# What are your favorite choral piece/pieces from operas?



## Itullian (Aug 27, 2011)

Many great ones for sure.
Small or large.


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

Verdi's Aida choral showcase.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Wagner's operas make wonderful dramatic use of the chorus. The Norwegian sailors and the Dutchman's ghostly crew in _Der Fliegende Hollander,_ the Pilgrims' Chorus and the entrance of the guests at the Wartburg in _Tannhauser,_ the abundance of gorgeous choral scenes throughout _Lohengrin, _ the townspeople and guilds in _Meistersinger,_ the gathering of the vassals in _Gotterdammerung_... It's fascinating to think about Wagner from this perspective.

But I'd have to say my favorite choral moment in opera comes at the very end of my favorite opera, _Parsifal_. The way the voices steal into the soft orchestral texture with the leitmotiv of "der reine Tor," swell and deepen gradually in soft, overlapping waves of beauty, and finally lose themselves in a nirvana of pure light, infinite space, and perfect peace, is just incomparable.


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## Steve Kirby (Apr 7, 2015)

A good operatic chorus moves the dramatic action onwards. For example the opening scene of Verdi's 'Otello' - the chorus of Cypriots (and the sea storm) are in the spotlight - but this scene ends with the intimate and lyrical love duet. The danger is that the "story" is paused for up to 20 minutes while we enjoy a lovely chorus & that is true in so many operas - e.g. Bellini's 'Norma' or Gounod's 'Faust' or Verdi's 'Aida'.


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

One of my favourites and with the audience joining in. Opera and politics from Maestro Muti!


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## Retired (Feb 15, 2015)

> Wagner's operas make wonderful dramatic use of the chorus. The Norwegian sailors and the Dutchman's ghostly crew in Der Fliegende Hollander, the Pilgrims' Chorus and the entrance of the guests at the Wartburg in Tannhauser, the abundance of gorgeous choral scenes throughout Lohengrin, the townspeople and guilds in Meistersinger, the gathering of the vassals in Gotterdammerung... It's fascinating to think about Wagner from this perspective.
> 
> But I'd have to say my favorite choral moment in opera comes at the very end of my favorite opera, Parsifal. The way the voices steal into the soft orchestral texture with the leitmotiv of "der reine Tor," swell and deepen gradually in soft, overlapping waves of beauty, and finally lose themselves in a nirvana of pure light, infinite space, and perfect peace, is just incomparable.


+1 to all of this...and then there is the magical moment after "Die Frist ist um" when the sailors echo with "ew'ge Vernichtung..nimm uns auf" ... a quiet ghostly cry...


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## graziesignore (Mar 13, 2015)

I enjoy the "Hebrew" choruses in Samson and Delila.


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## Cesare Impalatore (Apr 16, 2015)

Steve Kirby said:


> A good operatic chorus moves the dramatic action onwards. For example the opening scene of Verdi's 'Otello' - the chorus of Cypriots (and the sea storm) are in the spotlight - but this scene ends with the intimate and lyrical love duet.


Absolutely, the chorus of Cypriots is tremendously underrated compared to Verdi's more famous choirs like Nabucco, Aida and so on.

Other favourites of mine include the Toreador chorus from Carmen: 




and the "humming chorus" from Madame Butterfly:


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## Sloe (May 9, 2014)

Inno del Sole from Pietro Mascagni´s opera Iris:


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## sospiro (Apr 3, 2010)

Two from Verdi's _Macbeth_. The second one was sadly cut from the production Alexander, Dongiovanni and I saw in Amsterdam. Such a shame as it's a great, rousing finale.


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## Itullian (Aug 27, 2011)

Ending chorus William Tell.......................






3:11:00






In Italian 33:00


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## Loge (Oct 30, 2014)

And not forgetting the Anvil Chorus from Il Trovatore.


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## Itullian (Aug 27, 2011)

^^^^^I hate that one


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## Itullian (Aug 27, 2011)

sospiro said:


> One of my favourites and with the audience joining in. Opera and politics from Maestro Muti!


Why this isn't the Italian national anthem, i'll never know.


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## Bellinilover (Jul 24, 2013)

I love "Patria opressa" from Verdi's MACBETH. It's too bad it's not nearly as famous as NABUCCO's "Va pensiero."


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## Albert7 (Nov 16, 2014)

What is Parsifal without a wonderful chorus?


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## Loge (Oct 30, 2014)

And who could forget the Flower maidens from Parsifal.


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## Don Fatale (Aug 31, 2009)

Re: the Va Pensiero video earlier.

I loved this. Is it just me? Considering how wonderful this chorus is, I'm always struck by how awkwardly some of the words and tune go together. Quite a difficult singalong, even for Italians.


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## TxllxT (Mar 2, 2011)

My all time choral favourite: Joshua from Mussorgsky's Salammbo, with Claudio Abbado, LSO & LSO Chorus.


