Among the many interviews they gave themselves to, Il Volo was also interviewed by Don Walter Insero, a wonderful interview for the program “ON THE ROAD awaiting the 2025 Jubilee”.
Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca are expected by Don Water in front of the basilica of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere. A very informal meeting where Ignazio, Gianluca and Piero opened their hearts without any problem, talking about life, faith, and religion.
I translate for you..
DWI= Welcome back to ON THE ROAD. We are in Trastevere (Rome area) in front of the basilica of S. Cecilia, patron saint of music and musicians.
This young Roman woman, from a noble family, learned the message of Jesus, became a Christian and, in order not to betray her faith in Jesus Christ, she was martyred in the third century.
Since then this has become a place of silence, prayer, which has welcomed millions of pilgrims who have come to pray at the tomb of St. Cecilia, and this place will welcome the pilgrims of the next jubilee, who will find here an oasis of contemplation and peace.
PIERO= Don Walter good morning.
DWI= Hey hello!
Hi Piero, hello Ignazio, hello Gianluca.
IGNAZIO= A magnificent place.
DWI= How nice to meet you here..
GIANLUCA= It’s a great pleasure!
DWI= …in front of the Basilica of Santa Cecilia, we are on our way ON THE ROAD towards the 2025 jubilee.
I welcome you to this which is your home, because it is the home of Cecilia, who is the patroness of music, of musicians, of singers, of singers, (at this moment Barbara and Torpedine can be seen behind them) so I have the pleasure to accompany you on this journey.
GIANLUCA= It’s an honor!
IGNAZIO= Thank you, thank you very much.
DWI= It’s music that brought you together, right?
GIANLUCA= Yes, let’s say that music is what gives meaning to our lives, let’s say that everyone uses different tools to discover their own mystery, so we used this great tool that allowed us to dig inside ourselves and make sense to life. We are what we are through the voice and certainly together the strength is greater to convey emotions to the public and excite everyone here.
DWI= When you were very young, true, you discovered this artistic vocation.
PIERO= I believe that recognizing one’s vocation when young is a great privilege. We immediately recognized it thanks also to the support and support of our families, it was they who introduced this musical genre, which is Bel Canto, the genre that we sing, and therefore we owe everything to music.
DWI= And did the families support you in this?
IGNAZIO= Absolutely, I think that especially at the beginning, they were a fundamental part of our growth and, to put it simply (he means simply), I like to say “to keep our feet on the ground”, and they continue to do so today , so we really have to say thank you to our families because they taught us the true value of being a family, what it means to be a family.
DWI= Well, let’s go in then. Look how wonderful. (he points to the painting of the vault)
They prayed and asked Cecilia to pray for us.
GIANLUCA= With singing, which is the best prayer.
DWI= Yes, Bach says that music is a privileged path because it brings the soul closer to God. Is this true for you too?
GIANLUCA= It is the soundtrack of one’s emotions, like the poets who in their madness, like Leopardi (Italian poet) spoke to the moon waiting for him to respond. And it’s a bit like touching the sky with your emotions I think.
PIERO= Whoever sings prays twice, right?
DWI= Saint Augustine says so.
PIERO= And we do it often, singing on stage, almost every day and I think I recognize that we are three hyper-privileged people because what we feel on stage I think is an emotion that cannot be described. It’s not really easy to describe and make concrete, so I think three of us share the same sensations, an advantage for the three of us.
DWI= But can we say that music has brought you closer to God in your journey?
IGNAZIO= In a certain sense yes, also because we started from three small towns, where perhaps we know in small towns there are many more people inclined to believe, to find a foothold in what could be help from a saint, especially in music, like Saint Cecilia, so for us, our parents always prayed to God that their children could one day find their own path with their own talent, so absolutely yes.
PIERO= Personally my first approach to music was thanks to the church.
DWI= Oh yes?
PIERO= Because as a child I always went to church, so I sang in the choir, without inhibitions…
IGNAZIO= I was also part of the choir.
PIERO= I was an altar boy, I sang, so I know all the sacred songs. For us it would also be a great desire to be able to contribute during the jubilee with this magnificent art: music.
WOMAN’S VOICE = Rome, Trastevere district, it is in its beating heart, among its narrow streets, that a jewel full of charm and mystery stands: the basilica of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere. It is here that almost 1800 years ago the young Cecilia, considered the patron saint of musicians, was martyred.
