Nessun Dorma

I'm sharing this because "Nessun Dorma" is the most stunning aria ever written. And because, as the human voice is the most amazing of instruments, that makes this aria the best short length of music ever written. (An argument of course can be made that women’s voices are more “amazing” than men’s voices, but I’ve never felt that was true. I’m a man, I’m a tenor, and this is my post.) Consider, too, that music is the highest of all art—certainly the most mysterious, inexplicable—that it’s therefore also true that this short piece is an instance of the best of all art, ever. And, since art is perhaps the highest expression of our struggling human existence, well then, “Nessun Dorma” is pretty much the be-all and end-all of everything. End of discussion.

Still, if you don’t like opera, if it makes you feel any better, consider that I haven’t attended an opera, nor even listened to one, in years. You would assume that I, too, must not like it either. As it happens, when I listen to “Nessun Dorma” I’m reduced to tears by its unspeakable beauty. I studied to be an operatic tenor when I was young, still have my high C (on occasion), and have some idea what my life would have been like if I’d attempted to go down that most daunting career path. It was my choice to go only so far before finding another way.

In any case, whether you're inclined to watch and listen or not, at least check out the end of this video clip when Kaufmann's done singing for the most arresting, in-the-moment, layered (and protracted) “Nailed it!” expression I’ve ever seen on a man’s face after finishing anything:

Jonas Kaufmann - Nessun Dorma from "An evening with Puccini"