The form of a baroque opera was based on numbers - recitatvies and arias. There were far less duets and choral episodes. European opera houses were dominated by singers - castrati and primadonnas. They had such an influence that they could determined the number of arias per act. The roles were written for specific singers, so the composers knew exactly the advantages and disadvantages of their voices. Each baroque opera seria had arias of different character - written in a slow tempo and sad in character or in a faster tempo and full of coloraturas. What the Baroque inherited from the Renaissance was the tonal painting of individual words, expressions, natural phenomena or hero's feelings, which made the music very striking and suggestive.
The specific musical style of arias in Baroque operas was tied to the theory of affects (Affektenlehre), according to which the basic task of music is to provoke feelings. The foundations of this aesthetic theory were developed by ancient philosophers (Plato, Aristotle), claiming that certain modes provoke determinations of the state of the human spirit, and then were taken over by music theorists and therefore composers. There are four basic types of affect - sadness, joy, love and hate. If we are to express joy, then music should be written in a faster tempo, with melodies that have interval jumps and we should predominantly use consonant intervals. On the other hand, a composer would have to use slow tempo, gradual movement of melody, chromaticism and dissonance to capture sad feelings. We can find this kind of tonal painting in Renaissance madrigals, but also in Baroque operas where arias were a convenient place to express feelings of the main protagonists.
Among different types of arias, the rage aria was certainly the most interesting one because of its emotional charge and virtuosity. It is known by different names - aria di strepito, aria di furore, aria agitata or aria infuriata. They can be found in opera seria. These arias are short, written in a faster tempo and abound in technically demanding coloraturas. One such aria is in the score of "Julius Caesar in Egypt", an opera written by Georg Friedrich Händel, when the protagonist learns that Tolomeo cruelly beheaded Pompey. Tempo allegro, minor mode and a melody full of fast passages and arpeggios express Caesar's anger in the aria Empio dirò tu sei.
Jealousy or betrayal can really provoke strong feelings in a person and Baroque operas are full of arias in which heroes speak of the anger that overwhelms them because of their disappointments in love. The main protagonist of Händel opera "Xerxes" learns that the woman he loves is marrying his brother and the avalanche of his feelings is expressed in the aria Crude furie degl'orridi abissi. The intensity of the anger is felt in the extravagant coloraturas, punctuated rhythm and exciting orchestral accompaniment. Like many others, this aria is in da capo form, so widespread in Baroque times. When recapitulating the first part of the aria, the singer has the ability to decorate the melody and thus further emphasize the feeling that overwhelms him or her.
The Baroque tradition of writing arias of rage continued to be used in the era of classicism. In Mozart's oeuvre we find two striking examples of this type of vocal art. Everyone knows the aria Der Hölle Rache kocht in meinem Herzen from the opera "The Magic Flute", in which the Queen of the Night, overwhelmed by hellish anger, threatens her daughter Pamina that she will give up on her unless she kills Sarastro. The melodic line is almost constantly in the higher register of the soprano. This aria also requires incredible precision and purity of intonation from the singer, including those famous high notes, available only to a small number of coloratura sopranos.
The first singer to perform this difficult aria was Josefa Hofer, sister of Mozart's wife Constanze, known for her agile voice and excellent high notes. Being well versed in her vocal abilities, Mozart wrote two arias for Queen of the Night, that are now so popular in the opera world. When she hears that her beloved Idamante becomes king and takes Ilia as his wife, desperate Elettra is distracted by her anger and wishes for her death, because she does not want to watch her beloved in the arms of her rival. Her aria D'Oreste, d'Ajace is found in Mozart's opera "Idomeneo". The role was intended for a German soprano Elisabeth Wendling, who grew up in a musical family.
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