In 1990 the first Three Tenors concert was held in the Baths of Caracalla in Rome. The idea for the concert was originally conceived as a way for Carreras long time colleagues, Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavorotti to help Carreras raise money for his leukemia foundation. But the concert generated so much enthusiasm that the three decided to perform regularly. The Three Tenors performed a world tour of concerts in 1996-1997; performing at Kasumigaoka Stadium in Tokyo, Wembley Stadium in London, Ernst Happel Stadion in Vienna, Giants Stadium near New York City, Ullev Stadium in Gothenburg and many other prominent locations all over the world. The concerts were a huge commercial success and led the group to produce a series of recordings.
The CD of that original benefit concert in Rome ended up selling nearly thirteen million copies; which made it the all time best selling classical recording. In 1994, when the Three Tenors concert in Los Angeles was televised form Dodgers Stadium, over a billion people from all around the globe tuned in. The group is credited by many for introducing opera to a wider audience. Indeed, one of the trio’s recordings, “The Three Tenors in Concert”, holds the Guinness World Record for the best selling classical music album. But the tenors were not without their critics, many who complained that the tenors performed for money rather than art. Indeed, on their first worldwide tour, each tenor received a million dollars per concert, not the type of money usually paid to classical musicians. Carreras trivialized the criticism saying that they made very little in comparison to many athletes, pop singers and movie stars. The trio continued to produce record albums and perform until 2003.
Legacy
Carreras remains a popular performer but his career has shifted away from complex operatic roles. Carreras explained the transition in a 2013 interview: “You can do certain things when you’re younger, when your voice is full, but then you get older”.
After Carrreras’ own recovery from leukemia, he established the Fundacio Internacional Josep Carreras per a la Lluita contra la Leucémia(the Jose Carreras International Leukemia Foundation)in Barcelona. The foundation works to develop clinical research into the cure and treatment of leukemia through research grants. Carreras has received many illustrious honors for his humanitarian work and holds honorary degrees from Universities all over the world. Carreras voice will always be considered one of the most beautiful tenor voices and has best been described as a lyric tenor with the generosity of a spinto and having “a noble timbre, richly coloured and sumptuously resonant”.
References
https://www.biography.com/people/jos%C3%A9-carreras-9239419
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jos%C3%A9_Carreras
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mario_Lanza
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_retablo_de_maese_Pedro
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Three_Tenors
Return to the previous page| Birth Date: | 5 Dec, 1946 |
| Age: | 73 yrs |
| Occupations: | Opera singer Recording artist |
| Citizenship: | Spain |
| Birth Place: | Barcelona |
| Education: | Conservatori Superior de Música del Liceu |
| Gender: | Male |
| Description: | Spanish opera singer |
| Spouse: | Mercedes Pérez |
| Net Worth 2021: | 250 million |
