For this comparison video, I’ve compiled 12 sopranos singing my favorite section of music from Konstanze’s aria “Martern aller arten” in Mozart’s opera "The Abduction from the Seraglio." It's a top ten favorite moment of mine in any aria, actually.

It’s 42 measures near the end, which I see as the climax of this long arduous aria. It is only part of a longer section of music totaling 80 measures that is marked in the score to indicate it could be temporarily cut from performances (and likely was at the 1782 premiere in Vienna), but not to be permanently excised from the score. There are other portions of this aria and others pieces in the opera that were marked this way, which I only recently learned from a songbirdwatcher watcher. Ah, so that explains why different sopranos have sung slightly different versions of this aria over the years! It is now common practice to restore most if not all of these cuts, especially this section I’m featuring here -- and thank goodness because it is amazing.

It starts with Konstanze quietly but intensely pleading for the Pasha to release her from captivity, she holds an soft G5 over four measures until in a flurry of emotion she suddenly mounts a run up to a short High D. This is immediately echoed by a second similar scale to High D, which then cascades down over two octaves — fairly quickly at first on alternating eighth notes, quarter notes, and half notes, then slowly and deliberately stepping down into the vocal basement on whole notes that reach a low B. Then, because it’s Mozart, Konstanze shoots right back up two octaves through some staccato High Bs to a sustained High C. After a short rest of three beats to gather her resources, Konstanze picks up that High C right where she left it and holds it over three measures until the phrase resolves with an exposed trill that lasts almost two measures. Phew! What a thrilling ride.

Here are 12 sopranos singing this section of about 90 seconds of music, all taken from live performances or broadcasts. I think the key things to listen for are how these singers articulate that first High D (even though a quarter note, some hold on to it); when they breath — if they breath (see Edda Moser), how they each launch that long High C and then develop it in tonal intensity and volume, and how much definition they bring to the last long trill.

The sopranos are presented in alphabetical order:
1. Jane Archibald, unknown date
2. Pamela Armstrong, 2008
3. Alexandra Deshorties, 2003
4. Natalie Dessay, 2000
5. Mariella Devia, unknown date
6. Valeria Esposito, 1991
7. Leyla Gencer (1928 - 2008), 1958 (Sung in Italian)
8. Anna-Kristiina Kaappola, 2004
9. Kristiane Kaiser, 2010
10. Iride Martinez, 2003
11. Edda Moser, 1979
12. Beverly Sills (1929 - 2007), 1976 (since she is at the end, I let her complete the aria).

I am posting links to this same section of music in the six complete versions of the aria I just posted on my channel if you like to compare them.

Laura Aikin:    • Laura Aikin - Mozart: ABDUCTION FROM ...  
Elizabeth Futral:    • Elizabeth Futral - Mozart: ABDUCTION ...  
Janice Hall:    • Janice Hall - Mozart: ABDUCTION FROM ...  
Brenda Harris:    • Brenda Harris - Mozart: ABDUCTION FRO...  
Michèle Pena:    • Michèle Pena - Mozart: ABDUCTION FROM...  
Marlis Petersen:    • Marlis Petersen - Mozart: ABDUCTION F...  
Erin Wall:    • Erin Wall - Mozart: ABDUCTION FROM TH...  

If you want to highlight any other sopranos in this section, feel free to put a YT link in the comments below!

NOTE: I started with 18 sopranos in this video but six of them triggered YouTube copyright claims — not on the recording or singer (they were all obscure, live non-commercial items), but from a music publisher for the music rights! Which is crazy as it’s clearly in the public domain. And so odd because the other 12 selections of the same music that are included here did not trigger any copyright claims, nor did of the complete versions of aria I’ve already posted. Only those 8 for some reason. My point: YouTube’s automatic copyright system is clearly broken.

0:00 Introduction
4:12 Jane Archibald
5:54 Pamela Armstrong
7:41 Alexandra Deshorties
9:12 Natalie Dessay
10:51 Mariella Devia
12:31 Valeria Esposito
14:04 Leyla Gencer
15:35 Anna-Kristiina Kaappola
17:08 Kristiane Kaiser
18:46 Iride Martinez
20:22 Edda Moser
21:58 Beverly Sills