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

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.

Playlist

The magnificent world of vocal artistry: a special feature on popular vocal works from opera to art songs.
	Title	Playlist	Review
1	“Gypsy Song” from the opera CarmenGeorges Bizet		Bizet's captivating opera Carmen
2	O mio babbino caro from the opera Gianni SchicchiGiacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini		Moved by a beautiful Italian opera piece
3	Queen of the Night Aria from the opera The Magic FluteWolfgang Amadeus Mozart		“Queen of the Night Aria” by Mozart
4	VocaliseSergei Vasil’evich Rachmaninov		Rachmaninoff’s beautiful masterpiece, Vocalise
5	“Un bel dì, vedremo” (One Fine Day) from the opera Madama ButterflyGiacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini		The beautiful aria from Madame Butterfly, moving.
6	Nessun dorma from the opera TurandotGiacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini		Puccini’s masterpiece, a gold medal performance
7	“Habanera (Love Is a Rebellious Bird)” from the opera CarmenGeorges Bizet		The passionate 'Carmen' moves women
8	The joy of loveJean Paul Egide Martini		The Joy of Love is Martini’s famous piece
9	‘What Is This Thing Called Love?’ from the opera The Marriage of FigaroWolfgang Amadeus Mozart		The famous piece from Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro
10	Demon KingFranz Peter Schubert		The Erlking is a scary song based on Goethe’s poem.
11	On Wings of SongFelix Mendelssohn		Mendelssohn’s famous piece “On Wings of Song”
12	Ave MariaBach/Gounod		Gounod's Ave Maria with a beautiful melody
13	My Sun (’O Sole Mio)Luciano Pavarotti		Italian classic song(s), Pavarotti’s singing voice
14	The Pearl Fishers: “Your Voice is in My Heart”Georges Bizet		The charm of Bizet’s masterpiece “The Pearl Fishers”
15	Una furtiva lagrima from the opera L’elisir d’amoreGaetano Donizetti		A beautiful, moving aria by Donizetti
16	E lucevan le stelle from the opera ToscaGiacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini		Puccini, the composer of masterpieces that make singers shine
17	The Flowers in the GardenAirurando min’yō		The Charm of the Irish Folk Song “The Last Rose of Summer”
18	Return to SorrentoErnesto De Curtis		The charm of the Neapolitan folk song “Return to Sorrento”
19	to be by (someone’s) sideLuigi Mancia		Music by a historic singer-songwriter
20	Duet of Papageno and Papagena from the opera The Magic FluteWolfgang Amadeus Mozart		The duet from Mozart’s The Magic Flute
21	“Solveig’s Song” from the opera Peer GyntEdvard Hagerup Grieg		Grieg composed incidental music for Ibsen's play.
22	Sempre libera from the opera La TraviataGiuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi		Netrebko’s moving performance of La Traviata
23	Praise the LordWolfgang Amadeus Mozart		Mozart’s soothing and beautiful vocal music
24	The opera The Tales of Hoffmann: The birds in the forest sing of longingJacques Offenbach		Singing brilliant high notes in the role of Olympia
25	“Song to the Moon” from the opera “Rusalka”Antonín Leopold Dvořák		The Rusalka water spirit’s wistful longing for the moon
26	From the opera The Magic Flute: ‘The joy of love vanishes like dew’Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart		Famous Aria from Mozart’s “The Magic Flute”
27	‘Your gentle voice’ from the opera ‘I Puritani’Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini		The famous aria from Bellini’s final opera, “I Puritani.”
28	Ave MariaFranz Peter Schubert		Ave Maria is a beautiful, heart-healing song.
29	“Caro nome” from the opera RigolettoGiuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi		The clear, transparent singing voice of vocalist Maki Mori
30	I Want to Live in My Dream, from the opera Romeo and JulietCharles François Gounod		Singing of happiness: Gounod’s Romeo and Juliet
31	Come Again to Please Me (from the opera “Alcina”)Georg Friedrich Händel		A famous piece from Handel’s Alcina
32	“O God of Love, Behold” from the opera The Marriage of FigaroWolfgang Amadeus Mozart		Famous arias from Mozart’s masterpiece operas
33	Daughters of CádizClément Philibert Léo Delibes		A famous masterpiece by Delibes, the father of ballet music
34	“Hallelujah Chorus” from the oratorio MessiahGeorg Friedrich Händel		The appeal of Handel’s masterpiece “Messiah”
35	From the opera ‘Andrea Chénier’: ‘La mamma morta’Umberto Giordano		A talented singer who performed the leading role in an opera
