PROVOCATIVE THOUGHTS: 
The late Patric Standford may have written these short pieces deliberately to provoke our feedback. If so, his success is reflected in the rich range of readers' comments appearing at the foot of most of the pages.
Pedro Lavirgen
Spanish tenor Pedro Lavirgen was born in Bujalance on 31 July 1930. As a child, during the Spanish Civil War, Lavirgen was injured and remained in hospital for three years, joining the hospital choir and becoming a soloist. When he was discharged from hospital he studied at the Madrid Royal Conservatory and at the Escuela Superior de Arte Dramático.
He began his career as a chorus singer, but by 1964 he had sung at New York Metropolitan Opera and by 1975 had sung at La Scala and at Covent Garden. During his career, he also sang at the Munich National Theatre, Palais Garnier, Teatro Colón, Verona Arena and at Vienna State Opera.
Pedro Lavirgen retired in 1993 then taught singing at the Madrid Royal Conservatory. He died in Madrid on 2 April 2023, aged ninety-two.