Luciano Pavarotti dead
 

The manager for Luciano Pavarotti says the Italian tenor has died. Sad day for opera.

guess the fat lady sung :spock:

http://www.smh.com.au/news/arts/pava...783353910.html

Pavarotti dead at 71: manager

Luciano Pavarotti's manager has told The Associated Press that the 71-year-old Italian tenor has died.

In a text message to Reuters, Pavarotti's manager Terri Robson said: "Luciano Pavarotti died one hour ago''.

A TV station in Pavarotti's home city of Modena had earlier reported that the opera star was unconscious and suffering from kidney failure, and that family and friends had gathered at his villa to be near him.

The condition of the celebrated Italian tenor worsened following his operation for pancreas cancer in July last year and hospitalisation last month.

Pavarotti was hospitalised with a fever on August 8 in Modena in the north of Italy. He was discharged on August 25 after diagnostic tests were completed.

Hailed as one of the greatest tenors of his generation, Pavarotti underwent surgery for pancreatic cancer more than a year ago and has since had at least five rounds of chemotherapy.

Following his surgery Pavarotti cancelled subsequent concerts, sparking fears that he may never perform in public again. He was forced to abandon a 40 concert farewell tour that began in May 2004.

This summer during a ceremony in honour of the singer on the island of Ischia near Naples, his wife said that Pavarotti had been feeling well and was preparing a new album.

The same day, July 10, Pavarotti called the ceremony's organisers and concluded by saying he was preparing another Pavarotti & Friends album.

On Wednesday morning, Pavarotti had expressed his "emotion" following the establishment of a "cultural excellence" prize in Italy that he had been the first to receive.

He said he was "full of emotion and gratitude ... because it gives me the opportunity to continue to celebrate the magic of a life spent in service of art."

Pavarotti broke into the world of opera when he won the top prize in a competition in 1961, for which he was rewarded with the role of Rodolphe in Puccini's La Boheme in nearby Reggio Emilia.

He went on to perform across Europe before crossing the Atlantic in February 1965 for a production of Donizetti's Lucia di Lammermoor in Miami, Florida, with Australia's Joan Sutherland as Lucia.

It was with Sutherland in February 1972 that Pavarotti truly came of age, taking Covent Garden and the New York Metropolitan Opera by storm with a sparkling production of another Donizetti favourite, La Fille du Regiment.

But he managed to shock purists with his appearances in live concerts, sometimes alongside pop musicians. In 1991 a crowd of 150,000, including the Prince and Princess of Wales, braved the rain and cold in London's Hyde Park to hear him sing.

The previous year Pavarotti had hit an even wider audience, when his performance of the aria Nessun Dorma, from Puccini's Turandot, was chosen as the theme music for the 1990 Football World Cup, hosted by his native Italy.

Among his best-known initiatives in recent years have been his appearances with two other leading singers, Jose Carreras and Placido Domingo, as the Three Tenors, and the annual Pavarotti and Friends concerts in Modena.

AFP

He was no Tay Zonday.

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Not an opera fan but appreciated his powerful voice. This video is a fantastic duet with James Brown.

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Here he is in the famous "Pagliacci" by Leoncavallo. You'll probably recognize it if you seen any mob themed shows or movies, like The Untouchables.

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Or the famous Seinfeld episode with Crazy Joe Davola, "The Opera".

"Are you afraid of clowns?"

Sad day. The man was an amazingly gifted singer. RIP.

Dane McTranny. What's up left Coast yo'?

Why start shit in a thread like this?

Drinkin', D00d. I have a headache from all the noise caused by the demo and construction of a new addition to my house.

What's shakin' in DoooooooDah?

Bars are closing I can see the people wandering out to their cars and such from the 2nd floor of my condo. It's funny some of the stuff I see. By the way I had to give you my never to be humble opinion over on the DC board about the housing market. FYI, my uncle has a nice place in South Fla. and lost $175K in value overnight. He's still good as he has it paid for but he was hoping to sell it and move to Southern Utah and now he's in Utah and has an expensive house that he can either sell for a decent profit or sit on it for a year or two and rent it.

If I ever get out to LA. we should get a drink. I'd like to know more about Hollywood and the Night life in LA. I'll bring my Left Coast pimp daddy clothes and you can be my wingman since you're all married up.

ROFL. Sounds good. Drop me a PM when it happens.

It's ok, he knows I'm teasing.

Did he explode???