Remembering Pavarotti
If you’ve never heard Pavarotti sing Puccini’s La Boheme then you’ve never truly enjoyed ‘Che Gelida Manina’. Pavarotti died at 5 am this morning (11 pm Wednesday EDT) at his home in Modena after a long battle with pancreatic cancer. Pavarotti is an icon who helped many people fall in love with opera. I can still remember how it felt to lie on the floor in my first apartment with ‘Una Furtiva Lagrima’ blasting from the speakers and feeling the emotion he so aptly conveyed. I had the pleasure of singing under Maestro Paul Salamunovich who told my favorite story about Pavarotti…
Paul Salamunovich is a renowned conductor throughout the U.S. and knew many of the big names in opera (Pavarotti, Marilyn Horne, Dame Joan Sutherland, ect) as well as famous actors in Hollywood as that is his home…During the stint in which he conducted and gave a master-class to the Sam Houston State Chorale he told the story of a concert he was at in which Pavarotti sang a beautiful movement in a sacred mass…Paul said it moved him so much that he ran to Pavarotti and praised him for his touching performance, to which Pavarotti’s humble reply was, “Oh thank you, thank you so much. I practice very hard…but my father, he does it much better.”
That is my favorite story about Pav…he inspired millions and yet was humble and dedicated to teaching others. He is truly the voice I hear when I think of great tenors and he will be missed by millions worldwide.
This is a great loss….
I have several of his “duets” with other singers. One of my favorites is when he sang “New York, New York, with Liza Minilli. I also have a couple of songs he sang with Elton John, and a few others. They have always been treasures that I enjoy hearing….and now will be appreciated even more. Truly one of the greatest voices EVER. He will live on through his music.