Domingo hits new high with Freedom of City of London

SPANISH opera singer Placido Domingo has been given the Freedom of the City of London. The Madrid-born baritone and tenor received the British award at a ceremony in the Mansion House, the lord mayor’s official residence.

Domingo was accompanied by his wife Marta Ornelas and son Alvaro, and was told by Lord Mayor Alderman Roger Gifford that his ‘exceptional legacy to classical music will endure for decades to come’.

The Freedom of the City dates back to 1237 and is given for outstanding contributions to London life. Seventy-two-year-old Domingo has made 200 Royal Opera House appearances during a career that began in 1959.

“I am proud of having once called Chelsea home, and having embedded so much of my history here. I am now filled with emotion and gratitude,” said Domingo, who in January released his first pop album in 20 years.

Globally honoured on numerous occasions, in 1990 Domingo formed The Three Tenors with Josep Carreras and Luciano Pavarotti, and on his 70th birthday at a gala concert held in his honour in Madrid, Queen Sofia accompanied the tenor from the Royal Box.