Aria
An aria is a vocal piece for a solo voice accompanied by instruments or an orchestra. Usually it belongs to a larger work such as an opera, a cantata or an oratorio. It is also known as an “air”.
- Meaning
- vocal piece for a solo voice with instrumental or orchestral accompaniment
- Usually part of
- opera, cantata or oratorio; there are also stand-alone pieces (concert aria)
- Word origin
- Italian aria, originally “tune”
- Also called
- air (the English and French word that goes back to aria)
- Distinguish from
- Lied
Solo voice with accompaniment
The aria is a vocal piece for a soloist with instrumental, especially orchestral accompaniment, in opera or oratorio. The word is Italian (aria) and originally meant “tune”. The accompaniment ranges from pure continuo with lute or harpsichord, through a small ensemble, to a large orchestra. Usually the aria is part of a larger work, but there are also stand-alone compositions, the concert arias. It expresses the feeling and mood of a particular moment.
Introduction, then the voice enters
An example of our own, not a quotation. The lower voice stands for the accompaniment and plays two bars of introduction alone. In bar 3 the upper voice enters as the singing voice (marked: seven notes).
Introduction and entry on the page
In both sheets in the archive the accompaniment plays alone first, then the voice enters, and the voice’s rests count as bars. In the Fledermaus aria in the archive that means two bars of introduction, one more bar of piano and then the entry of the voice only on the last quarter note of bar 4. At the end of the aria, first- and second-ending brackets show that the last section closes differently the first time through than the second.
| Term | Core of the meaning | Scoring |
|---|---|---|
| Aria | vocal piece for a soloist, usually part of an opera, cantata or oratorio | one solo voice with accompaniment from continuo to full orchestra |
| Lied | a poem sung to a melody, usually with several stanzas of the same construction | one person, an ensemble or a choir |
| Air | a simple composition not tied to a set form; the word goes back to aria | mainly vocal, also instrumental |
Aria, Lied and air
Compared with the Lied, the aria is a solo piece that is almost always embedded in a larger work. “Air” is the French and English word that goes back to aria, and an aria is sometimes simply called an “air”. “Air” can at the same time mean a simple composition that can also be performed instrumentally. The archive sheet “Air (Rocco)” is a case with voice: it has a vocal part in the bass clef, piano and a role name.
In the sheet music archive
Aria from “Die Fledermaus”
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Ich lade gern mir Gäste ein (Aria from Die Fledermaus) voice and piano, with chords for guitar · 3 pages
Tempo marking “Allegro non troppo”, alla breve sign, five ♭ in the key signature. The role name “Orlofsky” is printed above the vocal part. Bars 1 and 2 are a piano introduction, there is a repeat sign before bar 3, and the voice enters in bar 4 on the last quarter note. On page 3 there are “poco rit.” in bar 36, a fermata in bar 38 and then “a tempo”. The ending has a first ending (bars 48 and 49) and a second ending (bars 50 and 51).
Air with a role name
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Air (Rocco) Ludwig van Beethoven, op. 72b · bass and piano, with chords for guitar · 4 pages
Tempo marking “Allegro moderato”, 2/4, two ♭ in the key signature. The vocal part is in the bass clef, and the role name “Rocco” is printed above its entry in bar 2. On page 1, in bar 14, a fermata and a double bar follow, after which the tempo marking changes to “Allegro” and the time signature to 6/8.
Both sheets name a role above the vocal part, so the pieces are written for a stage character.
Common mistakes
- Equating aria and Lied: The Lied is a sung poem, the aria a solo piece with accompaniment and usually part of a larger work.
- Understanding air only as an instrumental piece: The word also refers to the vocal piece.
- Entering with the voice too early: The bars of the introduction count, even when the voice rests.