An opera singer who underwent brain surgery without anesthetic.

The Slovenian singer Ambroz Bajec-Lapajne was diagnosed with Glioblastoma multiforme (GMB), one of the most aggressive malignant brain tumours. As more than 90 per cent of patients diagnosed with GMB die within three years of being diagnosed, Ambroz was told he would have to go under the knife

But to prevent the craniotomy having a negative impact on his career, neurosurgeons at the Dutch clinic suggested he sing throughout the operation. 

The team at the University Medical Center Utrecht hoped that by singing during the surgery they would avoid deficits after the procedure. By keeping Ambroz awake, the team was able to monitor his ability to cope with and vocalise the key change during the brain tumour surgery. The tenor chose to perform ‘Gute Nacht’, by the 19th century early Romantic composer Franz Peter Schubert.

The singer manages to maintain the performance for the majority of the surgery, but about two minutes in he appears to lose focus.  

His voice trails away mid-phrase, while he face appears to sag slightly. 

But after less than a minute he is able to come back into focus and continue with the performance. 

‘I’m just a singer and tenor at that… I believe he rewired my brain for a while and that was the result. I could not control my tongue anymore and could not stop phonating,’ Ambroz told United Press International.

‘It was a very weird feeling.’

But Ambroz has been recovering well since the surgery, which took place on June 13 last year.

He wrote in the video description: ‘It’s been more than a year since and I’m doing fine, continuing my professional singing career.’