DWI= You sang in the presence of the Holy Father, of Pope Francis, in a meeting with young people and a global family meeting, with your families. What did it represent for you?
IGNAZIO= Look, the first time was in Panama.
DWI= Yes!
PIERO= World Day..
IGNAZIO= World Youth Day and having a million young people in front of us……I remember that after singing we commented on this, that there was an energy, that it was an altar, it wasn’t a stage….
DWI= Sure, sure.
IGNAZIO= A gigantic altar and you could feel this energy, I don’t know, it seemed magnetic…
PIERO= A deafening silence…
IGNAZIO= It was a deafening silence, it’s one of those experiences that really happen a few times in your life and that is given by energy, because in the end I think that people are energy, life is energy, and seeing a million people , in the same place, for the same reason, an energy was created that is truly unforgettable for us.
PIERO= And then, on 22 June (2022), being witnesses during the World Family Day, I think it was one of the great objectives of these 15 years together, because from the first day we have always tried to reach those who listen to us and also to those who don’t listen to us, this message of unity but above all this strength that are values, families, because sometimes, perhaps due to the frenzy that we experience during daily life, we forget about certain values, that is, a call with mother, maybe hear the grandparents….
DWI= Sure, sure.
PIERO= And in the end you realize that this important value that is family has arrived.
DWI= What do you remember about the meeting with Pope Francis, Gianluca?
GIANLUCA= Obviously the greatness of a person is demonstrated by his humility, I think, right? And therefore his humility is an example for all of us, many young people who are still experiencing a difficult moment in our era, seeing themselves in a person who can truly be like a family member, asking for advice, admiring him from afar in all parts of the world , I believe that this, however, is the main thing for us artists too, because then music is like a eulogy to madness, if you think about it, because there is no rationality, nothing is created from rationality. All this (looks at the basilica), artists who have been inspired by a spiritual journey, because only through spirituality can something wonderful be created and that’s a bit what we are doing with our music, our creativity takes hold from our madness, from our almost childish madness, if you think about it.
DWI= This masterpiece by Stefano Maderno (Italian sculptor) which describes what he saw when the body was observed and surprisingly, when they opened Cecilia’s tomb, they found her body in exactly that shape you see.
PIERO= Which year are you talking about?
DWI= So, the survey was done in 1599 and Stefano Maderno sculpted the marble in 1600.
PIERO= And she was found like this, in this position.
DWI= Yes, in this position, because a first attempt was made to suffocate her, in what was the “calidarium” (spa), it was a noble house because they had heating and they had the spa in the house and they tried to suffocate her there and instead she was beheaded, three shots were planned, can you see? It excites me, because look at his delicate neck, it has the signs of this cut that his body has maintained, so when Maderno commissioned this work, he knew that the intact body had this sign. Then she bled to death, a terrible death, but tradition says that while she was in agony, she had expressed the desire that this, which was her home, become a place of prayer and the Christians came to pray, the faithful then came and there are also Benedictine nuns who pray night and day, so the prayer is constant.
What does this work inspire in you?
GIANLUCA= It’s a manifestation of pain if we think about it, which is the basis of everything, only through pain does a certain growth in life certainly occur. She is a woman who then based her life on art, certainly, such a young woman and therefore an example for all of us, because even from suffering, as I was saying, important growth can be drawn.
PIERO= I really believe in coincidences. During the Sanremo Festival, the last one we did, we were given a holy picture of Santa Cecilia…
DWI= Oh…
PIERO= ….and we put it behind the cover of our cell phone and during that day we talked a lot about Santa Cecilia and today we find ourselves here in the basilica of Santa Cecilia…
DWI= Who guards her body, so it’s there, she’s buried here…
PIERO= What coincidences…
DWI= Yes, they are those gifts of providence.
And for you Ignazio?
IGNAZIO= I think that there are many miracles in life, for example I live in Bologna and there is a church where Saint Catherine is and even there the body remained intact. These are things that I don’t know… returning to the topic of energy, I am always amazed by these things, maybe there are those who believe more, those who believe less, but one cannot help but believe what life tells us. offers: miracles, energies….
GIANLUCA= That the most religious attitude is to cultivate doubt and dig deeper and deeper into oneself.
DWI= Sure.
GIANLUCA= Not just outside, a constant, spiritual search that leads you, at a certain point in life, to have enlightenment from different points of view, which can be a life dedicated to God, why not!
