Opinions on 'Hoffmann' aria for 17 year old soprano?

Question

I am a 17 year old lyric soprano and I'm in the process of choosing repertoire for a vocal competition. One of the required songs must be an opera aria wirtten after 1780, and although I do have some basic Mozart arias in my repertoire ('Vedrai Carino' and 'L'ho Perduta, Me Meschina'), I'm itching to learn something new, but not necessarily more difficult. That being said, I also would like to sing something that's not overdone (ie. songs like O Mio, Una Donna, Ach Ich Fuhls)

I've been looking thorugh my book of arias and I'm interested in doing "Elle a fui, la tourterelle", Antonia's aria in act III of 'Les Contes de Hoffmann'. Any opinons? Is the song alright for my age or should I not touch it?

Any other suggestions would also be greatly appreciated.

Answer 1

I've just listened to it. There are a couple of spots where the tessitura stays high up (the high F# to A) and you're required to sing it loud and sustained. I'm not sure if that would be an issue for a young voice like yours. It seems to demand quite a bit more than your Mozart arias. I'm not an expert on vocal studies, but I do take lessons (I'm 18, light soprano. Still don't know whether I'll become a lyric or soubrette...I'm singing stuff from both currently.). My teacher gave me O mio babbino caro recently, and I'm finding it a challenge to sustain the high tessitura in the middle section ('andrei sul ponte Vecchio' and 'mi struggo e mi tormento', with the repeated high A-flats that I've to sing with a full, ample sound), not because I can't hit the notes, but because of the volume and amount of sound required. So I'm not sure if you'll face similar challenges as well with "Elle a fui".

Some of the advice that I've been given on how to find out if a song is 'too big' for you: Is there more than one passage that you struggle with, musically (not the notes)? Does the song go on for too long? Do you feel exhausted and not just a little tired after singing it? Do you find it hard to stay relaxed while singing despite using proper technique? If one or more of the 'symptoms' ring a bell with you, then you have something a size too big.

In the end, you're the only one who can try it out and see if you should do it. I've looked at songs which didn't seem that hard on the page, but when I actually tried singing it, I found that my voice is not ready for it yet. You should discuss this with your teacher.

I hope I helped somewhat...all the best for your competition!

P.S. Can the aria be from 'alternative performance numbers' that the composer wrote separately for the opera? Because if that is acceptable, I have a suggestion for you: 'Un moto di gioia' - an alternative aria replacing Susanna's 'Venite Inginocchiatevi' in Mozart's Marriage of Figaro. I sang it when I was 17, and it felt quite comfortable. I was able to pull it off quite well, and it's fun to sing :)