Jose' Carreras was "very shocked" over the death from cancer of his friend and colleague Luciano Pavarotti, sources close to the Spanish tenor told ANSA.
The two tenors recently spoke by phone, the sources added.
Pavarotti, Carreras and fellow countryman Placido Domingo formed the 'Three Tenors' trio which would perform at special events and benefit concerts.
Carreras is a cancer survivor after making a remarkable recovery in the late 1980s from acute lymphocytic leukemia despite 10-to-1 odds against him.
The original 'Three Tenors' concert during the 1990 World Cup in was conceived as a means to raise funds for Carreras' leukemia foundation and as a way for Pavarotti and Domingo to welcome back their friend and colleague.
The concert, directed by Zubin Mehta, was an immediate commercial success and topped the charts around the world, a first for a classic music recording.
The trio later performed in a number of venues and expanded their repertoire to include not only opera works but also Broadway numbers, pop hits and even popular songs like O Sole Mio.
Carreras, who was in Stockholm for work, told the Swedish press that he would remember 'Big Luciano' as "one of the greatest opera singers, a true friend, a great cook and an excellent card player".
"We must remember him as a great artist and a man of extraordinary charisma," he added.
