'Pavarotti 90' compilation will pay tribute to the tenor with previously unreleased material

To celebrate the 90th birthday of Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti (1935-2007) on October 12, Decca Records announces the release of the compilation album "Pavarotti 90," a worldwide tribute celebrating the legendary tenor's unparalleled contribution to classical music, his international appeal and his legacy of bringing opera to everyone.

The tribute will begin with the previously unreleased material "The Lost Concert: Live from Llangollen (1995)", recorded in Wales, where Pavarotti, aged just 19, in 1955, performed for the first time outside Italy after joining his father in the Rossini Choir, based in Modena, his native land.

The album, to be released on November 21, finds the tenor at the height of his career at the Llangollen International Musical Eisteddfod 40 years after the Welsh festival changed his life.

In the recording, Pavarotti sings with the BBC Philharmonic Orchestra, soprano Atzuko Kawahara, and the Rossini Choir. The remastered recording is accompanied by a 100-page collector's book filled with rehearsals, photographs, and archival material. It also includes two original 1955 recordings by the Rossini Choir, "Bonjour mon c?ur" and "In Nomine Jesu," considered the first audio recordings of Pavarotti's voice, as well as a rare interview in which he recalls his first visit to Wales.

Pavarotti's widow, Nicoletta Mantovani, attended the Llangollen Eisteddfod on July 12 and 13 to honor the event, presenting the Pavarotti Trophy to the winners of the Choir of the World competition. A giant chalk mural of the singer's face was also unveiled to commemorate his name and work.

In addition to the live album, Decca will release "Novanta" on October 10th, a 74-track collection chronicling Pavarotti's career: from his earliest studio recordings to iconic duets with artists such as Bono, Elton John, and Andrea Bocelli. The album also features the earliest known recordings of Pavarotti's voice, made in 1955.

Mercury Studios will release "The Lost Concert" on Blu-ray on November 21, which includes original footage and interviews from their last concert.

Pavarotti died at the age of 71 in 2007, a victim of pancreatic cancer.