36	“Vissi d’arte, vissi d’amore” from the opera ToscaGiacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini		A famous aria from the opera Tosca, sung by Gheorghiu
37	From the opera ‘The World of the Moon’: ‘People have discretion.’Georg Friedrich Händel		The diva of Baroque music, Petibon
38	Ombra mai fuGeorg Friedrich Händel		The charm of Haydn’s famous piece “Ombra mai fu”
39	Ave MariaGiulio Caccini		The three most famous Ave Maria pieces were composed by different composers.
40	The Promised LandUematsu Nobuo		Sacred music, a lament for human fate and the soul
41	Oratorio “The Kingdom of God,” Op. 51Edward Elgar		Elgar’s majestic Holy Spirit oratorio
42	Waltz “Voices of Spring” with solo voiceJohann Strauss II		The Voices of Spring, a Strauss masterpiece
43	“Ah! My friends, what a happy day!” from the opera “La fille du régiment”Gaetano Donizetti		A Peruvian tenor with captivating ultra-high notes
44	Night and DreamFranz Peter Schubert		Night and Dreams, Schubert’s masterpiece
45	The Voice of SpringFranz Peter Schubert		A soprano singer from South Korea, a divine voice
46	At the end of the wilderness		A melancholy Western-style masterpiece: the soul of Yuzo Yamashita
47	SerenadeFranz Peter Schubert		A Serenade of Love Played by a Married Couple
48	Casta Diva from the opera NormaVincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini		Sonya Yoncheva, one of the world’s leading soprano singers
49	Starlit NightClaude Debussy		The captivating voice and challenges of the renowned singer Dessay
50	Letter Aria from the opera Eugene OneginPeter Ilyich Tchaikovsky		Tchaikovsky’s masterpiece opera, Eugene Onegin
51	Oratorio “The Apostles,” Op. 49Edward Elgar		Elgar’s oratorio, packed with emotionally rich highlights
52	Saint Paul, Op. 36Felix Mendelssohn		Biblical Oratorio in the Bach Tradition
53	the four seasonsFranz Joseph Haydn		Expressing the nature of the four seasons and humanity through music
54	The Legend of Saint ElizabethFranz Liszt		Franz Liszt’s The Legend of Saint Elizabeth
55	From Samson HWV 57: ‘Return, O Lord of Hosts’Georg Friedrich Händel		The moving prayer from Handel’s Samson
56	Christmas OratorioHilarion (Alfeyev)		Hilarion’s Christmas Oratorio
57	St Matthew PassionJ.S.Bach		The profound allure of Bach’s St. Matthew Passion
58	St John PassionJ.S.Bach		Bach’s Passion oratorios: expressing the Bible through music
59	Oratorio “Saint Nichiren”Mayuzumi Toshirō		Toshiro Mayuzumi’s Buddhist oratorio depicting the life of Nichiren
60	“O Fortuna” from Carmina BuranaCarl Orff		Carmina Burana is a dynamic masterpiece.
61	‘Mad Scene’ from the opera ‘Lucia di Lammermoor’Gaetano Donizetti		The tragedy of a bride who, after losing her lover, descends into madness
62	Amarilli, my fair oneGiulio Caccini		Jarleksy sings the exquisite Amarilli
63	From the opera La Traviata: ‘Is that the man? ~ From flower to flower’Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi		The global diva Callas: her allure and acting prowess
64	Easter OratorioJ.S.Bach		The Charm of Bach's Easter Oratorio
65	Motet “Rejoice, be glad, O blessed souls,” HallelujahWolfgang Amadeus Mozart		Mozart’s masterpiece expressing joy and purity
66	Theme song of the movie ‘Princess Mononoke’Hisaishi Joe		The music of countertenor Yoshikazu Mera
67	After the DreamGabriel Urbain Fauré		The fantastical song 'After a Dream'
68	From the song cycle “Six Ariettas”: “Gentle Fairy, O Melancholia”Vincenzo Salvatore Carmelo Francesco Bellini		Masterpieces of Italian bel canto music
69	GranadaAgustin Lara		The opera “Granada” is a passionate masterpiece.
70	Flower Duet from the opera LakméClément Philibert Léo Delibes		The Flower Duet from Lakmé is beautiful.
71	From the opera Carmen: ‘This flower that you threw to me’Georges Bizet		The allure of a tenor passionately singing
72	Kyrie “From J.S. Bach: Mass in B minor”J.S.Bach		The beautiful vocals of Bach’s Mass in B minor
73	“Catalogue Aria” from the opera Don GiovanniWolfgang Amadeus Mozart		The Appeal of a Baritone Singer from South America
74	hometown		Yumiko Samejima’s captivating singing voice and the spirit of Japan
75	Hallelujah from the oratorio MessiahGeorg Friedrich Händel		“Messiah” is a famous masterpiece known as a hymn of praise to God.
76	“Lord, Have Mercy” from the St. Matthew PassionJ.S.Bach		A Canadian alto singer who specializes in Mahler
77	Wotan’s Farewell and Magic Fire Music from the opera The ValkyrieRichard Wagner		A tattooed Russian baritone singer