26 Italian Songs and Arias: Medium Low Voice

by John Glenn Paton

Book Overview

This authoritative edition of the world's most loved songs and arias draws on original manuscripts, historical first editions, and recent research by prominent musicologists to meet a high standard of accuracy and authenticity. Includes fascinating background information about the arias and their composers, as well as a singable rhymed translation, a readable prose translation, and a literal translation of every single word. This title is available...

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0882844903
• ISBN13: 9780882844909
• Release Date: March 1991
• Publisher: Alfred Music
• Length: 152 Pages
• Weight: 1.17 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.4" x 8.9" x 11.7"

Customer Reviews

A historically accurate and technically useful collection

As a singer I have found this book to be better than any other collection that I have found. For singers who are interested in historical accuracy and want to sing pieces as they were written by the composer, this book is a must. For singers who simply want to sing popularized versions of pieces that are attributed to the composer (yet might not be recognizable to the composer as their piece) another collection would be better. As mentioned by others the word for word translation, the pronunciation guide, and the singable translation (for beginners) are all excellent. The ornaments are interesting and provide a challenge for higher level beginners. The book is highly recommended by Marilyn Horne as a source of corrected misinformation regarding these early Italian pieces. I personally recommend that beginners purchase the version which has the CD accompaniment included.

Ideal investment for all singers

This is a great collection of early Italian songs. Unlike the 24 Italian Songs and Arias published by Schirmer, this anthology consists of original historically accurate versions of the songs,as the composer wrote them. The other book has arrangements of the songs that were not at all what the composer had written. Furthermore, this book provides pages of biographical data of the composer, the source of the work, and what the work is about. Plus, it includes a word by word translation and phonetic symbols to help pronounce the Italian text. Beyond that, the songs also have a non literal translation that makes more sense to an English native, and there is a singable text in English as well. Beyond all that, there is an appendix on Italian Singing and pronunciation. Moreover, having it with the CD makes hearing how the accompaniment sounds, as well as the feel of the piece very accessible if you do not have a pianist with you, do not have piano skills youself, or do not even have a piano! This is an ideal investment for all singers.

A MUST FOR THE DEVELOPING VOICE

This book is an absolute must have for any singers repertoire. With arias ranging from simple to complex, it is a great stepping stone in building the classical voice. The songs can be used as starters for the more amateur singer or as recital/competition pieces for those with more experience. Every serious student and private teacher should have a copy on hand.

a beautiful selection! :)

for Regionals this year (a high school singing competition) i picked a song from this book, "Lasciatemi Morire". but now i have become nearly obsessed with italian operas and all the songs in this book are wonderful; i have spent quite a bit of time learning more of them. none are too difficult, and all are appropriate for a competition. i would recommend this book to anyone interested in opera, or singing in italian. i have thoroughly enjoyed it! =)

A must for students at all levels

This book updates the 100-year old Schirmer edition of 17th and 18th century Italian Songs and Arias, used for 4 generations by most serious students of singing in all English-speaking countries. Paton's edition is more historically accurate: he cuts many of the romanticisms that had crept into in the Schirmer edition, adds optional (and appropriate) vocal ornaments, and simplifies the accompanying harmonies. Paton's edition is also more useful to singers, as it contains three different translations of each song (word-for-word, singable, and the underlying emotional idea), and it transcribes all text into the international phonetic alphabet. The page layout is attractive, and the accompanying CD, which contains the piano parts, is excellent. I use my copy every day.