O Sole Mio
Italian tenor showcase
O Sole Mio is an Italian phrase meaning "my sunshine" or "my own sun," known worldwide as the title of a Neapolitan song from 1898.
The melody is so familiar that it often serves as shorthand for Italian culture, romantic serenades, or operatic singing—frequently parodied or sung by gondoliers and tenors in popular imagination: He launched into O Sole Mio with exaggerated hand gestures.
- NaplesMediterranean port city
- Bay of NaplesSouthern Italian gulf
- ItalianOf or from Rome's country
- ariaOperatic solo piece
- tenorEssential meaning or import
Pavarotti · sunshine · serenade · bel canto · opera · Neapolitan · romantic · gondola · street singer · mandolin · beloved · singing · Mediterranean · Santa Lucia · passion · amore · sunset · balcony
- Neapolitan SongsSanta Lucia
- Italian MusicVerdi, Puccini, Vivaldi, Rossini, Pavarotti
- european folk songsGreensleeves, Danny Boy, Scarborough Fair, Auld Lang Syne, Bella Ciao
emotional tone/mood
O Sole MioDies Irae
Requiem Mass sequence
funeral dirge · lament · threnody · funeral march · dirge