| 《星光灿烂》选自普契尼的三幕歌剧《托斯卡》。罗马画家马里奥·卡伐拉多西因掩护政治犯安格洛蒂脱逃而被捕受刑。歌剧女演员托斯卡正热恋着他。警察总监斯卡皮亚以处死马里奥来胁迫托斯卡委身于他。托斯卡被迫假意允从，警察总监则答应搞一次假处决使马里奥获得自由，托斯卡在拿到警察总监签发的离境通行证后，趁其不备，刺死了他。黎明时，马里奥被带往刑场，托斯卡告诉他这只是假处决。谁料这是警察总监耍的花招，马里奥真的被处决。她刺死总监之事也已暴露，终于跳墙自杀。
该咏叹调是卡伐拉多西在第三幕中所唱。黎明，他走上刑台，即将被处决。远远望见梵蒂冈和圣·保罗大教堂，天空清亮，星光闪烁，一道暗淡的光线预示着黎明的到来。卡伐拉多西深情唱到："……甜蜜的亲吻，和那多情的拥抱，使我多么惊慌，她面纱下美丽的面容和身材……"Cavaradossi, in prison, awaits his execution. For the price of a ring (his last possession), Cavaradossi convinces a jailer to deliver a note to Tosca, then starts writing a farewell letter (E lucevan le stelle – “And the stars were shining.”). With the last line (E non ho amato mai tanto la vita – "And never have I loved life so much"), he bursts into tears. | |
