Possente spirto

"Possente spirto, e formidabil nume" ("Mighty spirit and formidable god") is a key aria from Act 3 of Claudio Monteverdi's opera L'Orfeo, where Orpheus attempts to persuade Charon to allow him to pass into Hades and find Euridice.

At the start of the Act, Hope (Speranza, sop.) has guided Orpheus to the banks of the Styx, where, at the sign 'Abandon all hope, ye who enter', she can go no further.

Orpheus' way is barred by Charon, who explains that no living body shall enter his boat.

Orpheus (tenor) sings that he is no longer living, for, with his wife dead, he himself no longer has a heart ("senza cor"). Charon (bass-baritone) is initially unmoved, but when Orpheus continues singing, and then plays his lyre, Charon is lulled to sleep.

Orpheus crosses over the Styx in Charon's boat, singing "Rendetemi il mio ben, tartarei Numi!" (Give me back my love, O gods of Tartarus!). The Chorus of Spirits then sing "Nulla impresa per uom si tenta invano," ((No task of man is done in vain,..) to close the third act.