Lanza's first recording of the aria "O Paradiso" from the 1865 opera L'Africana (The African Woman) by Giacomo Meyerbeer. More commonly performed in the original French (as "O Paradis"), the aria expresses fifteenth-century explorer Vasco De Gama's sense of wonder as he gazes at the enchanted island on which he is being held prisoner (English translation below).
Recorded on 8 April 1950, with Constantine Callinicos conducting.Commercially available on the 1999 BMG CD Mario Lanza: Opera Arias and Duets.
#4 O Paradiso (Radio Show, 1951)
Lanza's second version of "O Paradiso" was recorded for his weekly Coca-Cola-sponsored radio show in August 1951. We hear the recording featured above as originally broadcast, complete with regular announcer Bill Baldwin's enthusiastic introduction and canned applause at the end.
Recorded on 24 July 1951. Ray Sinatra conducting.
Commercially released for the first time in 1993 on the now-deleted BMG CD Don't Forget Me. Subsequently included on the 1999 BMG double-CD Mario Lanza: The Ultimate Collection.
#5 O Paradiso (Serenade Soundtrack, 1955)
Lanza's third and final version of the aria, recorded for the soundtrack of the Warner Bros. movie Serenade (1956) on 15 July 1955. The pianist is Jakob Gimpel.
Interesting sidenote: "O Paradiso" vies with "M’Apparì" from Von Flotow's Martha as the aria Mario Lanza performed most often in his films, with three appearances apiece. However, unlike "M’Apparì," which was only ever featured in extract form (in The Toast of New Orleans, The Great Caruso, and Seven Hills of Rome), "O Paradiso" appeared in its entirety in Serenade(and in snippet form in The Toast of New Orleans, together with a larger partial rendition in Because You're Mine).
After you've listened to all three recordings of "O Paradiso" and rated them (on the right), you may be interested in reading our forum discussion here.
Lanza singing "O Paradiso" in Serenade
O Paradiso (from L'Africana) Mi batte il
cor...spettacol divin!
My heart
throbs...wondrous scene! Sognata
terra, ecco
ti premo alfin!
At last I
embrace you, land that I've dreamed of! O Paradiso,
dall' onde uscito,
O paradise,
emerging from the sea, Fiorente
suol, splendido sol,
Lowering
earth, brilliant sun, In voi
rapito son!
You entrance
me! Tu
m'appartieni!
You belong
to me! O nuovo
mondo,
Oh new
world, Alla mia
patria, ti posso offrir!
I can offer
you to my homeland! Nostro e
questo terreno fecondo,
This fertile
earth is ours, Che l'Europa
puo tutta arrichir!
Which can
enrich all Europe! Spettacolo
divin!
Wondrous
scene! In te rapito
io son!
You ravish
me! O nuovo
mondo,
Oh new
world, Tu
m'appartieni a me!
You belong
to me! A me!
To me!
