alongside angela gheorghiu at the met. but that was obviously a key moment where the international market, if you would call it, noticed that there's this guy laughs that they just can't avoid any more for the future. but how did he start out? well, jonas kaufmann was born in 1969, when germany was divided. his parents fled east germany in the 1950s. his father was an insurance broker, his mother a teacher, and he grew up with his older sister. we meet at the bavarian state opera house, where he first performed in his early career, and he tells me how his passion for music was formed. well, i grew up in a family that was fortunately extremely passionate with classical music and opera. they were all amateurs, obviously, but everyone was playing an instrument, and they all had subscriptions