The Puerto Rican tenor Antonio Barasorda has died.

Barasorda died on July 9, 2018, of a heart attack, a few days before he was to give a concert at the Puerto Rico conservatory. The tenor was being treated for a Colon tumor and was 72-years-old.

The tenor first started his career performing such roles as Canio, Calaf, Dick Johnson, Radamés, Samson, Tristan and went on to the title role of Verdi’s “Stiffelio” at La Fenice, 30 years after Mario Del Monaco last performed the role at the theater.

In 1994, he made his Metropolitan Opera debut as Cavaradossi in “Tosca” and would go on to perform such important roles as Pollione alongside Jane Eaglen’s “Norma,” Manrico alongside June Anderson in “Il Trovatore,” and Canio in “Pagliacci” with Sherrill Milnes. He also sang alongside Plácido Domingo in “Idomeneo” and replaced the superstar tenor in the fourth act of “Andrea Chénier.” His final performances with the company took place in 2006 as “Cyrano de Bergerac” alongside Sondra Radvanovsky.

Other important achievements for the tenor was the world premiere of “Gernika” for the Teatro Arriaga de Bilbao. He also inaugurated the center of Bellas Artes of San Juan in 1981 and the National Opera of Helsinki in 1995.

Barasorda also left a number of recordings including “Macbeth” for Decca with Riccardo Chailly, Shirley Verrett, Leo Nucci, and Samuel Ramey He also recorded “Stifellio.”

Here is the tenor performing alongside Katia Ricciarelli in “Lucrezia Borgia.”