Luciano Pavarotti has flown into Dubai and promised his farewell tour will not mark the complete end of his singing career.

The 69-year-old tenor who twice before had to cancel concerts planned for Dubai arrived by private jet on Monday evening.

He is hoping to do some sightseeing around Dubai before tomorrow's show at Madinat Arena in front of more than 3,500 people. It is the only Middle East date in his two-year-long farewell series of concerts.

"I cancelled shows twice in Dubai for different reasons. One was because I had a fall. There was a misunderstanding as well, but, of course, I want to come here. Of course," he said in a one-on-one interview with Gulf News.

"After the tour, maybe I will give up everything apart from a couple of concerts for benefits."

He revealed he was also planning to team up with Placido Domingo and Jose Carreras for two shows as The Three Tenors in Mexico and Germany, the latter concert to coincide with the 2006 World Cup.

Pavarotti said his voice was still up to the challenge of performing live, despite his age.

"I think a voice like this is something you are born with. My dad died a couple of years ago and he was 90. He still had a beautiful voice, very fresh. I hope it's the same with me," he said.

The Dubai concert, in which he will be accompanied by a piano, will feature some of Pavarotti's favourite Italian pieces by Bellini, Tosti and Puccini.

Singing alongside Pavarotti is Italian soprano Simona Todaro, the latest in a long line of classical divas to accompany him (some of the others were Dame Kiri Te Kanawa, Dame Joan Sutherland and Maria Callas).

With a wry smile, Pavarotti declined to name his favourite from the group.

"You think I will tell you? They are the greatest group of singers. The people making concerts with me are super talented," he said.

"I always enjoy making music with everyone. You cannot live without music, even if you think you can. A man must listen to music every day. Even the noise of the car is a kind of music."

The Dubai concert comes in the wake of Pope John Paul II's death, an event that Pavarotti, a Catholic, said saddened him a great deal. At his last concert, in South Africa, he paid tribute to the pontiff just half an hour before he died.

"I was doing the concert and at a certain point I dedicated Ave Maria to him without knowing he was dying. He was not dead when I began the concert," he said.

Pavarotti said cancelling the Dubai performance because of the pope's death was not an option.

Once the tour wraps up, Pavarotti said there would be plenty to keep him occupied.

"I would like to take care very much of my daughter. She's 2 now. I would like to see her grow.

"I would also like very much to teach. I will start to teach the day after the tour finishes. I hope to find some good students and have results with them. I love young singers."

Tickets are available for Dh975 at Spinneys on Trade Centre Road. Concertgoers are asked to take taxis to the Madinat Arena, and anyone arriving after 9pm will not be admitted.