Word: singers
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...Pavarotti died at 5 a.m. local time at home in the northern city of Modena where he was born. As word of his death spread, the singer was remembered both by experts and ordinary folks for reinvigorating and reinventing (some critics would say, ruining) the classical art form of opera, or la musica lirica, that was born here in the 17th century. "Like Ferrari, he was the symbol of Italy in the world," said noted music critic Mario Luzzato Fegiz. "He was admired for his talent, for his capacity to be a tenor without pretensions, to be close...
...Modena baker, himself an amateur opera singer, the young Pavarotti grew up dreaming instead of a career as a soccer player. Decades later, he would sing his signature tune Nessun Dorma at the inauguration of the 1990 World Cup in Italy, which by many accounts may have been his most widely seen peformance by hundreds of millions of television viewers. His last major appearance was singing at the opening ceremonies of the 2006 Winter Olympics in Turin...
...Gemma Luzzi, 65, a retired high school Italian teacher from Rome, recalled how Pavarotti's early performances gave new impetus to the classical form. But she wondered if the singer grew too attached to his fame. "He had a grand voice, but maybe he didn't have the strength to retire when he was on top. Maybe I'm a purist, but I never liked these duets (with pop singers). It kept him in the spotlight, so I guess he had fun doing them...
...more recent years, Pavarotti has been dogged by run-ins with the Italian tax police and hounded by the gossip pages for his divorce to his longtime wife and marriage to his much younger assistant. The singer has repeatedly announced his retirement, only to be called out for one last concert and curtain call. Most recently, though, plans for a farewell tour were put off after he was diagnosed with cancer. He had surgery in July 2006, and has undergone repeated rounds of chemotherapy, and has not been seen in public in more than a year. Pavarotti released a statement...
...There are a plethora of good singer-songwriters in the west African country of Senegal, many of whom - like Cheihk Lo, Baaba Maal and the peerless N'Dour - have become staples for any self-respecting world music fan in the West. But Kane is different. Less traditional but not quite "Western," he mixes soul and Malian blues with rock tunes on a Moroccan three-stringed guitar known as the guimbri. One London-based music critic described Kane's eclectic sound as "evocative of a kind of pan-Saharan Velvet Underground...