DWI= It’s true, doubts, questions, are part of the journey of life. The Pope wanted this motto for this upcoming jubilee: “Pilgrims of hope”.
Do you feel like pilgrims? Do you feel like you are searching, on your way or have you already arrived? You are very successful, do you feel like you have arrived?
IGNAZIO= We are constantly on the move.
PIERO= It’s a continuous journey with ourselves, in search of ourselves, always trying to show the best side of ourselves and I believe that faith, like great things, is a commitment, a constant, daily commitment. For our part, this commitment has always been there and perhaps in some difficult moments, because perhaps faith is only remembered in difficult moments, whereas we should also remember it in good moments. We try to do it every day, so yes, we consider ourselves pilgrims.
DWI= Sure. Ignazio, you?
IGNAZIO= I agree, perhaps as I said before, there are those who are more attached, he (Piero) is very attached to the church, to religion, I am a little less…
GIANLUCA= You are still looking for the point of this journey…that’s right, we are still young…
IGNAZIO=…..precisely I define it as my path, because I am a person who always tries to be amazed by things, so for me the path is to always remain amazed and hope to find answers in what I experience.
PIERO= Also because each of us has a different experience, a different past, we are three strangers who met 15 years ago, but each of us has experienced moments in our lives that have also marked us.
DWI= Sure and that you agree.
GIANLUCA= In life we have always been empty containers, because we almost had no home, always maintaining our roots and values, but from the age of 14, travelling, learning about different cultures, made us feel, as I was saying, empty containers. Having a personal spiritual journey, not children of our culture, of our society, therefore reading, really reading what is written in the Bible, not believing in a belief, what is there, why do I have to believe, I have to inform myself, I have to understand what really happened and what are the ideals of this great religion that for millennia has guided millions of people of all generations of antiquity. So get informed, read, understand well what the great content of this great story is.
DWI= (they meet the Benedictine mother) How is mother? Nice to meet you, you are the mother Abbess MariaGiovanna: Piero, Gianluca and Ignazio. This year they were in Sanremo and they gave him an image of Saint Cecilia which they kept on their cell phone and so today they were happy to be here praying to their patron saint.
MOTHER= Best wishes, best wishes, may God bless you and guide your path.
I+P+G= Thank you, thank you very much, goodbye.
DWI= How beautiful your cloister is.
MOTHER= Yes.
DWI= The jubilee is in a few months, how are you preparing, how do you want to experience this jubilee?
IGNAZIO= We are 29/30 years old, and this will be our first jubilee that we will actually experience, because the last time we were only 4/5 years old, we didn’t even know what it was, so we will live it with curiosity, hope because in these years we have been cultivating this word – is very much hope, hope for something better, hope that something can really change and there are many people who, in any field, in music, in politics, in religion in their own way are trying to change. Look at Pope Francis, who I have so much admiration for, such a humble person who plays such an important role and it’s not always simple, right?
DWI= Sure.
PIERO= In some way our greatest desire is to be able to contribute with our art, with music, also because in the past we have had the opportunity to live these unique experiences.
I believe that the year of the Jubilee, the opening of the Jubilee is a very important moment for everyone.
IGNAZIO= It was a wonderful experience and we want to thank you.
DWI= Thank you, I thank you, thank you Piero, thank you Ignazio, thank you Gianluca. Thank you because with your art you sow hope in this time that is in some ways so difficult and dark and music is this universal message that reaches all hearts.
Can I ask you to take a selfie so I can immortalize this moment!
IGNAZIO= Sure
PIERO= Wait, like this.
GIANLUCA= Higher, higher..perfect!!
What can I say, I don’t know about you, but I was very touched by the mature and absolutely relevant answers to the topic that our three young men gave.
Messages of hope and love, faith, energy and life.
I am deeply happy to be able to once again see the versatility of Piero, Gianluca and Ignazio who, just as in singing, can move from interviews with “light” topics to interviews with “deep” topics, without any problem.
I also really liked the lowered tone of our kids’ voices as a sign of respect for the place where they were.
Congratulations once again guys!! ❤️
The INFORM newspaper published this page on the event, in four languages, which I attach.
In the interview we talked about two events that occurred with Il Volo in the presence of the Pope and therefore I thought I would attach them and review them together.
Il Volo at the world meeting of families 22 June 2022
Il Volo a Panama, World Youth Day 2019
And after hearing and reading the beautiful words of Gianluca, Ignazio and Piero and listening to their beautiful voices, what better time in view of Easter to wish you all the best wishes from all the Flight Crew staff.
