from Act II, Scene 2 of the French opera
Jérusalem by Giuseppe Verdi
Libretto: Alphonse Royer
Role: Gaston, Vicomte de Béarne
Voice Part: tenor Fach: dramatic tenor/heldentenor
Setting: a room in the Emir's palace, Ramla, Palestine, 1099
Synopsis: Gaston has been imprisoned by the Emir of Ramla. As he waits to speak to the Emir, his thoughts drift to his beloved Hélène who he has not seen since being exiled from France four years earlier.