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The heavy doors of Modena's ancient cathedral opened at dawn to allow the crowds who had queued outside to enter and view the coffin, in which the singer's body lay in a black dinner jacket, his hands crossed at his chest over an ivory rosary.

Hailed by many as the greatest tenor of his generation, Pavarotti, 71, died early Thursday at his villa near this northern Italian town after a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

The public will be admitted until Saturday morning, ahead of the funeral scheduled for 1300 GMT the same day, with Prime Minister Romano Prodi among those expected to attend.

Italian newspapers on Friday paid fulsome tribute to the man whose enormous crossover celebrity had turned him into a global superstar with an appeal far beyond the confines of classical opera.

Most dailies devoted several pages to reviewing the singer's life and career.

Pavarotti - known in his prime for the opulent clarity of his voice and ability to hit high Cs with ease - broke into the opera world when he won a competition in 1961.

He hit a truly global audience when his performance of the aria "Nessun Dorma" from Puccini's "Turandot" was chosen as the theme music for football's 1990 World Cup finals, held in his native Italy.

He sung "Nessun Dorma" during his last major performance, at the opening of the Winter Olympics in Turin in February 2006.

The heir to the British throne, Prince Charles, sent a personal message of condolence on Friday to Pavarotti's family, saying the world would seem "an emptier place" without him.

The tenor was a close friend of the prince's first wife, Diana, princess of Wales.

Pavarotti was asked to sing at her funeral in 1997 but was too upset to do so.

To the shock of some classical music purists, the larger than life singer extended his appeal far beyond the operatic world, collaborating with pop stars such as Sting, U2 and even the Spice Girls.

Pavarotti's volatile temperament and frequent cancellations made him a challenging booking. In 2004 his former manager Herbert Breslin published a memoir that portrayed the singer as a spoiled man whose ego was matched only by his girth.

Pavarotti's success also attracted the attention of the society columns.

He left his wife Adua in 1996 after 35 years of marriage and three grown-up daughters for his secretary Nicoletta Mantovani, whom he married in 2003, and with whom he has one child.

Story/photo  AFP

Vocabulary

mourner, n: person who attends a funeral or funeral service

coffin, n: box in which a dead person's body is laid for funeral

tenor, n: male opera singer who sings the high notes

to admit, v: to allow to enter

funeral, n: ceremony in which people say good-bye to somebody who has died

crossover, adj: to move from one style to another

appeal, n: ability to attract interest and/or enjoyment

dailies, n: newspapers (most newspapers come daily)

condolence, n: expression of sadness that somebody has died

memoir, n: a story written about the past in the way the person remembers it 

Questions

1. What did Pavarotti have in his hand in the coffin?

a. ivy

b. aviary

c. rosary

d. rosemary

2. What did Pavarotti die of?

a. hail

b. cancer

c. pancake

d. pandemonium

3. How old was he when he died?

a. 35

b. 61

c. 71

d. 96

4. When is the funeral scheduled?

a. all Monday

b. Tuesday night

c. Friday morning

d. Saturday afternoon

5. Why did Pavarotti refuse to sing at Princess Diana's funeral?

a. He was too upset.

b. He never liked her.

c. He was not married to her.

d. He didn't know she had died.

Synonyms

Which of the following words or phrases replace the ones from the passage best?

1. salute

a. listen to

b. talk about

c. pay homage

d. shake hands with

2. pass

a. die

b. move

c. contribute

d. hand over

3. adore

a. revere

b. import

c. accept

d. market

4. ahead

a. before

b. leading

c. opposing

d. confronting

5. fulsome

a. scarce

b. farcical

c. realistic

d. generous

Answers

Questions   1. c, 2. b, 3. c, 4. d, 5. a

Synonyms   1. c, 2. a, 3. a, 4. a, 5. d

By Ajarn Horst Baelz