Queen of the Night Aria (Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen)

Description

Colloquially referred to as the "Queen of the Night Aria," this aria from The Magic Flute of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart is officially titled "Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen" ("Hell's vengeance boils in my heart"). It has been arranged for clarinet quartet here by Matt Johnston. The first singer to perform the aria onstage was Mozart's sister-in-law Josepha Hofer, noted for the qualities and agility of the upper range of her voice. This aria and one other ("O zittre nicht, mein lieber Sohn) were written specifically to feature her voice. There are plenty of glorious performances that can be found all over the internet, but also notable is the historical recording of the work sung by Florence Foster Jenkins.