Leucemia, Cura traveled to Cologne to headline in the famous verismo double-bill of Cav/Pag. Between performances in Cologne, Cura presented two concerts in Eindhoven (the second added by popular demand). In January 2008 José Cura offered opera lovers a wonderful gift when he starred in Massenet's rarely performed Le Cid at the Zurich opera – his father, Oscar Cura, had died on the morning of the premiere back in his native Argentina, and despite the tremendous weight of the personal tragedy, the tenor still performed that night, to solidary tears and a standing ovation from all those present that night. Cura dedicated the performance to his father, and flew to his native town of Rosario, Argentina, the next day. In early February, Cura took time out from his run of Le Cid in Zurich to conduct Verdi's Requiem for the Hungarian charity Salva Vita, an organization dedicated to helping handicapped citizens gain increased independence through vocational education. After conducting at the Deutsche Oper in Berlin in March, Cura made his much anticipated return the United States in Pagliacci at the San Diego Opera – the first time he had performed Canio in North America. Returning to Europe, Cura sang Otello at the Staatsoper in Hannover for a single gala performance. He followed that performance with a gala concert in Düsseldorf and offered his Cavaradossi in Tosca in Karlsruhe. The month of June found that Cura was firmly entrenched in Italian theater, returning to Bologna for one of his signature roles, Samson, and then on to Turin for Puccini's rarely performed Edgar in an early celebration of the 150th anniversary of Puccini's birth. Cura rounded up the summer months with a brief return to Zurich for two performances of Turandot and performed in concert at the Festival of Toledo and at the Tuscan Sun Festival in Cortona – where he also presented an exhibition of his photography in advance of the release of his first collection, Espontáneas: Photography by José Cura. Cura finished the summer season with Samson et Dalila in Santander, Spain. The start of the 2008/2009 season saw Cura engaged in a labor of love: presenting a master class for the New Devon Opera, a charity for which he is Patron. In mid-September, he returned to the Royal Opera House to reprise Dick Johnson in La Fanciulla del West. Cura followed his run of Fanciulla performances with two notable