hiː kˈɔːzd ɐ mˈeɪdʒɚ skˈændəl ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɛvənti ˈeɪt wˈɛn, ˈæftɚ θɹˈoʊɪŋ hɪz pɹˈɑːp sˈoːɹd æt ðə kəndˈʌktɚ hˈɜːbɚt vˈɑːn kˈæɹædʒən, hiː fjˈʊɹɹiəsli lˈɛft ðə stˈeɪdʒ dʒˈʌst bᵻfˌoːɹ ðə fˈeɪməs kˌæbɐlˈɛɾə "dˈaɪ kwˈɛlə pˈiəɹə" dˈʊɹɹɪŋ ɐ pˈʌblɪk dɹˈɛs ɹᵻhˈɜːsəl ʌv ˈɪl tɹˈɑːvæɾɚɹ æt ðə vɪˈɛnə stˈeɪt ˈɑːpɚɹə.
He caused a major scandal in 1978 when, after throwing his prop sword at the conductor Herbert von Karajan, he furiously left the stage just before the famous cabaletta "Di quella pira" during a public dress rehearsal of Il trovatore at the Vienna State Opera.