Tenor Luciano Pavarotti, a man of charisma

[D. Allan]

and a man of great charm.

[D. Allan]

He died today, Sept 06/07, of pancreatic cancer.

[D. Allan]

"Millions saw him on television and found in his expansive personality, childlike charm and generous figure a link to an art form with which many had only a glancing familiarity." - New York Times, today

[D. Allan]

"He was a close friend of Diana, Princess of Wales. They raised money for the elimination of land mines worldwide. He was invited to sing at her funeral service, but declined, as he felt he could not sing well "with his grief in his throat"." wikipedia.com

[D. Allan]

"Pavarotti annually hosted the "Pavarotti and Friends" charity concerts in his home town of Modena in Italy, joining with singers from all parts of the music industry [including rock musicians] to raise money for several worthy UN causes. Concerts were held for War Child, and victims of war and civil unrest in Bosnia, Guatemala, Kosovo and Iraq. After the war in Bosnia, he financed and established the Pavarotti Music Center in the southern city of Mostar to offer Bosnia's artists the opportunity to develop their skills. For these contributions, the city of Sarajevo named him an honorary citizen in 2006." - wikipedia.com

[D. Allan]

On this page of The New York Times you can listen to several short mp3 excerpts of Luciano singing. I recomment 'Nessum dorma' from Turandot. His voice gives me chills from the top of my head to the bottom of my feet.

Thank you, Luciano Pavarotti, for enriching our lives and making this world a better place for us to live in.

[D. Allan]

An appraisal: A Master of Italianate Opera