{"title":"Arias \u0026 Oratorio","description":"","products":[{"product_id":"op-0022-ebm","title":"Weill, Kurt - Street Scene - What Good Would the Moon Be (EbM)","description":"\u003ch5 data-path-to-node=\"5\"\u003e\n\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eA custom streaming practice\/rehearsal piano track for\u003cbr\u003e\"What Good Would the Moon Be\" \u003cbr\u003efrom \u003cem\u003eStreet Scene\u003c\/em\u003e,  \u003cbr\u003eby Kurt Weill.\u003c\/h5\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eKurt Weill and legendary poet Langston Hughes created a fascinating blend of Broadway jazz and traditional opera with Street Scene in 1947. Rose Maurrant sings this aria to express her longing for a simple and genuine love rather than the flashy lifestyle offered by her sleazy boss. The music perfectly captures her grounded nature, requiring the singer to balance a soaring classical soprano sound with highly realistic acting and storytelling. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e🎹 Thoughts From the Piano Bench: This piece demands a ton of communication between the vocalist and the pianist. Weill wrote incredibly specific rubato moments that require the singer to lead the pacing while the piano provides a lush foundation underneath. Watch out for the tempo changes going into the bridge section, where you will need to cleanly articulate the jazzier rhythms without losing that classical phrasing. Don't let my groove change your style \u0026amp; timbre overmuch!\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tuxedo Tracks","offers":[{"title":"Standard Unlock","offer_id":54379724177774,"sku":null,"price":15.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Founding Sponsor","offer_id":54379724210542,"sku":null,"price":25.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0999\/2726\/1550\/files\/Opera_Thumbnail.png?v=1780752030"},{"product_id":"op-0010-bbm","title":"Mozart, W.A. - Le Nozze Di Figaro, K. 492 - Voi, che sapete (BbM)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eA custom streaming practice\/rehearsal piano track for \u003cstrong\u003eVoi, che sapete,\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003efrom \u003cem\u003eLe Nozze Di Figaro\u003c\/em\u003e,\u003cbr\u003eby Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eCherubino is essentially a teenager Going Through Changes and trying to figure out what love actually feels like, and Mozart captures that frantic, fluttering heartbeat perfectly in the orchestration. This aria happens right after the young page is caught hiding and is forced to perform a song he wrote for the Countess, creating a scene of awkward vulnerability on stage. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e🎹 Thoughts From the Bench: Consistency is what makes this (or really any classical era or earlier work) difficult for the piano. Yes it's easy to play the steady articulation of the LH for 8 measures or 16, but the odds of getting a complete run without a bunch of notes sticking out or varying in length is what makes me sweat compared to some thick 20th century piano part that just makes a wash of sound. Vocally, of course you have a generous handful of Mozart 2-note slurs to keep light, but also note the couple of opportunities to terrace your dynamics during sequences during the last third of the piece before the recap. \u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tuxedo Tracks","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54265051611502,"sku":null,"price":12.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0999\/2726\/1550\/files\/Opera_Thumbnail.png?v=1780752030"},{"product_id":"op-0011","title":"Menotti, Gian Carlo - The Old Maid and the Thief - Steal me, sweet thief","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eA custom streaming practice\/rehearsal piano track for \u003cstrong\u003eSteal me, sweet thief,\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003efrom \u003cem\u003eThe Old Maid and the Thief\u003c\/em\u003e,\u003cbr\u003eby Gian Carlo Menotti.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eMenotti originally wrote the opera directly for NBC radio back in 1939!\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eIn this scene, the clever young maid Laetitia is plotting to keep the handsome houseguest Bob around by convincing her spinster boss to start stealing from the neighbors. She is entirely frustrated with waiting around for romance to happen and decides that just taking exactly what she wants is the only logical way forward. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e🎹 Thoughts From the Piano Bench: Dynamics dynamics dynamics. The sudden mood swings are honestly easier to put together in person, since your pianist can look to you for melodramatic intake of breath. I also like advising that some of the sections where you are complaining (\"he eats and drinks and sleeps. He talks of baseball and boxing\") can sort of feel heavy on the beat, just plodding along with Laetitia's gripes about Bob's mundane behaviors when she longs for a romantic sweeping guestures.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tuxedo Tracks","offers":[{"title":"Standard Unlock","offer_id":54379702976878,"sku":null,"price":15.