Luciano Pavarotti had one of the most distinctive voices in the history of opera. A decade after his death, the Italian tenor still reaches the high notes.

A number of artists continue to rule their genre years after their passing away. Elvis Presley is still the king of swinging hips, Jimi Hendrix still rocks and Jim Morrison still casts his dark but beautiful shadow. And Luciano Pavarotti, the man who brought opera to the masses, is still loved by the same masses.

The world of opera lost one of its greatest tenors exactly 10 years ago. An inimitable artist with the most beautiful tenor voice of the 20th century died at the age of 71 after a long battle with pancreatic cancer on September 6, 2007.

Pavarotti’s extraordinary talent, coupled with a larger-than-life persona, transcended the opera stage to echo in football grounds, concert halls, Olympic ceremonies and memories.

He will always be remembered as a giant of opera and all who knew him personally had the honour of appreciating his spontaneity, honesty and generosity.

Anne Midgette, The New York Times critic who co-authored a tell-all book about Pavarotti with his former manager, says that at the tenor’s peak, the brilliance of his voice was incomparable.

“There’s a brightness to it,” she wrote in 2004. “There’s also a very legato quality, a wonderful, lissome quality, a softness to it. There’s this seductive sensuousness to the voice.”

Pavarotti was born in Modena, Italy. His father was a baker and his mother worked in a cigar factory. As a young man, Pavarotti sold insurance to pay for voice lessons.

He became internationally famous in the early 1960s, thanks in part to soprano Joan Sutherland. The imposing diva championed Pavarotti’s talent and the two performed together throughout their careers.  Sutherland was attracted to Pavarotti, in part, because of his stature. On stage, he didn’t seem quite so ‘ridiculous’ as other, shorter tenors next to her towering 1.87 metres.

Joan Sutherland and Luciano Pavarotti sing a scene from Gaetano Donizetti’s opera Lucia di Lammermoor at the Metropolitan Opera in New York in January 1987. Photo: AP

Pavarotti arrived on the scene at a moment when the opera world was experiencing a dearth of strong tenors. For years, the major stars had been women, like Sutherland and Maria Callas.

The tenor’s name on a bill created what another critic called ‘Pavarotti pandemonium’. His popularity swelled after he increased his repertoire to include crossover tunes and Italian folk songs.

But Pavarotti was also a shrewd self-promoter. As one of the Three Tenors, together with Plácido Domingo and José Carreras, he sold out stadiums around the world and their accompanying CD was one of the biggest-selling classical recordings of all time.

Nicoletta Mantovani, who married him in December 2003, was Pavarotti’s artistic director and responsible for his annual Pavarotti and Friends benefit concerts, which were held in Modena, Italy, where the tenor was joined on stage by fellow celebrities such as Bono, Elton John, Suzanne Vega, and Sting, to aid poor youngsters around the world.

When asked how he thought his tenor glorious voice would hold up, Pavarotti told CBS News correspondent Mike Wallace in 2002: “I don’t know. I don’t have any idea because I slow down and next year slow even more down, and I slow down until I think I will give up by myself.”

Pavarotti’s voice was such that it went far beyond the confines of opera and out into the world beyond. When a voice is that great, everyone who hears it responds in some way.

‘He was an operatic god, voice of the century’

Maltese voices remember Pavarotti

“From reading Luciano Pavarotti’s autobiography and his manager’s rendition of The King and I, the most wonderful thing about him is his love for life and all good things.

“This was evident in his singing. He was very hard on himself as he always wanted to produce the best he could.

“In my opinion he had a glorious voice with beautiful bright ping and a very youthful and vibrant colour. He sang with great thought and gave special importance to his singing technique. He had great charisma and was a true charmer. He always captivated everyone with his storytelling, both on and off stage.

“He was a man of the people, with a big heart beating with generosity. He became the legend that we know today by following his passion and raw instinct.”

Nico Darmanin

“Pavarotti was one of the greatest tenors of all time. He really did have a golden voice – such a beautiful instrument with a unique timbre and fantastic technique. The great Pavarotti knew his voice very well and always took great care of it – he always stuck to suitable repertoires which explains his longevity.

“He was also a great businessman and made himself a household name – he created a legacy that will last. His charm and stage presence made everyone fall in love with him.

“I remember listening to his recording of La Bohème and instantly fell in love with it. Since then I became a massive fan.

“One thing that always touches me when I listen to him is his passion, his love and how everything he says or does is so genuine and comes straight from within.”

Cliff Zammit Stevens