The Dying of the Light
Joelle said at some point on September 6, 2007
I read that Luciano Pavarotti passed away this morning from pancreatic cancer. I didn’t realize he was ill until yesterday and with the outlook grave, I thought perhaps he might not make it much longer. With cancer, when they say “grave”, they mean it. I know this from personal experience.
I’m saddened by this death, though, moreso than I thought. Obviously, it’s a sad thing when anyone passes on, so my sympathies are with his family and loved ones, but as a singer and musician, the passing of Pavarotti seems surreal. I’ve heard the name Pavarotti ever since I was a child, through my years as a classical singer and in my mid-twenties when I went through a brief opera phase, exploring it more from a listening standpoint than a performance aspect. Pavarotti is like the gold standard of opera singers. When you think opera, I think most people probably think of Pavarotti. Even if you don’t like or listen to opera, you know who Luciano Pavarotti is.
It always surprises me when celebrity deaths affect me outside of the usual, “Wow, that’s sad.” It’s not like I knew him or even listened to him very often. It’s the passing of a fixture, a legend that kind of takes me off-guard. While opera and his fans have experienced a great loss, his suffering is blissfully over and I can only hope his family receives some peace and solace from that.
Moxie Design Studios™
from Tampa, FL
I have a funny story about him that I thought I would share....
I was at my in-laws one afternoon. I was outside with my nephew, and he was riding his bike. The in-laws live in this teensy development of only like 10 or 12 homes. The road goes in a circle, around a very large pond. So there I am with Ry, walking behind him as he’s wibbly-wobbling up the road (training wheels had just come off...) when I look up and see this man putting something into the trunk of a car. He looks up…
And I am standing there looking at him, and he is looking at me...and I am thinking in my head “WHO is that??? I know that face..OMG whoooo is that??”
I said Hi, he said Hi, and I continued on. I got about 5 feet away when it hit me who he was! I turned around and and said “OMG!!LUCIANOPAVAROTTI?!?” He smiled, and nodded yes. I felt like a dolt, so I just shook my head like “Huh. No shit!”
I gave a small wave and moved on. I didn’t want to bother him.
So when I got back to the house, I ran inside and asked my Mom-in-law what in the hell Mr. Pavarotti was doing in their hood, and she told me that one of his sons lived in that house, and they had just had a baby, so he was here visiting.
I am not into Opera at all. But there is no denying the man had some serious talent. I was in awe of him, standing there like an idiot staring him down. hahaha.
I didn’t know he was sick.. :o(
from San Diego, CA • Cocktail: slightly dirty Grey Goose martini
@Jen: haha! That’s a cute story.
You know who Michael Crawford is? He was in the original cast of Phantom of the Opera. One day he was in my driveway in the back of a limo because my dad had the last limo reserved for the night (he owned part of the company) and Michael Crawford wanted it. So he had the driver take him to our house so he could offer my father tickets for the show as a thank you.
Ok, not a Pavarotti story, but a “famous singer guy in the neighborhood” story nonetheless. hee!
from Vancouver, BC
I know what you mean about being oddly effected by certain celebrity deaths. For the most part I think “wow, that’s sad”, but I when Kurt Vonnegut died I felt like a kindly (albeit dirty-minded) old uncle had died. That seemed wrong to me at first until I realized how much his writing influenced the way I thought about certain things - and that’s pretty important - especially from someone you’ve never met.
Despite not being a huge fan of opera, I too will miss having Pavarotti in this world. Music is my reason for being and I always mourn the loss of one of our own.
from the gym, usa
I know! I was really sad when I heard the news. I’ve been listening to my favorite song he sang--Puccini’s “Nessun Dorma”. I’ve heard him sing this song for the first time in that CHEESE movie called “Yes Georgio” (VERY OLD) when I was a child. It still makes me tear up EVERY SINGLE TIME I hear it...very moving. It’s an enormous loss.
Love Ave Maria, loved listening to him sing it. You’re right, Luciano Pavarotti is in the public subconscious. Godspeed, Luciano.
I know fuck-all about opera, but the guy had a crazy talent that made the world a better place. When he sang “Nessun Dorma” he could make statues weep.
My mother’s cousin had pancreatic cancer, so I know it’s a death sentence, but I was still saddened to hear he’d died.
I felt the same way. My stepmother was a huge fan of his, and somehow the connection is made in my head. I wished I could talk to her about it--but maybe she’s getting a great show out somewhere.