What distinguishes a Puccini aria from a Puccini song? I think the main thing that really distinguishes an aria from a song in Puccini would be the intimacy. Although there are many arias in some of Puccini’s operas that are intimate and personal in nature, I would say for the most part they are more … Lire la suite de Charles Castronovo: “Puccini would have loved Schachtner’s orchestral arrangements”