Throngs Mourn Pavarotti in His Hometown

By COLLEEN BARRY and TRISHA THOMAS
Associated Press Writers

MODENA, Italy (AP) - Throngs of mourners filed through Modena's cathedral Friday for a last glimpse of Luciano Pavarotti in an outpouring of love for the tenor celebrated as the greatest Italian voice of his generation.

President Giorgio Napolitano joined the crowds viewing Pavarotti's open white coffin _ as many as 2,000 an hour _ to bid farewell to the city's most famous son on the eve of his funeral.

"Luciano Pavarotti did honor to Italy. Italy honors Luciano Pavarotti," Napolitano said as he left the 12th century cathedral.

More than 20,000 people had paid their respects since Thursday evening, when the public was allowed in just hours after the tenor's death at age 71 following a yearlong battle with pancreatic cancer.

The coffin was surrounded by flowers, and he was dressed in a black tuxedo with a white tie and shirt _ his hands holding the trademark white handkerchief and a rosary. A red veil with an embroidered treble clef was draped from the coffin near his feet.

A child's drawing bearing the name of his 4-year-old daughter, Alice, was placed in a vase of roses near his head.

The mood in the piazza outside was more warm than tearful, and most of the mourners were Modenese themselves, paying tribute to the imposing singer who made their city of 180,000 on the Po River famous worldwide.

The owner of a nearby record store said all of Pavarotti's recordings and DVDs had sold out. "The demand has been huge," said Alessandro Tacconi.

A childhood friend recalled his school days with "Big Luciano" and the tenor's love of soccer _ later matched by his passion for horses.

"When we played soccer, passing him was not easy. He was really big and really strong, but he always played very carefully and with respect, especially for those smaller than him," Giancarlo Pellacani said.

City officials scheduled the cathedral to stay open until midnight, to accommodate his many fans, and then reopen Saturday before his funeral that will draw dignitaries and fellow artists.

Only family and invited guests will be permitted inside the Romanesque cathedral that can hold up to 3,000 people, but the service will be televised live in Italy and shown on large screens in the piazza outside and elsewhere in the city.

Among those expected to come are former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan and U2 lead singer Bono, Italian news agencies reported. Stephane Lissner, general manager of Milan's La Scala Opera House, where Pavarotti appeared 140 times, and the Metropolitan Opera's former general manager Joe Volpe, also were to attend.

Bulgarian-born soprano Raina Kabaivanska, who has appeared with Pavarotti, and tenor Andrea Bocelli will be among those singing at the service, Modena's city hall said. Bocelli was expected to sing the hymn "Panis Angelicus" at the service, which Pavarotti himself performed at the same cathedral in 1978 in a memorable duet with his father, Fernando.