What got me started on this is that I just discovered that I have the entire Opera for Africa video. On it, Carreras sings the best 'Improviso' I've ever heard him sing. I had always thought the 'Improviso' in his Chenier debut at the Liceu was his best. Wrong. I burst into tears. I rarely cry, but I was crying for what has been lost. Then I became realistic again. No one can sing like that forever or even for very long. Next came Caballe and Carreras singing the 'Brindisi' from Traviata. Not my favorite part of Traviata, until I heard this. Oh, wow!!! They both hit a high C at the end that was stunning. They were so wonderful together. This was 1985. He was already having trouble with Bs and Cs in the early 80s - hell, he never had a dependable C.

Some have said that some of Carreras' problems came from a lack of lengthy early training. I agree in part. But I still think one of his downfalls was his determination to pronounce every word perfectly, even through the very dangerous passaggio and high notes. He never covered his voice, or changed his vowels. He sang every note very 'open', because he would have lost dramatic effect had he done any of those things. The combination is a voice killer. Witness di Stefano. Compare Pavarotti and Carreras singing the same song - listen through the passaggio notes - E, F, G, A.

The young Jose Carreras sang every vowel as written, no covering, no distorting. He truly sang *the words*. It was one of the qualities that drew people to him, including me. Neither they, nor I, realized it at the time. It's unbelievable the difference it makes to hear someone throw themselves into a role with great abandon rather than trying to 'save the voice'. To me, it is one of his most endearing qualities. He's not stupid. He knew he was going to ruin his voice, but it was far more important for him to *be* the character. Remember, the man has always been a gambler.

I'd rather hear 10 good years of that kind of singing, than 40 from some singer who just sings pretty notes.