The opera world mourns a great baritone

On the death of Dmitri Hvorostovsky:

Rolando Villazon: ‘We will always remember his shiny white hair, his conquering smile, his handsome, devilish eyes, his Herculean presence, his wonderful, unique singing, powerful and delicate at the same time. Dima, the great singer, the great colleague has left us, but his legacy remains.’

Jonas Kaufmann: With great dismay, I have learned today that my great colleague and dear friend dmitri hvorostovsky has succumbed to his cancer. Jonas Kaufmann

Angela Gheorghiu: Today, the world lost a beautiful soul… I am devastated and heavy-hearted by the loss of Dmitri Hvorostovsky, a wonderful friend and a beautiful soul gone too soon!  His voice is now shining for the angels in Heaven!
To Florence and his precious family – words cannot heal the pain, but may loving memories bring you strength, comfort and peace, today and always!
Rest in peace, my dear Dimichka, you will continue to live forever in our hearts!

Olga Borodina: Deeply loss! Dima! Why so early? I can’t describe this pain……

Joyce DiDonato: The best way i can think of to honor a life as voracious, generous and as beautiful as that of beloved Dimitri is to share in the healing, communal power of music. I dedicate tonight’s performance of Semiramide at the @RoyalOperaHouse to Dima.

Joseph Calleja: Gutted to the bone. A charming singer with a greatness that will immortalize his artistry.

Roberto Alagna: Immense tristesse aujourd’hui, ciao Dima

Sarah Connolly: Terribly sad. He was always a shining star, always sounding gorgeous and being a good colleague. A huge loss.

Fabio Luisi: He was indeed one of the kindest singers I ever worked with – and we worked extensively together, especially at the Metropolitan Opera.
Always a good word for everybody and a helping and positive attitude.

Decca Records: Very sad to hear of Dmitri Hvorostovsky’s passing. He was a legend, one of the most charismatic voices of our time and he will be sorely missed.

Lawrence Brownlee: An Opera GIANT has fallen. RIP DmitriHvorostovsky.

Elina Garaca: I am heartbroken today to hear of the passing of my dear friend, Dmitri Hvorostovsky. An incredible singer, artist, colleague and friend — gone far too soon. His voice and spirit will stay with us forever. Rest in peace.

Costa Pilavachi, former head of Philips: “Dima”, as he was known to all, joined Philips Classics in 1989 after winning the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World. He was not only immensely talented but also charming, lively, funny, boisterous and above all, a good and loyal friend. What a loss!

Vienna State Opera: The Vienna State Opera is deeply affected by the loss of Dmitri Hvorostovsky. This is a very, very sad day for all of us at the Wiener Staatsoper. With Dmitri Hvorostovsky we lost an outstanding singer and a real friend. It is with great wistfulness that we remember his memorable Wiener Staatsoper performances – as Iago, Posa, Eugen Onegin, Rigoletto and Simon Boccanegra. Or his last performance in La Traviata in November 2016, when he sang the role of Giorgio Germont so touchingly and beautifully – he was so strong, even though he was
already suffering under this disease. ‘I especially admire the wonderful way in which he carried himself during this terrible illness,’ said Vienna State Opera Director Dominique Meyer – ‘Dima leaves a great void behind. He will stay in our memories as an exceptional artist who always gave a hundred percent – and as a person who enriched us with
his laughter, his joy, his warm-heartedness, his positive manner and his generosity. To his wife Florence and to his children we, the entire Wiener Staatsoper family, express our deepest sympathy.’

The Wiener Staatsoper has raised the black flag in mourning and will dedicate Dmitri Hvorostovsky a minute of silence before today’s performance.

Royal Opera House, Covent Garden: ‘All at The Royal Opera are saddened to hear of the death of our friend and colleague Dmitri Hvorostovsky. Our thoughts are with his family at this time.’

ROH Chorus: ‘No words seem enough to describe our feelings on the loss of Dima. His love and friendship was valued by all of us and we will miss him terribly. xxx’

More later.