Luciano Pavarotti Leaves a Well Documented Legacy Behind

Authored by Scott Goldberg on September 6, 2007 - 12:15pm.

In Modena, Italy early this morning, Luciano Pavarotti died after his long battle with pancreatic cancer. Most famous for his partnership in The Three Tenors with Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras, Pavarotti’s career will not soon be forgotten. With countless recordings, television appearances, DVDs, arena concerts and charity events, more than enough material is available to anyone interested in experiencing the Master’s imprint on the world. Among many clips available on the internet, one noteworthy example is his rendition of Schubert’s Ave Maria which you can see here. Pavarotti was 71.

"I always admired the God-given glory of his voice - that unmistakable special timbre from the bottom up to the very top of the tenor range," Domingo said in a statement from Los Angeles. "I also loved his wonderful sense of humor and on several occasions of our concerts with Jose Carreras…we had trouble remembering that we were giving a concert before a paying audience, because we had so much fun between ourselves."

Pavarotti’s operatic career spanned four decades, beginning with his role as Rodolfo in Puccini’s La Boheme on April 29, 1961 in Modena. His final performance was at the 2006 Torino Olympics, which can be seen here.