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Founding Sponsor","offer_id":54379703009646,"sku":null,"price":25.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0999\/2726\/1550\/files\/Opera_Thumbnail.png?v=1780752030"},{"product_id":"op-0013-dm","title":"Gluck, Christoph Willibald - Paride ed Elena, Wq. 39 - O del mio dolce ardor (dm)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eA custom streaming practice\/rehearsal piano track for \u003cstrong\u003eO del mio dolce ardor,\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003efrom \u003cem\u003eParide ed Elena\u003c\/em\u003e,\u003cbr\u003eby Christoph Willibald Gluck.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eThis is the d minor listing, f minor is also available.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis aria comes from Gluck's opera Paride ed Elena and is sung by the character Paris as he expresses his intense longing and romantic obsession for Helen. Gluck was a master at stripping away the excess ornamentation of his era to focus on pure emotion. The short ascending cadenza lines have to walk the tightrope of impassioned singing with the lightness of Gluck's French \u0026amp; Italian classical operatic style. Interestingly, this opera is the least performed of the three he wrote while in Vienna (Orfeo ed Euridice and Alceste being the other two). Nevertheless, this aria at least has made its way as a cornerstone of solid arias for students to cut their teeth on some classically dramatic singing. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e🎹 Thoughts From the Piano Bench: I already mentioned the tricky balance for the vocalist so just from a pianist's perspective, this is one of those deceptively simple reductions. You don't want to do TOO much with the waxing and waning of the ostinato underneath the solo lines, but you don't want it to be stagnant either. When you have the rare moments where you introduce a melodic idea while the vocalist breathes, make sure to not rely toooo much on pedal for continuing the legato. Classical era pedaling for reductions like these is such a nuanced thing: if you just play this dry like you might some Clementi or early Beethoven\/Mozart solo piano works, it'll sound so clunky and nothing like the hushed tone of spiccato strings, so it needs SOME pedal just for connection of all the repeated notes, but never can get blurry. Easy enough to do for a couple phrases, hard to do consistently enough to get through a full run of the piece the way you want.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tuxedo Tracks","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54379682005358,"sku":null,"price":10.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0999\/2726\/1550\/files\/Opera_Thumbnail.png?v=1780752030"},{"product_id":"op-0014-fm","title":"Gluck, Christoph Willibald - Paride ed Elena, Wq. 39 - O del mio dolce ardor (fm)","description":"\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eA custom streaming practice\/rehearsal piano track for \u003cstrong\u003eO del mio dolce ardor\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003efrom \u003cem\u003eParide ed Elena\u003c\/em\u003e,\u003cbr\u003eby Christoph Willibald Gluck.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003eThis is the f minor listing, d minor is also available.\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cspan\u003eThis aria comes from Gluck's opera Paride ed Elena and is sung by the character Paris as he expresses his intense longing and romantic obsession for Helen. Gluck was a master at stripping away the excess ornamentation of his era to focus on pure emotion. The short ascending cadenza lines have to walk the tightrope of impassioned singing with the lightness of Gluck's French \u0026amp; Italian classical operatic style. Interestingly, this opera is the least performed of the three he wrote while in Vienna (Orfeo ed Euridice and Alceste being the other two). Nevertheless, this aria at least has made its way as a cornerstone of solid arias for students to cut their teeth on some classically dramatic singing. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e🎹 Thoughts From the Piano Bench: I already mentioned the tricky balance for the vocalist so just from a pianist's perspective, this is one of those deceptively simple reductions. You don't want to do TOO much with the waxing and waning of the ostinato underneath the solo lines, but you don't want it to be stagnant either. When you have the rare moments where you introduce a melodic idea while the vocalist breathes, make sure to not rely toooo much on pedal for continuing the legato. Classical era pedaling for reductions like these is such a nuanced thing: if you just play this dry like you might some Clementi or early Beethoven\/Mozart solo piano works, it'll sound so clunky and nothing like the hushed tone of spiccato strings, so it needs SOME pedal just for connection of all the repeated notes, but never can get blurry. Easy enough to do for a couple phrases, hard to do consistently enough to get through a full run of the piece the way you want.\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tuxedo Tracks","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54265051742574,"sku":null,"price":10.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0999\/2726\/1550\/files\/Opera_Thumbnail.png?v=1780752030"},{"product_id":"op-0045-gm","title":"Menotti, Giancarlo - The Medium - The Black Swan (gm)","description":"\u003cp\u003eA custom streaming practice\/rehearsal piano track for \u003cstrong\u003eThe Black Swan\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003efrom \u003cem\u003eMedium, The\u003c\/em\u003e,\u003cbr\u003eby Giancarlo Menotti.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eWritten in 1946, The Medium explores the terrifying psychological breakdown of a fraudulent spiritualist. The character Monica sings \"The Black Swan\" as a dark, hypnotic lullaby to calm the agitated mute servant Toby. Menotti fuses a simple folk style melody with a creeping and dissonant piano texture to perfectly capture the unsettling atmosphere of a séance parlor dripping with paranoia. As I've mentioned in a couple videos at this point, I'm leaving time for you to breathe in climactic moments without needing to cut short any dramatic phrasing. Your pianist will wait for you, don't rob the music of any of its intensity!\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tuxedo Tracks","offers":[{"title":"Standard Unlock","offer_id":54483763069294,"sku":null,"price":15.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true},{"title":"Founding Sponsor","offer_id":54483763102062,"sku":null,"price":25.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0999\/2726\/1550\/files\/Opera_Thumbnail.png?v=1780752030"},{"product_id":"op-0046-fm","title":"Mozart, W.A. - The Magic Flute - O Isis Und Osiris (FM)","description":"\u003cp\u003eA custom streaming practice\/rehearsal piano track for \u003cstrong\u003eO Isis Und Osiris\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003efrom \u003cem\u003eThe \u003c\/em\u003e\u003cem\u003eMagic Flute,\u003c\/em\u003e\u003cbr\u003eby W.A. Mozart.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003eHere is the iconic bass aria from Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's 1791 opera, The Magic Flute. Known for its profound depth and solemn beauty, this piece is a frequent and essential choice for collegiate vocal juries, young artist program auditions, and professional operatic repertoire building. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMozart wrote the role of Sarastro for the bass Franz Xaver Gerl, who clearly had a beastly lower register. Sung at the beginning of the second act, this aria acts as a majestic prayer to the gods to protect Tamino and Papageno as they face their trials. The music demands a truly grounded, noble stage presence and heavily relies on the singer's ability to maintain a gorgeous spinning tone even when the melodic line dips into the basement of the vocal range. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e...BUT, I also think there's a kernel of possible humor just in how straight-faced Sarastro is played against the flightiness and manic energy of some of the other characters. Just bringing the scene to a halt to sing a couple of ponderous moral sermons feels very Mozart-brand humor (especially considering the other funny stories about why the Queen of the Night aria is written the way it was, etc).\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tuxedo Tracks","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54483763134830,"sku":null,"price":10.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0999\/2726\/1550\/files\/Opera_Thumbnail.png?v=1780752030"},{"product_id":"op-0048-fm","title":"Purcell, Henry - I'll Sail Upon the Dog Star (FM)","description":"\u003cp\u003eA custom streaming practice\/rehearsal piano track for \u003cstrong\u003eI'll Sail Upon the Dog Star,\u003c\/strong\u003e\u003cbr\u003efrom \u003cem\u003eA Fool's Preferment\u003c\/em\u003e,\u003cbr\u003eby Henry Purcell.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cmeta charset=\"utf-8\"\u003e\u003cspan\u003e\"I'll Sail Upon the Dog Star\" is a famous 1688 Baroque vocal piece composed by Henry Purcell for high voice and continuous keyboard support. Originally featured in Thomas D'Urfey's play A Fool's Preferment, this virtuosic \"mad song\" remains a favorite choice for collegiate vocal juries, classical recitals, and competitive auditions. \u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis piece left an impression on me during my time in undergrad, sitting in on a lesson as a freshman or sophomore and watching\/listening to Dr. Gerald Gray's animated exhortations to a student at SUNY Fredonia to bring out the manic energy and quirky lyricism of the piece. Dr. Gray passed in 2017 but there's a few songs that always remind me of him; this is one of them. Hadn't played it in a number of years before bringing it back - just getting me in the headspace to do more nimble classical arias soon!\u003c\/span\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Tuxedo Tracks","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":54483763167598,"sku":null,"price":10.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0999\/2726\/1550\/files\/Opera_Thumbnail.png?v=1780752030"}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0999\/2726\/1550\/collections\/Vocal_-_Opera.png?v=1780808880","url":"https:\/\/tuxedotracks.com\/collections\/arias-oratorio.oembed","provider":"Tuxedo Tracks","version":"1.0","type":"link"}