Abdrazakov to Replace Morris in Pavarotti Tribute

Ildar Abdrazakov will be the bass soloist for the Verdi Requiem tribute to Luciano Pavarotti at the Metropolitan Opera on September 18, at 5 p.m. He replaces James Morris, who is ill. The free public concert will be broadcast live on Metropolitan Opera Radio on SIRIUS channel 78, beginning at 4:30 p.m. with a pre-performance retrospective of Pavarotti’s Met career.

Abdrazakov will sing Raimondo in Donizetti’s Lucia di Lammermoor during the 2008-09 season at the Met. His previous roles at the Met include Méphistophélès in Faust, Alidoro in La Cenerentola, Escamillo in Carmen, and Masetto in Don Giovanni, the role of his company debut in 2004.

The concert will also be carried live on the Metropolitan Opera on Sirius Satellite Radio, channel 78, and will be streamed live at the Met's web site, www.metopera.org.

"We are offering this free tribute in honor of one of the greatest artists of all time," said Peter Gelb, the Met's General Manager. "Pavarotti captivated millions with his performances at the Met and elsewhere, and his golden voice will resonate in this opera house for as long as it stands."

James Levine, who collaborated with Pavarotti in 139 performances at the Met beginning in 1973, said, "Few singers in the history of the Metropolitan Opera have had the popularity with the general public and the enormous impact that Luciano Pavarotti had during his 36-year career with the company. Luciano's voice was so extraordinarily beautiful and his delivery so natural and direct, that his singing spoke right to the hearts of listeners. I will never forget the sheer magic of that voice, but I will also remember the warm, generous, and exuberant spirit of the man. He is, rightfully, a legend already - an artist whose recordings will be a reference for singers and opera lovers for a long time to come."

 Luciano Pavarotti made his Met debut on November 23, 1968 as Rodolfo in Puccini's La Bohème and sang his farewell performance on March 13, 2004 as Mario Cavaradossi in the same composer's Tosca. In all, he performed 378 times with the Met, more than with any other opera company. He sang 20 roles, mostly by Italian composers, as well as performances of the Verdi Requiem and other concerts and recitals.

When the Met launched its first regular series of televised performances in 1977, the inaugural opera was La Bohème, conducted by James Levine, with Pavarotti as Rodolfo and soprano Renata Scotto, another frequent onstage partner early in his career, as Mimì. He went on to sing in 21 Met telecasts, many of which are currently available on DVD. Pavarotti also made several recordings with the Met, all conducted by Maestro Levine: La Traviata, Rigoletto, I Lombardi, L'Elisir d'Amore, and Manon Lescaut.

He first performed the role of Mario Cavaradossi in Tosca at the Met in 1978, and went on to sing it a total of 60 times, his most frequent role. Perhaps his most renowned portrayal was as Nemorino in Donizetti's L'Elisir d'Amore, his second most frequent Met role at 49 performances. He sang in 48 radio broadcasts from the Met stage and starred in 13 new production premieres. In addition to his opera performances, Pavarotti gave three recitals with piano on the Met stage, one with Maestro Levine and two with his accompanist Leone Magiera, and participated in numerous special galas, including the 1972 salute to Rudolf Bing, the 1983 Met Centennial Gala, and a gala celebration of the 30th anniversary of his Met debut in 1998.

The Met's 2008-09 season opens on Monday, September 22 at 6:30 with a gala performance featuring Renée Fleming in fully-staged acts from three operas for which she is well-known: Act II of La Traviata, Act III of Manon, and the final scene of Richard Strauss's Capriccio. In another free public event, the performance will also be transmitted live to multiple screens in Times Square and the Plaza at Fordham University's Lincoln Center campus. The opening night gala will also be the season's first The Met: Live in HD transmission to movie theaters and other venues in the Americas.

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