By John Maguire BBC Bristol

The setting was spectacular, the weather was faultless, and the Three Tenors - pitch perfect.

The trio were warmly applauded

Never before in their 12 years of singing together had they performed a free concert.

The Malaysian owners of Wessex Water stage these events every year in their own country, but this time Bath was chosen, to coincide with the rejuvenation of the city's spa.

Almost 13,000 people sat in a specially-constructed arena, 20,000 watched on video screens in a nearby park, and thousands of others who had been unlucky in the lotteries for tickets crowded around the perimeter fence to listen or to catch a glimpse over the roof of a portable toilet.

Huge stage

As a perfect - almost too hot - summer's evening darkened, the stunning backdrop of Bath's Royal Crescent was illuminated.

The stage scenery was especially designed to blend in with its sandstone Regency surroundings.

The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Bath Abbey and Camerata choirs filled what was, by any measure, a huge stage.

Jose Carreras was dwarfed by his awe-inspiring surroundings - until that is, he did what he does best.

His voice filled the stage, the auditorium, the whole of the summer sky, cutting through the heat of the air and of the thousands, quite simply, everyone had goose bumps.

It could be their last UK appearance together

Each walked on in turn to sing solo, first Carreras then Placido Domingo.

His performance was magnificent. Looking around, people watched with mouths open and eyes filled with awe.

Because the tickets were given free in a lottery this was not the usual opera crowd.

The eclectic make-up played a large part in creating an emotionally charged atmosphere.

This was not a full opera, more a romp through a list of popular classics, and no aria is more popular, and no singer more famous than Nessun Dorma sung by the extraordinary figure of Luciano Pavarotti.

Picnic rugs

People may argue over which of the three is the finest tenor, but there can be no doubt about Pavarotti's fame or charisma.

The big man more than rose to this very big occasion.

And this was a tale of two concerts. The atmosphere in the park where thousands of picnic rugs lay fringed edge to fringed edge in a sea of tartan wool was extraordinary.

Placido Domingo had joked to reporters he was hoping for a massage at the spa

Here you could sing along, eat, drink and celebrate the spectacle with friends.

If the perceived formality of a classical concert clipped the wings of some of those who would have liked to have cheered and screamed at the tumultuous performances inside the concert arena - those in the park showed no such restraint.

But what everyone will remember of this incredible night - whatever their vantage point - was the sight and the sound of three of the most famous singers on the planet giving their all.

They may never sing together in the UK again - Pavarotti is due to retire in two years' time - but if they do, it will be very difficult, perhaps impossible, to top the concert in Bath.