Luciano Pavarotti

Who would have told Fernando Pavarotti, an ordinary baker who loved the Modena Opera, that his only son, Luciano Pavarotti, would become the greatest bel canto legend of the 20th century? Born on October 12, 1935, Luciano grew up surrounded by music and soon realized that his father's vocation was also his. With him she took her first artistic steps in the choir of the Teatro de la Comune in his city and experienced for the first time the magical sensation of being with him on stage and seducing the audience with his voice. At the Llangollen International Singing Competition (Wales), father and son won first place together with the Gioacchino Rossini choir.

Our year is 1955. I can't go back. The young Luciano decided to devote himself to professional singing and continue his tenor career, working as a primary school teacher after graduating while studying at the "Scuola Magistrale". At first he decided to continue singing with Arrigo. Polo was performed in Modena and then in Mantua with Ettore Campogalliani. On April 29, 1961, Pavarotti performed at the Reggio Emilia International Opera Competition. Excluding Verdi's La Bohème, in which the main character Rodolfo comes to life, this is the first time he has performed the entire opera. Its success was astonishing. Pavarotti won first place in the competition, automatically opening the door to the world opera circuit. A myth was born.

His first international performances took place in 1963 in Amsterdam, Vienna, Zurich and London. In 1965 he made his Australian debut as Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor in Miami with renowned soprano Joan Sutherland, marking the beginning of a remarkable collaboration. But the highlight of the year was his debut at La Scala, reprising the role of Rodolfo, the character that gave him the greatest joy throughout his career. A few years later, he returned to Milan to celebrate the centenary of Toscanini's birth in 1976, playing characters such as the Duke in Rigoletto, Tebaldo (in Belini's I Capuleti ei Montecchi), Des Grieu (in Massenet's Hand) and the Requiem of Verdi.

On Thursday morning, the 6th, his spokesman, Terry Robson, announced the fatal results. That day the Tenor's Ardent Chapel was installed in the Modena Cathedral, which allowed everyone to bid a special farewell to the great artist. His funeral was held in the same temple on September 8, where thousands of people gathered to say goodbye to one of the most influential personalities of recent times. Among them were Prime Minister Romano Prodi and his wife Flavia Franzoni, several Italian ministers and former UN Secretary General Kofi Annan. Bono, leader of the musical group U2 and good friend of the tenor, wanted to say goodbye to Luciano Pavarotti for the last time. In Italy, the public response to a funeral has not been this good since Pope John Paul II died two and a half years ago.

His legacy remains one of the most emblematic tenors of the 20th century. His death marked the end of an era, but his legacy remains one of the most influential and unforgettable voices in the world of opera.