Top 10 pieces of Italian Opera.

Non più andrai farfallone amoroso dall'opera "Le Nozze di Figaro" (1786) di Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

It is one of the most famous arias of Mozart’s The Marriage of Figaro, sung at the end of the first act. Figaro intones it to mock the poor Cherubino, a young servant forced by his chief, Count Almaviva, to go to Seville with the regiment. In fact, the Count is jealous of his wife, Countess Rosina, and suspects that Cherubino has a love affair with her.

Largo al Factotum dall'opera "Il Barbiere di Siviglia" (1813) di Gioacchino Rossini.

Largo al factotum is Figaro’s cavatina sung in the first act of The Barber of Seville composed by Gioachino Rossini. Figaro is a handyman: he is a well-known barber but he is also in medicine and unguents. This is one of the most important arias of opera repertoire and it helps to put on the scene Figaro’s character. It is famous for its melody and tongue-twisting nature, which force the baritone to perform a difficult part of vocal technique and interpretation.

Casta Diva dall'opera "Norma" (1831) di Vincenzo Bellini. Most famous singer of this role: Maria Callas.

The aria is sung by Norma, the main protagonist, a Gallic minister who asks the moon for a blessing because Gallics want to rise up against the Roman domination. Unfortunately, Norma falls in love with a roman soldier and she does not want to put him in danger. This aria is also famous to be the soundtrack of spots or films like Mr Nobody, Philadelphia, The Iron Lady, and Avengers: Age of Ultron.

Una furtiva lacrima dall'opera "Elisir d'amore" (1832) di Gaetano Donizetti. Most famous singers of this aria: Luciano Pavarotti or Enrico Caruso.

Nemorino, the male protagonist of L’Elisir d’amore, sings this aria soon after he has noticed that a teardrop had sprung from Adina’s eye, the woman he loves. Because of this, he realises that she loves him too. Adina is jealous because Nemorino attracts many girls. Nemorino believes that his success with women is due to a love potion that he had received from Dulcamara. But the potion is just a bottle of Bordeaux wine. This aria is the main theme of the film Match Point (2005).

Va' pensiero dall'opera "Nabucco" (1841) di Giuseppe Verdi.

“Va’, pensiero” is an aria sung by the choir in Nabucco, one of the most famous opera composed by Giuseppe Verdi. Jewish slaves intone this piece wishing for a liberation from the Babylonian captivity. When this opera was put on stage, part of Italy was under the Austrian dominion and so a parallelism between the Jewish slaves and the Italian people was inevitable. With this opera, Verdi will be a supporter of the Italian movement “Risorgimento" and the Unification of Italy.

La donna è mobile dall'opera "Rigoletto" (1851) di Giuseppe Verdi. Most famous singer of this role: Luciano Pavarotti.

“La donna è mobile” is an aria of Rigoletto and it is sung by the Duke of Mantua. The Duke sings about women, who are so hard to understand and always frivolous. Women are seen as feathers at the mercy of wind, because they always change their mind and mood.

Libiamo ne' lieti calici dall'opera "La Traviata" (1856) di Giuseppe Verdi.

“Libiamo ne’ lieti calici” is an episode of the second scene of first act. The two main protagonists, Violetta and Alfredo, together with the choir, sing it during a party in which all people toast life, love and carpe diem. A concert version of this piece is famous, sung by Pavarotti with Placido Domingo e José Carreras. It is also a traditional aria sung during New Year’s Eve operatic concerts around the world.

Vesti la giubba, più conosciuta come Ridi, Pagliaccio, dall' opera "Pagliacci" (1892) di Ruggero Leoncavallo. Most famous singer of this role: Placido Domingo.

“Vesti la giubba”, better known as “Ridi, Pagliaccio”, is an aria from Pagliacci composed by Ruggero Leoncavallo. It is sung by Canio, one of the main protagonists, who is going to put on the stage his comedy in which he plays a clown. His role forces him to be always happy and smiley, not showing his personal grief or depression. However, Canio has just realised that his wife Nedda betrays him but he must go to the stage and entertain the audience.

O mio babbino caro, dall'opera "Gianni Schicchi" (1918) di Giacomo Puccini.

“O mio babbino caro” is an aria sung by Lauretta, the daughter of Gianni Schicchi. She asks her father for help because she is in love with Rinuccio. Unfortunately, Rinuccio belongs to Donati’s family, bitter enemy of Gianni Schicchi. This aria is well-known because it is always performed in talent shows.

Nessun Dorma, dall'opera "Turandot" (1926) di Giacomo Puccini. Most famous singer of this role: Luciano Pavarotti.

“Nessun Dorma” is a famous aria from Turandot composed by Giacomo Puccini. The main character Calaf intones this aria to declare his love for Turandot, the Ice Princess who does not love anyone. Only the person who shall solve three riddles could be her lover. Through this aria, Calaf promises to answer them to marry her. It is well-known around the world thanks to the performance of the great tenor Luciano Pavarotti, died in 2007.