Luciano Pavarotti, opera's biggest superstar of the late 20th century, died Thursday. He was 71. He was the son of a singing baker and became the king of the high C's, the Associated Press reports.

Pavarotti, who had been diagnosed last year with pancreatic cancer and underwent treatment last month, died at his home in Italy.

Althouse shows a video clip Pavarotti and simply writes, "silenced."

Firedoglake writes, "As a kid, growing up in West Virginia in the 70s, my introduction to opera came with a Pavarotti performance at the Met that was broadcast on our local PBS station. I was not very old — maybe five? – the opera was a Pucchini (Perhaps Tosca? I’m not certain but that seems right.), and I remember sitting transfixed at the beauty of the music and the soaring voice coming out of that big bear of a man on the stage.

Public television and radio have been a big part of my cultural education. We didn’t have a lot of access to live performances outside of local high school bands and the occasional travelling symphony company that might perform somewhere within driving distance. But through the magic of television and radio, I could sit in our home and hear the arias and watch the performances on the world’s great stages.

And I did, soaking it in every chance I got. Still do."

Ebenezer writes, "I shed a tear today...I admired him greatly."

Adelia says, "He was the only opera I could listen to. He had a fantastic voice and what seemed like a great personality. There won't be one like him for a long while, if ever again."

Laura writes, "The world has lost one of the greatest tenors of the 20th century."

Contributing Editor Erin Kotecki Vest also blogs at Queen of Spain Blog