HAPPY EASTER
from the bottom of our hearts and may it bring peace to this troubled world.
In July 2016, after returning from the World Tour, Gianluca was presented with the Dean Martin Award from the municipality of Pescara.
What did Gianluca have to say about his life back then? Let’s listen to his words….
TRAVELING, DREAMING, SINGING. THREE SIMPLE WORDS THAT ENVELOPE THE MEANING OF MY LIFE. TRAVEL CHANGED ME. I AM NO LONGER THE SAME PERSON AFTER SEEING THE MOON ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE WORLD. DREAMING IS CREATIVITY AND IMAGINATION AND ONLY THOSE WHO DO NOT STOP DOING IT CAN TOUCH THE SKY. SINGING IS MY LIFE…HAS ALWAYS BEEN AND ALWAYS WILL BE…MY LIFE!
That truly sums up Gianluca’s life even if only in a simple way.
Even back then, I saw Gianluca as being a romantic. His life was all about his dreams and his love ~ That’s Amore!
At the beginning of the event, Gianluca received greetings from Mayor Marco Alessandrini who said, “one of the voices of Il Volo will receive the Dean Martin Award, during the presentation of the Awards in the Council Chamber.”
On Friday, July 22, 2016 the Council Chamber of the Municipality of Pescara, presented the 9th Dean Martin Award to Gianluca Ginoble.
Alessandra Portinari, president of the Dean Martin Foundation explained, This year’s edition of the Dean Martin Prize will be presented to a great artist from Abruzzo known all over the world thanks to his talent. The gala will be held on Sunday July 31st, in Piazza Muzii – Pescara. Many compare Gianluca Ginoble as the natural heir of Dino Crocetti (Dean Martin), not only in terms of vocal timbre, but for the stubbornness typical of the Abruzzese and for the perfection that they put and have put into their work. A necessary quality to achieve that American dream that first Dean Martin and now Gianluca have conquered.
Ginoble, with the other members of Il Volo, have enchanted stages all over the world and between a tour in Latin America and Europe on Friday we will have the honor of presenting him with the prestigious award.
At the age of fourteen with Ignazio Boschetto and Piero Barone participated in 2009 in Ti lascio una canzone, the Raiuno television program, but it is thanks to the intuition of Michele Torpedine, the manager who built the careers of Andrea Bocelli, Zucchero, Giorgia and Biagio Antonacci, that they have become an incredibly successful trio. Their debut album ‘Il Volo’ was released in Italy in November 2010 and obtained the ‘Platinum’ certification for sales and was released all over the world. In just one week, it entered the ‘Top Ten of the Billboard 200,’ dedicated to the best-selling albums in the United States.
From August to October 2012 Il Volo was engaged in a tour of 40 dates in the United States & Canada in the most important theaters of New York, Toronto, Boston, Miami, Dallas, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Montreal and many others, then participating as a Special Guest in the tour of Barbra Streisand in over twelve concerts, dueting with the great artist. On November 20, 2012, the second album, ‘We are Love’ was released, which includes duets with Placido Domingo and Eros Ramazzotti and an English cover of U2’s hit ‘Beautiful Day.’
On December 10, 2013, the three boys participated in the concert for the Nobel Peace Prize in Oslo, accompanied by an orchestra of sixty elements. An event of international importance that will thus close their year full of successes. In 2014, Il Volo was nominated twice at the Billboard Latin Music Awards, this time in the Latin Pop Albums categories Artist of the Year, Duo or Group (winning) and Top Latin Albums Artist of the Year, Duo or Group. During the event, they won the El Pulso Social award, intended for the artist who received the most attention on social networks during the award ceremony.
Il Volo won the Sanremo Festival 2015 with the song ‘Grande Amore.’ After a months-long tour in the U.S. and Latin America, Il Volo released it on July 1st.
By now Gianluca is used to dealing with artists of the caliber of Barbra Streisand and Oscar winner Luis Bacalov, at home in social events where he is portrayed with Sting and Bill Clinton, or sacred monsters who have changed music in recent decades such as Quincy Jones (producer of Frank Sinatra, Michael Jackson, Miles Davis).
Gianluca has preserved the humility necessary to enjoy, in the rare moments of break, his Rose Garden, where he lives with his family, in the charming village of Montepagano, before returning to the beach, with mother Leonora, father Ercole, who left his job to follow him, and his brother Ernesto; he is also very close to his grandfather and no one in the village is envious of his success, on the contrary they consider him their ‘Maradona.’
We know that he loves sports, especially football, tennis and swimming; he has two favorite teams, Roma and Barcelona, while his idols are Francesco Totti and Lionel Messi. His favorite singers are many, including Lady Gaga, Justin Timberlake and Andrea Bocelli, while in cinema he prefers Nathalie Portman.”
Presentation of the Dean Martin Award to Gianluca July 22, 2016.
Announcer: The Dean Martin Award opened in Pescara with the awarding of Gianluca Ginoble of the trio Il Volo to welcome him in the council room of the municipality, here the young man from Roseto dedicated selfies and autographs during the ceremonies the video was broadcast of the victory of Sanremo 2015 and the president of Martin’s foundation Alessandra Portinari presented the HAT symbolizing the award.
Gianluca: I returned home to Abruzzo for a few days after seven months of tours. We started our world tour in Roseto degli Abruzzi on January 6th and there couldn’t have been a better thing than to return and receive this very important award especially from my idol.
I absolutely don’t want to be compared to Dean Martin. I’m just a 20-year-old guy who likes to sing, this is my passion. I’ve been singing since I was 3 years old with my grandfather,
Sure, sometimes I realize that we have reached a great level and above all also in the world with my two colleagues of Il Volo, Ignazio and Piero.
Sometimes I don’t even realize we’re all here together. I’m here to receive this award. I’m really happy and very excited.
Now let’s have some fun with Gianluca….
What better way to start than with Gianluca and his friends!
Next, this is a throwback video of the Abruzzo’s Prince, Gianluca singing classic covers with the guitar Master Giovanni Di Caprio.
This is Gianluca Ginoble
GIANLUCA GINOBLE’S PERFECTION
Anyone who knows me knows that I look for any and every excuse to listen to Gianluca sing Anema e core. No one sings it like Gianluca! This was in Taormina on July 21, 2014.
I love Gianluca singing Enrique Iglesias song El Baño.
And Gianluca’s amazing performance of Aranjuez at Washington DC’s Kennedy Center February 9, 2016.
Over the years Gianluca has thrilled us with his amazing voice. His songs hit home every time. There’s no question about his versatility. He’s brought us on a journey which began with O sole Mio and brings us to songs today like She’s Always a Woman.
He continues to thrill us with his charm and wit and phenomenal voice. How about how he makes us feel when he sings La Cura, totally amazing!
Today I wanted to take a different journey. I wanted you to know about how Gianluca was honored but I also wanted you to know how much he deserves the honors he receives. Not just this honor but many honors! I wanted you to see him having fun in between the music. Gianluca has great friends but none better than his partners Piero and Ignazio! They’ve taken this journey together and together they walk on. It’s been said so many times in the last few weeks, but I’ll say it again. Il Volo goes on because Il Volo is where all three guys want to be.
No matter what Gianluca sings, he makes us happy, and, That’s Amore!
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure!
The guy’s new album Ad Astra will be released on March 29, 2024. Available For Pre-Order NOW! It’s available on all digital platforms including Spotify and Amazon Music.
If you would like to share a story with me, please email: susan.flightcrew@yahoo.com
On March 19, Il Volo was a guest on RAI1 in the television program STASERA C’È CATTELAN.
Alessandro Cattelan is a young presenter, friend of Gianluca, Ignazio and Piero.
The intervention was nice, the kids were relaxed, dressed casually and even adapted to a nice musical game.
Here’s the translation!
CATTELAN= Let’s start with our first three guests this evening, it’s quite clear who will be…..Ilenia, have you understood? Who will be? I said three, who will they be…
ILENIA= Il Volo!
CATTELAN= Il Volo!!!! However, they deserve a triumphal announcement: 15 years of career, 13 albums, the next one coming out on March 29th will be called AD ASTRA and will be their first album of unreleased songs. They are ready to leave for yet another world tour, they will tell us about it shortly, give a big round of applause to Il Volo!!
(Capolavoro begins and Gianluca Piero and Ignazio enter from outside the studio to the notes of the song.)
CATTELAN= What a masterpiece! Ladies and gentlemen: IL Volo!! Come guys come, take a seat. Il Volo a Stasera is Cattelan, welcome back. (the guys sit but the chairs are high) 😁
GIANLUCA= But you can’t make us do these figures (he doesn’t reach the ground with his feet) 😂🤣
CATTELAN= Too tall?? 😁
PIERO= Could you have put the sofa lower? (he also doesn’t touch the ground with his feet) 🤣😂
CATTELAN= Look how comfortable Ignazio is!! 😂💪
PIERO= Can we take a close-up of our feet??
IGNAZIO= Sorry, I’m too comfortable…
CATTELAN= It’s like when you’re sitting on a plane…
GIANLUCA= How is Ale? (Cattelan’s name is Alessandro)
CATTELAN= Everything is fine and you?
PIERO= Do you know what it looks like? You know that New York photo of the workers (the famous photo eating the sandwich suspended in the air) on the crane, we’re missing the sandwich, the sandwich in our hands.
GIANLUCA= Okay cuts, enough come on.
CATTELAN= Actually he gave me an excellent connection with New York, because the last time we saw each other, it was actually only Piero (the two of them exchanged a clap).
PIERO= Only you and I know (refers to the fact that Piero and Cattelan met at the New York marathon)
IGNAZIO= You don’t know that he invited me…
CATTELAN = That day in New York?
IGNAZIO= Yes, but to do it (the marathon)
PIERO= Look at the wallpaper on my cell phone?
CATTELAN= What are we talking about, oh my, New York, can we show it? What bridge is this?
IGNAZIO= Look at this one (marks a dot on the screen) it’s Piero!
PIERO= Verrazzano Bridge.
CATTELAN= Verrazzano Bridge which is the starting point of the New York marathon, where Piero and I met.
These are the images of Piero at the New York marathon, I must say impeccable style, how far have you come?
PIERO= I did it in 4 hours and 15 minutes instead of 19 thousand, we have a bet…..
CATTELAN= 19 thousand? one step away from the podium 😁, oh well there were a lot of you!
PIERO= 55 thousand participants. We have a bet, one and two gentlemen here (Gianluca and Ignazio) we were in Athens and we made a bet and Ignazio said: “How many participants are there?” and I replied “more than 50 thousand”.
Ignazio said: “If you get under 25 thousand we will offer you dinner.”
Have you ever seen this dinner??🙄😁
CATTELAN= Not us!!
GIANLUCA= But look (Piero) is wasted, he’s dying of hunger..😂
IGNAZIO= You didn’t understand, we were in Athens, when we return to Athens we’ll offer you dinner. 🤣
CATTELAN= Ah, it was only valid there. So, at a certain point I saw a crazy missile go by (Piero), I didn’t have time to understand if it was you, because I was in the audience cheering that day, I was there watching this thing for the first time in my life , I had never seen it, but it is an incredible party, a wonderful atmosphere. .
PIERO= The audience was 2 million people because there are 42 km full of people.
CATTELAN= But when you are there, what emotion do they give you? They help you when… there was a moment when you had visions, you no longer understood anything…
PIERO= No, the greatest emotion was seeing a girl with a poster and it said…..
CATTELAN= The lights came on, but were we in the dark until now? You can see us from home, we’re here! 😁 Tell me…. (to Piero)
PIERO= …a girl with a poster and it said “Jack I’m pregnant”….in my opinion Jack is still running!! 😂
CATTELAN= He crossed the finish line straight ahead! You run (to Ignazio and Gianluca) No?
IGNAZIO= With the ….. I can’t say (he means the motorbike)
GIANLUCA= Like Forrest Gump we run. 😁
CATTELAN= Like Forrest Gump, he was more I’ll reach you later.
IGNAZIO= He invited me and I said that if they let me come on a motorbike, I’ll come. I do it on my motorbike.
CATTELAN= Yes, is it valid?
PIERO= No, it’s not valid.
CATTELAN= You can’t, you can’t! Listen, how did Sanremo go? We are a bit running out of the long queue at Sanremo, all those who came told us about their Sanremo trauma, spontaneously.
IGNAZIO= But this year or in general?
PIERO= We are among the last (to come to his show)
CATTELAN= Yes, maybe someone will still come…
IGNAZIO= The last one missing is Bugo who is still looking for him. 😁 (a Sanremo singer who left the festival a couple of years ago)
CATTELAN= But it was from a few years ago…
GIANLUCA= He stayed a little behind…
CATTELAN= How did it go for you this year?
