In a Seinfeld episode Seinfeld and his friends can remember the names of Pavarotti and Domingo but repeatedly forget Carreras’ referring to him as ‘the other guy’. Well he is anything but the other guy. In fact he is ‘the man’ when it comes to singing ‘Donna Non Vidi Mai’ from Puccini’s first opera Manon Lescaut. In this clip he does it better than any of them. In an interview which I can’t remember the source of he remarked that he was ‘on’ that night.
And here he is:
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Donna non vidi mai, simile a questa! |
I have never seen a woman, such as this one! |
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A dirle: “io t’amo,” |
To tell her: ” I love you”, |
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a nuova vita l’alma mia si desta. |
my soul awakens to a new life. |
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“Manon Lescaut mi chiamo!” |
“Manon Lescaut is my name.” |
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Come queste parole profumate, |
How these fragrant words |
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mi vagan nello spirto |
wander around in my mind. |
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e ascose fibre vanno a carezzare. |
And come to carress my innermost fibers. |
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O sussurro gentil, |
Oh! sweet thoughts, |
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deh! non cessar, |
Ah, do not cease! |
source: http://www.aria-database.com/translations/manon02_donna.txt
Here from the same concert is a stirring, perhaps defining, version of E La Solita Storia Del Pastore From Cilea’s “L’Aresiana”
| E’ la solita storia del pastore… | It’s the usual story of the shepherd… |
| Il povero ragazzo volvea raccontarla, | The poor boy wanted to tell it, |
| e s’addormi. | but fell asleep. |
| C’è nel sonno l’oblio, | There is oblivion in sleep.. |
| Anch’io vorrei dormir così | How I envy him! |
| nel sonno almeno l’oblio trovar! | I too would like to sleep like this – |
| La pace sol cercando io vò: | I only want to find peace: |
| vorrei poter tutto scordar. | If only I could forget everything. |
| Ma ogni sforzo è vanno.. | But all struggles are in vain. |
| Davanti ho sempre di lei | I still see before me |
| il dolce sembiante! | her sweet visage.. |
| La pace tolta è sempre a me… | But all struggles are in vain. |
| Perché degg’io tanto penar? | Why must I suffer so much pain? |
| Lei!… sempre mi parla al cor! | She!.. How she always spoke to my heart! |
| Fatale vision, mi lascia! | Fatal vision, leave me! |
| mi fai tanto male! Ahimè! | You hurt me so much! Oh poor me! |
These two performances are from a performance of Carreras in Japan in 1984:
