A certain video has been circling around the social media accounts of OCU opera people. A while back, WatchMojo picked opera excerpts as a top ten list subject. And boy, is it heinous (at least it is to opera students). So I was inspired to create my own list in response. So here it is "Top 10 Opera Songs Arias and Excerpts" in a somewhat particular order.

"Ah mes amis" from La Fille du Regiment -- Gaetano Donizetti

With mistaken identity, a raucous French regiment, and an independent heroine, Daughter of the Regiment is rom-com gold. This aria is sung by a lovestruck tenor, who finds himself having to impress his girlfriend's family. But in this case, her family just happens to be an entire regiment of soldiers.

This aria has become famous (and infamous among lyric tenors) for it's record amount of high C's.

"There was a knight once" from Little Women -- Mark Adamo

Another aria sung by a lovesick man (typical for opera I'm afraid). Adamo's Little Women is a brilliant combination of innovative music and a beloved story, which makes it one of the most successful operas of the 21st century.

In this aria, John Brooke woos the oldest March sister, Meg (recognize Joyce DiDonato?), to the chagrin of Jo and Laurie.

"Addio dolce svegliare alla mattina," Act 3 Quartet from La Bohème -- Giacomo Puccini

Puccini's La Bohème is one of the first things people think of when they think "opera," but this quartet is not necessarily the first thing people remember from the show itself. It's quite a shame when you think about it, because this act has what is, in my humble opinion, the most beautiful music in the entire work.

This quartet centers around the lovers Rodolfo and Mimi and the ups and downs of their relationship (i.e. tuberculosis and poverty), and the couple that plays foil to them: Marcello and Musetta.

"O zittre nicht" from Die Zauberflöte -- Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart

Much like the previous selection, this aria is often overlooked in favor of what is seen as the more "flashier" aria Queen of the Night has in The Magic Flute. "O zittre night" has much more virtuosic singing, with the characteristic Queen high notes and coloratura runs that just won't quit. I heard a dramatic coloratura friend sing this before, I sat gaping in awe for a good 30 minutes.

In this aria in the middle of Act 1, the Queen of the Night manipulates unsuspecting Tamino into doing her bidding by promising him true love (or at least a pretty wife).

"Mira, o Norma" from Norma -- Vincenzo Bellini

Lady friendships: I'm here for them, and there is no bigger opera duet of lady friendship than "Mira, o Norma." Once again, a soprano (Norma) and mezzo (Adalgisa) fall in love with the same tenor, but Adalgisa effectively says "Uteruses before duderuses," and renounces the tenor's love in favor for her friends. All of this is done during duet singing so in sync it's unreal. Joan Sutherland and Marilyn Horne did it flawlessly-- with flawless diva hair, I might add.

My other favorite recording of this piece is Angela Meade and Jamie Lee Barton's rendition

"Pourqouis me revellier" from Werther -- Jules Massenet

Adapted by Massenet from Goethe's novel, Werther is all French romance and tragedy: Boy loves girl. Girl marries boy's best friend. Boy goes traveling and writes letters to girl. Girl realizes she's loved boy this entire time. Boy shows up to girl and best friend's house around Christmas time and shares some of his poetry.

Here, Werther is sung by German easy-on-the-eyes tenor Jonas Kaufmann.

"Pietà!... O don fatale" from Don Carlo -- Giuseppe Verdi

There's an ancient long-running joke that sopranos get all the romantic role glory, but not when it comes to Verdi. Princess Eboli's tenacity and passion make her a fascinating character, and she gets one of the most rocking arias ever; it's what you might call a banger.

Preceded by a brief and high energy duet, Eboli finally comes clean to her queen that she tried to sabotage her and destroy her marriage (to the king!) because they love the same man (the tenor of course). Then, Eboli is left alone, and she commits herself to facing the consequences of her actions-- with hardcore vocal fireworks.

Let the record show that Dolora Zajick owns this aria. She is the queen of Verdi mezzos.

"Senza mamma" from Suor Angelica -- Giacomo Puccini

Angelica was sent to a convent by her rich aunt after giving birth to an illegitimate child and does not hear from her family for seven years. Perhaps the most heartbreaking piece on this list, "Senza mamma" is sung by the title character after she discovers that her son died at the age of five.

Here it is sung by the queen of spintos, Renata Scotto.

"Ja vas ljublju" from Pique Dame -- Pyotr Ilyich Tchaikovsky

From Tchaikovsky's thriller, The Queen of Spades, this aria comes from a very minor character. Handsome baritone Prince Yeletsky's betrothed-- tragic soprano herione Liza-- falls in love with a tenor (for unknown reasons I mena just listen to this singing). Realizing her reluctance, the prince let's her go, but not without expressing his love one last time.

The video is from Dmitri Hvorostovsky's award winning performance at the 1989 Cardiff Singer of the World Competition. 10/10 would swoon again.

And in the spirit of WatchMojo, here are some honorable mentions:

“Va pensiero” from Verdi’s Nabucco

“Sempre libera” from Verdi’s La Traviata

“La fleur que tu m’avais jetee” (The Flower Song) from Bizet’s Carmen

“Soave il vento” trio from Mozart’s Cosi fan Tutte

And now for my top pick...

"O terra addio" from Aïda-- Giuseppe Verdi

Aïda is hands down my favorite opera (and also #careergoals), so this opinion is probably biased, but you should nonetheless give this a listen, because some people (aka me) call this opera finale one of the most beautiful pieces of music Verdi ever wrote and the pinnacle of grand opera.

Sentenced to death for treason, star-crossed lovers Aïda and Radames say goodbye to this life. While they sing trapped in a cave, Egyptian princess Amneris can be heard praying fervently for peace; "Pace t'imploro" (peace I implore you). This is one of the only two operas I know of where the mezzo gets the last world and I love it. I especially love that the last word is "pace."

Fun fact: I definitely listened to this recording while writing and I definitely cried.

So that is my personal top ten, but please keep in mind that I write with my own biases. Opera, like any other music genre, can be an incredibly personal thing. Each of these pieces on my list represent something special to me. I could write a whole other article about what each of these mean to me but that may bore you dear people too much. So I hope you enjoy my picks. And, next time you want to make a top ten list about something, do your research. Make sure you know that Carmina Burana is not an opera, and always check your pronunciations.