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

Loge said:


> And who could forget the Flower maidens from Parsifal.


Gorgeous music, but this production creeps me out. Teen rock star in zombieland. And the lip-synching is so obvious. Is this from the Syberberg film?


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## Figleaf (Jun 10, 2014)

I prefer solo voices to choruses in general, so my favourite chorus has both: it's Romeo's choral lament 'Ah, jour de deuil' from Gounod's Romeo et Juliette. Just heartbreaking.


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

A huge number of examples come to mind, of course.

But let's select one that is not very well known, but very beautiful. It's in the opera "Merrick", by Laurent Petitgirard, and the very sick people in a hospital are singing about the problems of that pour soul, Merrick:


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## Cavaradossi (Aug 2, 2012)

Tops on my list is the Prologue from Boito's _Mefistofele_.


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## silentio (Nov 10, 2014)

I'm surprised no one has mentioned the chorus _"Pietà! Numi, pietà!"_ from Idomeneo yet:


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## soundoftritones (Dec 24, 2014)

Not to be generic, but I think J.S. Bach's Cantata no. 80 "Ein Feste Burg ist unser Gott" is absolutely my favourite at this very point in time. It's so heavily contrapuntal, yet it hardly deviates melodically/thematically from Luther's original and each vocal part can be heard clearly (though it can get hard at times). 
Also, this may be partially due to one of the first recordings I listened to, with a very... _enthusiastic_ conductor (really though, I couldn't peel my eyes away from this!):


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## Woodduck (Mar 17, 2014)

soundoftritones said:


> Not to be generic, but I think J.S. Bach's Cantata no. 80 "Ein Feste Burg ist unser Gott" is absolutely my favourite at this very point in time. It's so heavily contrapuntal, yet it hardly deviates melodically/thematically from Luther's original and each vocal part can be heard clearly (though it can get hard at times).
> Also, this may be partially due to one of the first recordings I listened to, with a very... _enthusiastic_ conductor (really though, I couldn't peel my eyes away from this!):


And which of Bach's 17 operas is this from?


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## Il_Penseroso (Nov 20, 2010)

From the most famous ones:

The Elysium Chorus/ Orfeo ed Euridice 'Orphee et Eurydice'/ Gluck 

Final Chorus/ Iphigenie en Tauride/ Gluck


Che interminabile andirivieni 'Chorus of the servants'/ Don Pasquale/ Donizetti 

Va, pensiero 'Chorus of the Hebrew slaves'/ Nabucco/ Verdi 


Final chorus/ Ivan Susanin 'A life for the Tsar'/ Glinka 

Coronation scene/ Boris Godunov/ Mussorgsky (Rimsky Korsakov Version)

Opening chorus/ Prince Igor/ Borodin (Rimsky Korsakov Orchestration)

Carnival procession chorus/ The snow maiden/ Rimsky Korsakov


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## dgee (Sep 26, 2013)

Carmen is shot through with great choruses but the lovely little smokers' chorus stands out for me. If you really want a chorus to blow your head off there's Korngold (try the start of Act 3 of Heliane or the start of act 2 in Tote Stadt), or Act 1 in Szymanowski's King Roger. The choir of angels at the end of Sister Angelica is a must. And I wouldn't be without "Wo ist Moses?"


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## Celloman (Sep 30, 2006)

The "Salve Regina" from _Dialogues des Carmelites_ by Francis Poulenc






Salve, Regina, mater misericordiae (chop)
Vita, dolcedo, et spes (chop) nostra, salve.
Ad te (chop) clamamus (chop) etc etc.

Thanks to Madame Guillotine, it's bloody brilliant!
No, seriously, it's one of the most gripping sequences in opera that I have ever heard.


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## MAS (Apr 15, 2015)

Cavaradossi said:


> Tops on my list is the Prologue from Boito's _Mefistofele_.


I second that - my own favorite, gives me goosebumps. I also like the ensemble in the first act of Lohengrin.


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Mefistofele Prologue


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## Metairie Road (Apr 30, 2014)

Gluck - Paride ed Elena Act 1 'Non sdegnare'


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## Meyerbeer Smith (Mar 25, 2016)

