They asked the audience to "touch me here!" They commanded them to "shut up...shut up!" They cleaned them with the "soap of the moon." They cried out with searing pain that "my entrails are burning." They lovingly remembered the woman with the "innocent flower face," and they told of moonlight that would make "fountains sob with ecstasy."

In Knuth Hall, SF State classical vocalists sang these lyrics for an audience of approximately 70 people at the Student Vocal Recital on Friday.

The recital, presented by the School of Music and Dance, consisted of students performing solo selections of classical music with only piano accompaniment. The selections ranged from blissful serenades, to tales of betrayal and seclusion, to soaring descriptions of mansions in heaven.

Mezzo-soprano Emily Ryan performed "La Statue Du Bronze," a ballad of a bronze statue that envies the humans around her who live lavish lives of excess. As people wash themselves in a "lustrous bronze tub" with the "soap of the moon," insects go to sleep in the statue's mouth.

It was Ryan's first solo recital, and though she performed with the school choir numerous times before, she admitted experiencing a little stage-fright.

"I was nervous. But my part was short, so I wasn't up there long enough to be too nervous."

Soprano Ashley Meyers sang "Vedrai Carino," a provocative song of a woman offering a beautiful remedy. The woman asks "would you like to know where I keep it? Feel it beating, touch me here!"

Other pieces, such as "Claire De Lune" or "Hostias," detailed philosophical and religious musings, while selections like "Nuit D' Etoiles" and "Amarilli, Mia Bella" were declarations of fiery love.

The performance was an hour and a half long and consisted of 16 songs total, with 11 vocalists performing one or two songs each.

"I don't know why there were all these vacant seats," said spectator John Westfall. "I enjoyed the whole performance."