Luciano Pavarotti
One of the most successful and admired opera singers of all time, Luciano Pavarotti was king among tenors from the late 1960s through the 1990s. His voice was noted for its exciting upper register, and tailor-made for the operas of Verdi, Bellini, Donizetti, and Puccini, and as it darkened slightly over the years, for the verismo composers as well. His vocal longevity, which kept him singing youthfully well into his sixties, and still beautifully after that, was a credit to his commanding technique and artistry, and remarkable considering his nearly 40 years of performing.
Pavarotti's father was a baker, and his mother worked in a cigar factory. As a boy, he sang alto in the cathedral choir, and when his voice changed he joined the Modena city choir. He had brief careers as a schoolteacher and an insurance agent; during that time, his major extracurricular activity was not music but soccer, and his play made him a local star. However, increased involvement in the choir (which took prizes in international competitions) led him to pursue vocal studies, and he eventually settled on singing as his aspiration.
Pavarotti studied voice with Arrigo Polo in Modena, then with Ettore Campogalliani in Mantua. His operatic debut was as Rodolfo in La Bohème in Reggio Emilia (April 19, 1961), and soon increasing success led to a debut in Amsterdam on January 18, 1963, as Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor. After singing the same role with Joan Sutherland in Miami in 1965, he was engaged to travel with her in the Sutherland Williamson International Grand Opera Company, touring Australia. In 1966 he appeared at Covent Garden as Tonio in La fille du régiment, where his seemingly effortless handling of the nine successive high Cs in the aria "Pour mon âme" sent his career into high orbit. He repeated the feat at the Metropolitan Opera in 1972, and for more than two decades after that he was a fixture on the operatic scene, appearing in nearly every major European and American house, and even China, where he performed Puccini's La bohème in the 1980s.
Pavarotti appeared in the first "Live from the Met" broadcast on the PBS network and was the most consistent draw on that series for years. His outstanding catalogue of recordings on the London (Decca) record label preserves nearly every role he ever performed and is hard to match for its quality and scope. His charity work included AIDS benefit concerts and world hunger gala events, as well as his "Pavarotti and Friends" concerts to benefit children, especially in the former Yugoslav states. He also founded a quadrennial contest to identify talented young singers and boost their careers. And, as one of the "Three Tenors," he brought operatic singing to a wider popular audience than previously might have been thought possible. In 2003 he released his first solo crossover CD, Ti adoro. He was diagnosed with cancer in 2006, yet remained positive and hopeful of still being able to record and perform until his death.
© TiVo
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Arias by Verdi & Donizetti
Luciano Pavarotti, Wiener Opernorchester, Sir Edward Downes
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1/01/1968
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Luciano Pavarotti - Live Recital (40th Anniversary)
Luciano Pavarotti, Leone Magiera
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1/01/2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mattinata
Luciano Pavarotti, New Philharmonia Orchestra, Piero Gamba
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1/01/1983
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
A Tenors' Christmas
Classical - Released by Sony Classical on 11/08/1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Passione
Luciano Pavarotti, Orchestra del Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Giancarlo Chiaramello
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1/01/1985
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Celeste Aida - The Verdi Album
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1/01/2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Pavarotti Sings Verdi
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1/01/2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Nessun Dorma - Arien & Duette
Classical - Released by Decca on 1/01/2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Luciano Pavarotti - Passione
Luciano Pavarotti, Orchestra del Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Giancarlo Chiaramello
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1/01/1985
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Pavarotti Edition, Vol.3: Verdi
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1/01/2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Verismo Recital
Luciano Pavarotti, National Philharmonic Orchestra, Oliviero de Fabritiis
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1/01/1980
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Pavarotti - Verdi Rarities
Claudio Abbado, Luciano Pavarotti
Opera Extracts - Released by Warner Classics International on 29/09/2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Pavarotti & Friends
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 27/04/2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Puccini: Tosca - Highlights
Mirella Freni, Luciano Pavarotti, Sherrill Milnes, National Philharmonic Orchestra, Nicola Rescigno
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1/01/1979
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Pavarotti in Central Park
Luciano Pavarotti, Members Of The New York Philharmonic, Leone Magiera
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1/01/1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mamma
Luciano Pavarotti, Unknown Orchestra, Henry Mancini
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 1/01/1984
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Live From Lincoln Center
Dame Joan Sutherland, Marilyn Horne, Luciano Pavarotti, New York City Opera Orchestra, Richard Bonynge
Classical - Released by Decca Music Group Ltd. on 11/05/1987
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Love - 'O Sole Mio
Classical - Released by UME - Global Clearing House on 9/02/2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Best Of Luciano Pavarotti 20th Century Masters The Millennium Collection
Classical - Released by UTV Classics on 1/01/2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Highlights
Classical - Released by 2014 Autarc Media GmbH, CH. on 11/02/2016
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Weihnachten Mit Luciano Pavarotti
Orchestra of the Holy Church, The Holy Voices, Luciano Pavarotti
Pop - Released by 2013 Autarc Media GmbH, CH. on 25/09/2013
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo