At the age of 70, Luciano Pavarotti is retiring. “Genius is a big word, which should be used carefully. Connoisseurs will never rate Pavarotti as the most elegant or subtle interpreter among tenors – they look to Carlo Bergonzi for that. Nor did he have a voice as romantically beautiful as the young José Carreras. Marvellous as his technique of vocal production was, I wonder whether he ever commanded quite the flexibility of the phenomenal Juan Diego Flórez. And for sheer versatility, musicianship, consistent excellence and shining nobility of soul, he can’t hold a candle to his great rival Plácido Domingo, who at 64 is still a force to be reckoned with. But Pavarotti had charm, and therein lay his genius.”