"Wer ein holdes Weib errungen" (_Fidelio_)
The Bénédiction des Poignards (_Huguenots_)
The Prêche anabaptiste (_Prophète_)
Double chorus at start of Act III of _Vasco_
"C'est le jour du dimanche, c'est le jour du répos!"
_Huguenots_ Act 3 finale - duel septet, then the choruses of quarrelling townsfolk - no way is this going to end well!
"Bonheur de la table"
The _Margherita d'Anjou _Act I finale
The chorus of the arrival of the Knights of Rhodes (_Crociato in Egitto_)
Chasse royale et orage
The chorus of Trojans happily bringing their doom into the city - and Cassandre's commentary
Honneur aux maîtres ciseleurs!
The Act I finale of _Cellini_
"Villes entourées... Jam nox stellata" (_Damnation de Faust_)
The chorus of demons (ditto)
Soldiers' chorus from Gounod's _Faust_
"O divine Esclarmonde!"
The mazur from _Straszny dwór_
Hymn to the Sun (_Prince Igor_)
The Coronation Scene (_Boris Godunov_)
The Forest of Kromy (_Boris Godunov_)
The Pilgrims' Chorus - and the chorus at the end when the Pope's staff has gone green
The whole first act of _Lohengrin_
The chorus at the end of _Tell_
The luminous, transcendent chorus at the end of _Parsifal_
The "Grail House Rock"
"Hâtons-nous car le jour s'avance" (_Juive_)
_Juive_Act III finale - "Sur eux anathème, sur eux anathème, Dieu les a maudit! Dieu les a maudit!"
"Brodons les étendards" (_Sigurd_)
"Dieux terribles" (_Sigurd_)
The choruses in Act I of _Turandot_ and "May the Emperor live ten thousand years!" in Act II
The Synode (_Henry VIII_)
The opening of _Puritani_
The Hunters' Chorus (_Freischuetz_)
"Guerra, guerra!" (_Norma_)
Attack and Fall (_Akhnaten_)
The Oath Scene (_Orazi e Curiazi_)

...

I like my choruses!


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Parsifal Vorspiel
Oops! Wrong thread but there is no delete button.


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## hpowders (Dec 23, 2013)

For me it's the end of Act Two of Les Troyens as the women sacrifice themselves rather than giving in to their impending captors.


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## BalalaikaBoy (Sep 25, 2014)

well, I mostly like the Triumphal March because of the high Eb (a la Callas, Galvany or Millo), so I can't exactly count that XD

let's see......
probably the Anvil Chorus from Trovatore





does the Nun Chorus from Casanova count? I like that one too

as for non-operatic choral pieces?
- Et in Terra Pax (Vivaldi's Gloria)
- Blow Thou Winter Wind (Rutter)
- There Will Be Rest (??? I couldn't find the version I was looking for on youtube)
- Stopping by the Woods on a Snowy Evening (Randal Thompson)
....yeah, if you hadn't noticed, I have a thing for winter-themed choral pieces


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## Pugg (Aug 8, 2014)

> does the Nun Chorus from Casanova count? I like that one too


Yes it does !!


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## Bardamu (Dec 12, 2011)

I'm glad Mascagni's Inno del Sole from Iris was already cited.

A choral piece I really like is the one from the end of the third act of Respighi's La fiamma:


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

Madama Butterfly when Cio Cio San and Suzuki are waiting for the boat to come in.


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## Bellinilover (Jul 24, 2013)

Itullian said:


> Why this isn't the Italian national anthem, i'll never know.


Yet I think the actual Italian National Anthem ("Fratelli d'Italia") sounds like it could have been written by Verdi.

Right at present, my favorite choral piece is the sewing chorus from _Der fliegende Hollander._


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## Bellinilover (Jul 24, 2013)

schigolch said:


> A huge number of examples come to mind, of course.
> 
> But let's select one that is not very well known, but very beautiful. It's in the opera "Merrick", by Laurent Petitgirard, and the very sick people in a hospital are singing about the problems of that pour soul, Merrick:


You're right -- it's not very well known; however, I have a friend who absolutely loves it.

I think I saw this DVD two years ago. Is it the production with the mezzo-soprano playing Merrick? Personally, I much prefer a countertenor in the part.


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

Yes, Merrick was sung by the Czech singer Jana Syrokova.


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## schigolch (Jun 26, 2011)

Harrison Birtwistle wrote in 1963 this very nice chorus, "Narration, a description of the passing of the year", based on texts from 'Sir Gawain and the Green Knight', and then he used it again in his 1993 opera, _Gawain_, in the so called "Tableaux of the Turning of the Seasons", that separates the two acts of the opera.

The piece has been described as 'a madrigal in slow motion':


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## nina foresti (Mar 11, 2014)

I 3rd it. The Prologue from Mefistofele. Hands down.
Parsifal
Dialogues "Salve Regina"
Madama Butterfly's Humming Chorus
Romeo et Juliette
Verdi Requiem


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## StDior (May 28, 2015)

Wagner: Tannhauser Act III Finale


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## Loge (Oct 30, 2014)

StDior said:


> Wagner: Tannhauser Act III Finale


Wagner always had the best endings, that makes me feel so pumped.


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## Don Fatale (Aug 31, 2009)

Hee hee! Just got back a few minutes ago from seeing Tannhauser at Covent Garden with belowpar. It's got the Act 2 entry of guests' chorus and the Act 3 pilgrims chorus too. Pretty grand stuff.


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