''Sancta Maria'' is a Latin-language

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 ...

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 ...

arranged by

Steven Mercurio Steven Mercurio (born 1956, Bardonia, New York (state), New York) is an American conductor and composer. Early life and education Mercurio was raised in New York and is of Italian descent. For most of his adolescence, he gravitated towards rock an ...

based on the

Intermezzo In music, an intermezzo (, , plural form: intermezzi), in the most general sense, is a composition which fits between other musical or dramatic entities, such as acts of a play or movements of a larger musical work. In music history, the term ha ...

from the opera ''

Cavalleria Rusticana ''Cavalleria rusticana'' (; Italian for "rustic chivalry") is an opera in one act by Pietro Mascagni to an Italian libretto by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti and Guido Menasci, adapted from an 1880 short story of the same name and subsequent play b ...

'', composed by

Pietro Mascagni Pietro Mascagni (7 December 1863 – 2 August 1945) was an Italian composer primarily known for his operas. His 1890 masterpiece ''Cavalleria rusticana'' caused one of the greatest sensations in opera history and single-handedly ushered in the ' ...

. It uses some of the same lyrics as

Ave Maria The Hail Mary ( la, Ave Maria) is a traditional Christian prayer addressing Mary, the mother of Jesus. The prayer is based on two biblical passages featured in the Gospel of Luke: the Angel Gabriel's visit to Mary (the Annunciation) and Mary's s ...

and has become a popular concert piece. It also has been recorded by several singers, like

Sissel Kyrkjebø Sissel Kyrkjebø (; born 24 June 1969), also simply known as Sissel, is a Norwegian soprano. Sissel is considered one of the world's top crossover sopranos. Her musical style ranges from pop recordings and folk songs, to classical vocals and op ...

Charlotte Church Charlotte Maria Church (born Charlotte Maria Reed, 21 February 1986) is a Welsh singer-songwriter, actress, television presenter and political activist from Cardiff. Church rose to fame in childhood as a classical singer before branching i ...

Katherine Jenkins Katherine Maria Jenkins (born 29 June 1980) is a Welsh singer. She is a mezzo-soprano and performs operatic arias, popular songs, musical theatre, and hymns.tenor A tenor is a type of classical music, classical male singing human voice, voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. The tenor's vocal range extends up to C5. The lo ...

Andrea Bocelli Andrea Bocelli (; born 22 September 1958) is an Italian tenor and multi-instrumentalist. He was born visually impaired, with congenital glaucoma, and at the age of 12, Bocelli became completely blind, following a brain hemorrhage resulting fro ...

and Friar Alessandro.

Text

Recordings

*''Sancta Maria'' by

, on the album '' Sacred Arias'' (1999) *''Sancta Maria'' by

, on the album '' Prelude: The Best of Charlotte Church'' (2002) *''Sancta Maria'' by

Keedie Babb Keedie Green (née Babb, 21 October 1982, Wolverhampton) is a British classical crossover soprano with a vocal range of three octaves, reaching a top A above a top E. Background She was named Keedie because her father is a fan of Kiki Dee. ...

, on the album '' I Believe My Heart'' (2004) *''Sancta Maria'' by

, on the album '' Into Paradise'' (2006) *''Sancta Maria'' by

All Angels All Angels were a British classical crossover group formed in 2006, consisting of Daisy Chute, Laura Wright, Rachel Fabri, Melanie Nakhla and actress Charlotte Ritchie. The group's style was classical crossover music and close harmony arran ...

, on the album ''

'' (2006) *''Sancta Maria'' by

Katherine Jenkins Katherine Maria Jenkins (born 29 June 1980) is a Welsh singer. She is a mezzo-soprano and performs operatic arias, popular songs, musical theatre, and hymns.Rejoice'' (2007) *''Sancta Maria'' by

Blake Blake is a surname which originated from Old English. Its derivation is uncertain; it could come from "blac", a nickname for someone who had dark hair or skin, or from "blaac", a nickname for someone with pale hair or skin. Another theory, presuma ...

, on the album ''And So It Goes'' (2008) *''Sancta Maria'' by Patricia Janečková, on the album ''Patricia Janečková'' (2011) *''Sancta Maria'' by Friar Alessandro, on the album ''Voice from Assisi'' (2012) *''Sancta Maria'' (different version) by

Enya Enya Patricia Brennan (; ga, Eithne Pádraigín Ní Bhraonáin; born 17 May 1961), known professionally by the mononym Enya, is an Irish singer, songwriter, and musician known for modern Celtic music. She is the best-selling Irish solo arti ...

, on the album ''

Dark Sky Island ''Dark Sky Island'' is the eighth studio album by Irish singer, songwriter, and musician Enya, released on 20 November 2015 by Warner Bros. Records. After the release of her previous album, '' And Winter Came...'' (2008), Enya was unsure of her ...

'' (2015) *''Sancta Maria'' by

Tarja Turunen Tarja Soile Susanna Turunen-Cabuli (born 17 August 1977), known professionally as Tarja Turunen or simply Tarja, is a Finnish heavy metal singer, best known as the former lead vocalist of Nightwish. She is a soprano with a three and a half o ...

, on the album ''

Ave Maria – En Plein Air ''Ave Maria'' is the first classical, and the fifth studio album released by the Finnish soprano Tarja Turunen. On the 22 July 2015, earMUSIC released a video announcing the existence of the album, following with a teaser trailer on 6 August. The ...

'' (2015) *''Sancta Maria'' by

Amira Willighagen Amira Willighagen (born 27 March 2004) is a Dutch soprano singer who won the sixth season of '' Holland's Got Talent'' in 2013, at the age of nine. Early life Amira Willighagen speaks both Dutch and Afrikaans because she was born to a Dutch ...

, on the album ''Merry Christmas'' (2015)

References

External links

Sissel Kyrkjebø - Sancta MariaAndrea Bocelli - Sancta MariaCharlotte Church - Sancta MariaKatherine Jenkins - Sancta Maria
{{Cavalleria rusticana Christian prayer Arias Opera excerpts 1890 songs