A concert aria is normally a free-standing

aria In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

opera Opera is a form of theatre in which music is a fundamental component and dramatic roles are taken by singers. Such a "work" (the literal translation of the Italian word "opera") is typically a collaboration between a composer and a librett ...

-like scene (''scena'') composed for singer and orchestra, written specifically for performance in concert rather than as part of an opera. Concert arias have often been composed for particular singers, the composer always bearing that singer's voice and skill in mind when composing the work. Apart from only denoting arias for singer and orchestra, the term is also used to indicate arias which were specifically composed as

insertion aria An insertion aria (' in Italian, also known as suitcase aria, interpolated aria, or trunk aria) is an aria sung in an opera for which it was not composed. It was a practice that began in the seventeenth century and continued actively through the ...

s for already-existing operas, either as additions to the score or as substitutions for other arias. These are sometimes performed in concerts because they are no longer required for their original purpose, though they were not, strictly speaking, composed for performance in concert. The concert arias which are most commonly performed today were written by

Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 17565 December 1791), baptised as Joannes Chrysostomus Wolfgangus Theophilus Mozart, was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition r ...

, but there are many examples by other composers, such as: *"Son qual nave ch'agitata" by

Riccardo Broschi Riccardo Broschi (c. 1698 – 1756) was a composer of baroque music and the brother of the opera singer Carlo Broschi, known as Farinelli. Life Broschi was born in Naples, the son of Salvatore Broschi, a composer and chapelmaster of the Cathe ...

(written for the famous

castrato A castrato (Italian, plural: ''castrati'') is a type of classical male singing voice equivalent to that of a soprano, mezzo-soprano, or contralto. The voice is produced by castration of the singer before puberty, or it occurs in one who, due to ...

Farinelli Farinelli (; 24 January 1705 – 16 September 1782) was the stage name of Carlo Maria Michelangelo Nicola Broschi (), a celebrated Italian castrato singer of the 18th century and one of the greatest singers in the history of opera. Farinelli h ...

) *"Ermina" by Juan Arriaga *"

Ah! perfido "" (Ah! Deceiver), Op. 65, is a concert aria for soprano and orchestra by Ludwig van Beethoven. The dramatic '' scena'' begins with a recitative in C major, taken from Pietro Metastasio's '' Achille in Sciro''. The aria "Per pietà, non dirmi a ...

" by

Ludwig van Beethoven Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. Beethoven remains one of the most admired composers in the history of Western music; his works rank amongst the most performed of the classical ...

Der Wein "" (The Wine) is a concert aria for soprano and orchestra, composed in 1929 by Alban Berg. The lyrics are from Stefan George's translation of three poems from Charles Baudelaire's ', as is the secret text of Berg's '' Lyric Suite''.Pople, Anthony ...

" for

soprano A soprano () is a type of classical female singing voice and has the highest vocal range of all voice types. The soprano's vocal range (using scientific pitch notation) is from approximately middle C (C4) = 261 Hz to "high A" (A5) = 880&n ...

and orchestra by

Alban Berg Alban Maria Johannes Berg ( , ; 9 February 1885 – 24 December 1935) was an Austrian composer of the Second Viennese School. His compositional style combined Romantic lyricism with the twelve-tone technique. Although he left a relatively sma ...

*"Scena di Berenice" by

Joseph Haydn Franz Joseph Haydn ( , ; 31 March 173231 May 1809) was an Austrian composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. He was instrumental in the development of chamber music such as the string quartet and piano trio. His contributions ...

*"Infelice!" by

Felix Mendelssohn Jakob Ludwig Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (3 February 18094 November 1847), born and widely known as Felix Mendelssohn, was a German composer, pianist, organist and conductor of the early Romantic period. Mendelssohn's compositions include sy ...

Mozart concert arias

Among the more well-known of Mozart's concert arias are: *" Popoli di Tessaglia!", K. 316, for soprano, with its two famous G notes (i.e., the G above high C - according to the

Guinness Book of Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

, the highest musical note ever scored for the human voice) that come shortly before the end. This aria was composed in order to be inserted into

Gluck Christoph Willibald (Ritter von) Gluck (; 2 July 1714 – 15 November 1787) was a composer of Italian and French opera in the early classical period (music), classical period. Born in the Upper Palatinate and raised in Bohemia, both part of the ...

's opera '' Alceste'', and also specifically to showcase the superlative vocal skills of Mozart's sister-in-law, Aloysia Weber, who was only 18 at the time. Sopranos who are able to cope with the aria's demands have been few and far between, and the aria is usually omitted from performances of ''Alceste''. It has been therefore redesignated a concert aria, to be presented in concerts by such rare singers as are able to deliver its fiendishly difficult coloratura. *"Nehmt meinen Dank, ihr holden Gönner!", K. 383, for soprano. *"

Ch'io mi scordi di te? "" (Will I forget you? ... Fear not, beloved), K. 505, is a concert aria by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart for soprano, piano obbligato and orchestra, composed in December 1786 in Vienna. It is often considered to be one of his greatest compositions in t ...

", K. 505, written for

Nancy Storace Anna (or Ann) Selina Storace (; 27 October 176524 August 1817), known professionally as Nancy Storace, was an English operatic soprano. The role of Susanna in Mozart's ''Le nozze di Figaro'' was written for and first performed by her. Born in ...

Vorrei spiegarvi, oh Dio! "" ( K. 418) is a soprano aria by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart. History Mozart entered the aria into his catalogue on 20 June 1783 Vienna. It was performed in the Burgtheater, Vienna, on 30 June 1783, as an insertion aria for a performance of Pasquale ...

", K. 418, written for Aloysia Weber *" Bella mia fiamma", K. 528, written for

Josepha Duschek Josepha Duschek (née Hambacher) (1754–1824) was an outstanding soprano of the Classical era. She was a friend of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, who wrote a few works for her to sing. Her name is most often given in its German version as above. I ...

Per questa bella mano "", Köchel catalogue, K. 612, is a concert aria by Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart for solo Bass (voice type), bass with an obbligato double bass. Composed in Vienna, it is dated 8 March 1791 in Mozart's own catalogue. It is well known by players of the d ...

", K. 612, for bass,

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or #Terminology, by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched Bow (music), bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern orchestra, symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox addit ...

obbligato, and orchestra

References

Notes Sources * * {{Authority control Musical terminology