Spanish Classical Music

José Carreras was born in 1946, son of a policeman and a hairdresser in Barcelona. He began studying song at the age of 17 and received vocal training from Jaime Francisco Puig and was discovered by conductor Rafael Fruhbeck de Burgos and singer Montserrat Caballé. When he won the award at the Verdi Competition in Parma he put aside his Chemistry studies and focused on his singing career.

After 1971, Carreras began establishing himself as an opera singer on an international scale. He soon performed in London, Tokyo, Buenos Aires, San Francisco, at the Hollywood Bowl as well as in Covent Garden. In 1974 he staged his successful performance as Cavaradossi in Puccini’s Tosca at the Metropolitan Opera in New York.

Carreras quickly made a name for himself internationally and appeared in the best opera houses around the world. He was offered some of the biggest roles in French and Italian operas and also performed as a singer at many concerts. He has been recorded on many discs, many of them operas by Bellini, Donizetti, Rossini and Verdi.

At the height of his career in 1987, Carreras was suddenly diagnosed with leukaemia and was forced to interrupt his musical activities. Fortunately he resulted victorious in his battle with the cancer and picked up where he had left off in 1988. Carreras set up a foundation in his name to raise funds for children with cancer.