Jakarta. The Luciano Pavarotti Foundation and Paris-based Indonesian singer Anggun Cipta Sasmi brought classic Italian arias to life at Aula Simfonia in Jakarta on Saturday.

Hundreds of the late Italian maestro's fans swarmed the concert hall, excited to see young singers who had studied under the Pavarotti Foundation. Tickets were sold out a week before the performance. The foundation director and Pavarotti's wife, Nicoletta Mantovani Pavarotti, also attended the concert.

Three young opera singers who studied at the Pavarotti Foundation – Giulia Mazzola, Matteo Desole and Giuseppe Infantino – were joined on stage by pop-rock singer and Italian X Factor winner Lorenzo Licitra, pianist Paolo Andreoli and Anggun herself, who performed a special virtual duet with Pavarotti.

The concert kicked off with two classic arias and personal favorites of Pavarotti – Giuseppe Verdi's "La donna è mobile" from "Rigoletto" and "Brindisi" from "La Traviata," performed by Infantino and Mazzola. Their harmonies and romantic dramatization earned them a long applause from the audience.

Next came a tribute to Giacomo Puccini, performed by Mazzola and Desole. The duo sang "Che gelida manina," "Si mi chiamano Mimi" and "O soave fanciulla."

Anggun began her spot accompanied by Licitra, Desole and Infantino who lent operatic twists to her biggest European hit, "Snow on the Sahara." 

Pavarotti was best known for mixing up opera with other genres. Staying true to his legacy, the foundation's singers performed Queen's "Barcelona" and U2's "Miss Sarajevo."

Anggun's "duet" with Pavarotti featured her singing along to a video of the maestro's performance of Lucio Dalla's "Caruso" projected on a huge screen dangling in the hall. The Surabaya singer, a huge fan of Pavarotti since she was still a child, was moved nearly to tears by the end of the song.

As an encore, all five singers sang "Nella Fantasia" by Ennio Morricone, another fantastic performance that drew a standing applause from the crowd.

Tiffany Sondan, a 22-year-old student from Jakarta, said she got very emotional watching the concert.

"[The singers] emitted their emotions in such a way that everyone in the audience was moved. I also liked the combination of classical and modern music, but the singers were incredible," she said.

Nicoletta said this was the second time the foundation's singers had performed in Jakarta and they are now planning to perform in other cities in Indonesia as well.

"I was really impressed with the response from the public. Next year we will hold a concert somewhere else in Indonesia where no one has ever seen operatic arias," she said.