Jonas Kaufmann prepares for Parsifal with Gummi Bears

6 March 2013, 15:38 | Updated: 6 March 2013, 17:40

The best way to get through a five-hour opera performance if you're singing? Jonas Kaufmann thinks that Gummi Bears are the way to keep your energy up.

Tenor Jonas Kaufmann has admitted that he relies on certain luxuries when he's preparing to take on the big opera roles he's become famous for. In an interview with Bloomberg, Kaufmann said that he particularly favoured Gummi Bears to keep his energy up in long performances.

Asked how he gets himself ready for marathon performances, he said: "I had some problems with low blood pressure years ago - dizziness on stage - so I drink a lot of salted water, which helps keep the mineral level up."

"I also like Scottish shortbread. Plus Gummi Bears. I love Gummi Bears."

Kaufmann is currently performing in the New York Metropolitan Opera's production of Richard Wagner's epic Parsifal, an opera that can last over five hours in length. His most recent album, Wagner, contains several operatic excerpts and examples of the composer's lieder.