DECCA CELEBRATES THE RECORDED LEGACY OF
THE MOST FAMOUS TENOR THAT EVER LIVED

Luciano Pavarotti rose from humble beginnings to dominate the world of opera, with his extraordinary voice ringing out from every major concert hall in the world. To celebrate his legacy, we’ve laid out some of the key achievements from the maestro’s life, from his album releases and key performances to his off-stage triumphs.

The life & times of...

Luciano Pavarotti

Luciano Pavarotti rose from humble beginnings to dominate the world of opera, with his extraordinary voice ringing out from every major concert hall in the world. To celebrate his legacy, we’ve laid out some of the key achievements from the maestro’s life, from his album releases and key performances to his off-stage triumphs.

Key

Key live performance
Album
Silver-certified album
Gold-certified album
Platinum-certified album
Double platinum-certified album
Album certified as triple platinum plus

His Life

His Music

1935

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Luciano Pavarotti is born on October 12, 1935, on the outskirts of Modena, Italy. Despite his family’s humble circumstances, his father Fernando Pavarotti, a baker and amateur tenor, encourages his son to pursue his dream of being a professional singer.

1955

Pavarotti works hard to fund his musical education – including six years spent as an insurance salesman.

1961

Makes his first appearance as Rodolfo in La Bohème. It would go on to become one of Pavarotti’s most famous roles (others being Rigoletto, Tosca, Un Ballo as his personal key roles).

1963

Makes his Covent Garden debut, replacing indisposed Giuseppe Di Stefano as Rodolfo.

1964

Debuts at Glyndebourne as Idamante in Idomeneo.

1964

Favourite Italian Arias

1965

Performs in the US for the first time, as a late replacement Edgardo in Lucia di Lammermoor opposite Joan Sutherland in Miami.

1966

Stuns an audience in Covent Garden with nine consecutive high Cs in La fille du régiment. From then on Pavarotti is known as the King of the High Cs.

1966

Beatrice di Tenda (Bellini)

La Fille du régiment (Donizetti)

Messa da Requiem (Verdi)

1968

Makes his debut at New York’s Metropolitan Opera, playing Rodolfo.

1968

Arias by Verdi & Donizetti

Der Rosenkavalier (Strauss)

L'elisir d'amore (Donizetti)

Un ballo in maschera (Verdi)

Macbeth (Verdi)

Stabat Mater (Rossini)

1971

Tenor Arias from Italian Opera

Rigoletto (Verdi)

Lucia di Lammermoor (Donizetti)

1972

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Records Nessun Dorma from Giacomo Puccini’s Turandot. Despite the fact that Pavarotti had never performed the opera on stage, his version is heralded as the best ever recorded.

1972

Turandot (Puccini)

La Bohème (Puccini)

1973

I puritani (Bellini)

The World’s Favourite Tenor Arias

1974

Madama Butterfly (Puccini)

La favorita (Donizetti)

Maria Stuarda (Donizetti)

1975

Luisa Miller (Verdi)

1976

O Holy Night

Cavalleria rusticana (Mascagni)

Operatic Recital — Pavarotti & Ricciarelli "Live"

Operatic Recital — Pavarotti & Freni "Live"

Il trovatore (Verdi)

Operatic Duets

Au fond du temple saint (Bizet)

1977

Attracts a huge TV audience in the first ‘Live from the Met’ telecast of La Bohème.

1977

Pagliacci (Leoncavallo)

Le Grandi Voci dell’Arena di Verona Vol.2 (Live): Una furtiva lagrima & Nessun dorma!

Petite Messe solennelle (Rossini)

Tosca (Puccini)

Requiem (Donizetti)

O sole mio (completion): Favourite Neapolitan Songs

Guglielmo Tell (Rossini)

Verismo Arias

La traviata (Verdi)

La sonnambula (Bellini)

La Gioconda (Ponchielli)

1978

Mefistofele (Boito)

1979

Live From Lincoln Center

1982

Pavarotti makes his first and only starring appearance in a feature film, the romantic comedy ‘Yes, Giorgio’.

1982

Yes, Giorgio (soundtrack)

Un ballo in maschera (Verdi)

Mattinata (completion)

Idomeneo (Mozart)

1984

Norma (Bellini)

Mamma

1985

Passione

1986

Marks the 25th anniversary of the start of his career by performing to 10,000 people in Beijing’s Great Hall of the People.

1986

Aida (Verdi)

1987

Ernani (Verdi)

Volare

Pavarotti at Carnegie Hall (Live)

1988

Receives 165 curtain calls and is applauded for one hour and seven minutes after singing the part of Nemorino in Gaetano Donizetti’s L’elisir d’amore at the Deutsche Oper in Berlin, Germany. It remains a Guinness World Record.

1989

Grande Messe des morts (Berlioz)

Rigoletto (Verdi)

L’elisir d’amore (Donizetti)

1990

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Pavarotti’s 1972 recording of Nessun Dorma is used as the theme tune for the BBC’s coverage of the World Cup bringing the tenor to an even wider audience.

1990

Il trovatore (Verdi)

Carreras, Domingo & Pavarotti in Concert

1991

Performs a free concert in London’s Hyde Park for 150,000, including Prince Charles and Diana, Princess of Wales.

1991

Otello (Verdi)

La traviata (Verdi)

1992

Pagliacci (Leoncavallo)

Manon Lescaut (Puccini)

Pavarotti & Friends 1 (Live)

My Heart’s Delight (Live)

Pavarotti & Friends 2 (Live)

1993

Pavarotti performs to what is believed to be his largest ever audience at the ‘Pavarotti In The Park’ concert in Central Park. At the climax of his 130-minute set, the New York Parks Department estimated the crowd at 500,000, four times their initial predictions.

1993

Rigoletto (Verdi)

1995

Pavarotti Plus (Live)

Inno delle nazioni (Hymn of the Nations) (Verdi)

Pavarotti & Friends together for the Children of Bosnia (Live) (Donizetti)

1996

Pavarotti & Friends for War Child (Live)

I lombardi (Verdi)

1997

Suzel buon dì (from L’amico Fritz) (Mascagni)

Live Recital

1998

Becomes the first opera singer to appear on US TV show Saturday Night Live.

Pavarotti performs with the Spice Girls as part of his Pavarotti & Friends concert in his hometown of Modena. Ten Pavarotti & Friends were held between 1992 and 2003 with all the proceeds donated to humanitarian causes.

1998

Pavarotti & Friends for the children of Liberia (Live)

The 3 Tenors 1998

1999

Pavarotti & Friends for Guatemala & Kosovo (Live)

2000

Pavarotti & Friends for Cambodia & Tibet (Live)

2001

Pavarotti is awarded the prestigious Nansen Refugee Award by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees in recognition of his incredible charity work. The singer helped raise more funds for the UN refugee agency’s work than any other private individual

2001

Ti adoro

2004

Makes his last appearance in an opera playing Cavaradossi in Tosca at the Met.

2006

Sings ‘Nessun Dorma’ at the 2006 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in Turin – it will be his last public performance.

2007

Luciano Pavarotti dies at his home in Modena on Thursday 6th September 2007. His last words are reported to be "I believe that a life lived for music is an existence spent wonderfully."

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