera “Rusalka”Antonín Leopold Dvořák

FREDERICA VON STADE – RUSALKA (MOON SONG)

“Song to the Moon” from the opera “Rusalka”Antonín Leopold Dvořák

Song to the Moon is a famous aria in which the water nymph Rusalka, who has fallen in love with a human, sings her wistful feelings to the moon.

This piece is the well-known aria from Act 1 of Rusalka, the ninth opera composed by Antonín Dvořák.

It was composed in 1900 and premiered at the National Theatre in Prague in March 1901.

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The splendid world of singing: A collection of popular vocal works from opera to art songs (51–60)

Daughters of CádizClément Philibert Léo Delibes

sarah brightman les filles de cadiz

Daughters of CádizClément Philibert Léo Delibes

A representative song by Clément-Philippe Léo Delibes (1836–1891), a Romantic composer known as the father of French ballet music, is Les Filles de Cadix, set to a poem by Alfred de Musset.

It is a celebrated piece renowned for its dazzling orchestral writing and dramatic vocal lines.

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“O Fortuna” from Carmina BuranaCarl Orff

André Rieu – O Fortuna (Carmina Burana – Carl Orff)

“O Fortuna” from Carmina BuranaCarl Orff

The cantata Carmina Burana is what catapulted the name of German composer Carl Orff, born in 1895, to worldwide fame.

Its opening orchestration for orchestra and voices, with its powerful impact, is dynamic and dramatic—a masterpiece renowned for its overwhelming performance.

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From the opera ‘The World of the Moon’: ‘People have discretion.’Georg Friedrich Händel

Patricia Petibon – Ragion nell’alma siede – Haydn (Official Video)

From the opera 'The World of the Moon': 'People have discretion.'Georg Friedrich Händel

Watch on YouTube: “From the opera ‘The World of the Moon’: ‘People have discretion.’ Georg Friedrich Händel

Patricia Petibon, a French coloratura soprano, is an artist of remarkable versatility in both acting and singing, whose talent was discovered by William Christie, founder of the period-instrument ensemble Les Arts Florissants.

The famous aria “Ragion nell’alma siede” from Haydn’s opera Il mondo della luna is a piece that showcases Petibon’s allure as a specialist in Baroque opera.

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‘Mad Scene’ from the opera ‘Lucia di Lammermoor’Gaetano Donizetti

Donizetti: Mad Scene from the opera Lucia di Lammermoor

'Mad Scene' from the opera 'Lucia di Lammermoor'Gaetano Donizetti

A famous scene in which the heroine, Lucia—driven to despair after being torn from her lover—stabs her betrothed in a political marriage and loses her sanity, singing on and on.

The bloodstained bride’s madness is rendered in a meltingly beautiful voice by one of today’s leading sopranos, Netrebko.

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“Ah! My friends, what a happy day!” from the opera “La fille du régiment”Gaetano Donizetti

Juan Diego Florez – La Fille du Regiment – Ah mes amis

“Ah! My friends, what a happy day!” from the opera “La fille du régiment”Gaetano Donizetti

Watch “Ah! My friends, what a happy day!” from the opera “La fille du régiment” by Gaetano Donizetti on YouTube.

A tenor singer from Lima, Peru.

Known for his bright, emotionally rich high notes, he possesses the skill to flawlessly deliver the ultra-high notes considered challenging even for tenors.

This piece is a song from The Daughter of the Regiment, which became a breakthrough work for Flores.

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Ave MariaGiulio Caccini

Ave Maria (In the Style of Giulio Caccini)

Ave MariaGiulio Caccini

Giulio Caccini’s (1545–1618) Ave Maria, Schubert’s Ave Maria, and Gounod’s (Bach’s) Ave Maria are famous as the world’s three great Ave Marias.

However, the truth is that Caccini’s Ave Maria was actually composed by the Soviet musician Vladimir Vavilov (1925–1973).

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