| ■ Pavarotti, Opera Superstar, Dead at 71 | 2007.09.07 |
| Luciano Pavarotti, the charismatic opera star who enjoyed worldwide acclaim, died Thursday morning at his home in the northern Italian city of Modena. The 71-year-old tenor, one of the few opera singers to win widespread fame as a popular superstar, had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer last year. He was released from an Italian hospital on Aug. 25 and was undergoing treatment at his home until his death, BBC News reported. Pavarotti came down with respiratory problems during the summer while on vacation at his villa on the Adriatic coast. He had undergone five rounds of chemotherapy since his cancer surgery last year, the BBC said. Pavarotti, who was said to be planning a farewell tour, last sang in public in Italy in 2006 during opening ceremonies for the Winter Olympics in Turin. Some say the "word 'pop' is a derogatory word to say 'not important' -- I do not accept that," Pavarotti told the AP in a 2004 interview. "If the word 'classic' is the word to say 'boring,' I do not accept. There is good and bad music." |