Puccini’s ‘E lucevan le stelle’ (And the stars were shining brightly) is one of the most heart-wrenching arias in the Italian tenor repertoire. Sung by the doomed painter Cavaradossi in the opera ...

Simon Rattle conducting the Berlin Philharmonic Orchestra. E lucevan le stelle from Puccini’s Tosca. Luciano Pavarotti with the National Philharmonic Orchestra. Elgar’s Sospiri. Andrew Davis ...

In “E lucevan le stelle,” Cavaradossi’s farewell to life, he even inserted some sobbing effects, like an old-fashioned Canio in “Pagliacci.” For his first Met Scarpia, baritone Quinn ...