The brilliance of Brindisi – Libiamo from La Traviata is undeniable, but when performed by legends like Jonas Kaufmann, Sonya Yoncheva, and Juan Diego Flórez under the baton of the great Plácido Domingo, it transcends into something truly magical. Domingo, a titan of opera, leads with the grace and mastery that have made him an immortal figure in the performing arts. The voices of Kaufmann, Yoncheva, and Flórez intertwine seamlessly, capturing both the joyous and intoxicating spirit of this beloved drinking song.

To witness such a performance live is to experience opera at its highest level—an overwhelming wave of passion, precision, and vocal brilliance. This is a moment in music history that reminds us why opera continues to captivate and inspire across generations.

Jonas Kaufmann… Concert Heaven

If I look back through my career, there have been moments where I really was overwhelmed by what had just happened. One, certainly, was my debut at The Met, because that radically changed my career. I’d already performed in many places, at La Scala and Covent Garden, but in 2006 I was finally at The Met, with Angela Gheorghiu in Verdi‘s La traviata.

I was obviously super nervous, because the house is so big, and I’m pretty sure that nobody in New York had heard the name Jonas Kaufmann before – even though I’d sung some parts at the Chicago Lyric Opera beforehand. And then I sang and afterwards the audience burst into applause; it’s in those moments that you tend to turn round and wonder if Plácido Domingo just entered the stage. That was an incredible moment.

The Met: if you can make it there, you can make it anywhere

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I can’t explain to you honestly why, but for every young singer The Met is the Olympus. You’re pinching yourself and, as they say, if you can make it there you can make it anywhere; and that’s true somehow. When I went back to Europe, wherever I went people said, ‘Oh yes, this is Kaufmann, he had a great success at The Met…’ It was actually almost ridiculous, because I’d been to all these great theatres in Europe, like the Paris Opera, Covent Garden, Munich, Berlin, La Scala… but suddenly Europe takes notice of this young tenor only because he was a success at The Met. I can’t explain it, but it has this special thrill.

The sheer size of that hall causes some anonymity for a performer. It’s a completely different animal to Covent Garden, in terms of size; in London you have the impression you can lean forward and touch the audience. I feel more and more at home over the years in many of those houses. When you come back you know the stagehands, the orchestra musicians and you can find your way to the canteen and back without getting lost.

WATCH THE PERFORMANCE BELOW 👇