GIANLUCA= It went well, we are very satisfied. We presented a slightly different piece, let’s say. Always coherent, but we wanted to show our three personalities, so the group is a single entity but with different voices and different personalities and we are satisfied..
PIERO= In fact the title is self-referential (he’s joking) obviously: Capolavoro (Masterpiece) !
GIANLUCA= Obviously.
CATTELAN= Certainly a masterpiece.
IGNAZIO= Talk about us, yes! Talk about Gianluca’s beauty……😂
CATTELAN= …of Ignazio’s friendliness and Piero’s physical prowess.🤣🤣
IGNAZIO= In what sense? 😳
CATTELAN= In the sense that everyone has their own peculiarity: beauty, friendliness and athleticism.
You are among the Italians most accustomed to the big stages around the world, there is still something that excites you, perhaps when you return here to Italy, paradoxically even things that are a little smaller, but that give you an emotion.
IGNAZIO= Good pasta! 😁
CATTELAN= Ah, eat well!!
PIERO= We received the greatest emotion a few days ago, we announced three concerts at the Verona Arena that we will now do in May and now we have opened the fourth date because they were sold out. This is not a compliment we pay ourselves, this is a way to thank the public who allow us to hold concerts, to fill magical places, we have many in Italy, but above all who have allowed us to celebrate 15 years of our careers , because without them, seriously, we couldn’t have done anything.
GIANLUCA= There is a topic that is close to my heart, because it is often known that when you expose yourself and do our job, including you, there was also an episode with Ale (He mean that this thing Cattelan also suffered), like us who said we were separating…
CATTELAN= Ah, yes…
GIANLUCA= Now we know that people need gossip, everyone wants to know but…..
IGNAZIO= But it wasn’t fake that we were together, that we have to continue…
CATTELAN= The only request is if by any chance you really have to split up, can you do it here now, so you can give us a bit of…🤣🤣
GIANLUCA= A shot in popularity.
CATTELAN= Of course, the important thing is that you don’t do it tomorrow by someone else. If you want to do it, it’s now or never! 😂
PIERO= Unfortunately we announce that Il Volo will be together for many years. 🥰🥰🥰
CATTELAN= Okay, you still gave some news!! I must say that it made an impression on me when I was preparing the interview, but even now, when you think about 15 years of career, that’s a long time.
GIANLUCA= There are many, eh!!
CATTELAN= Also because you are young anyway, 15 years is a long time.
You also participated in a charity operation in 2010 where there were some incredible names and you were obviously 14 years younger than you are now.
PIERO= Wait…
GIANLUCA= There are some photos that testify to the embarrassing period of our career but, it was the beginning...(he means embarrassing because they were kids)
PIERO= But we have to tell it…
GIANLUCA= Yes, I was telling…
PIERO= Do you know that now on Netflix, can we say Netflix on Rai2?
CATTELAN= Yes, yes of course, there is also “Salutava Sempre” if you want to see it, a wonderful show. (Cattelan’s program on Netflix). 😁
PIERO= Very beautiful.
CATTELAN= Did you see it?
PIERO= Since February 26th, can you see that I am informed? It came out on February 26th, right?
CATTELAN= March 15th, okay it doesn’t matter, the important thing is that you saw it and that you liked it.
PIERO= However, you know there is the documentary on Netflix.
CATTELAN= On We Are The Word? Yes.
PIERO= About We Are The WorLd, I watched it a few days ago, while I was at home on the sofa, I was moved because those studies, Quincy Jones, Lionel Richie, we lived them, we were there and somehow I had a blast from the past why in 2011????
CATTELAN= 2010
GIANLUCA= When there was the earthquake in Haiti, the second one was organized after the first 25 years of We Are The World, with all the artists, there was Justin Bieber, there was Beyoncé…
CATTELAN= Miley Cyrus??
GIANLUCA= Miley Cyrus was there..
CATTELAN = Celine Dion…
GIANLUCA= Yes, the problem was that we were at the beginning of our career, we were children…
PIERO= ….with scarves bought at the flea market I don’t know where???
CATTELAN= In fact I ask you: “Can I show you the photos?”
PIERO= Nooooo.
GIANLUCA= YES
CATTELAN= Oh well, you were little, guys!
IGNAZIO= They were the embarrassing ones (Piero and Gianluca)
CATTELAN= This route, we have one with Myles Cyrus, who is also very young anyway.
PIERO= But look at the scarf? 😂
CATTELAN= Here they are, Miley Cyrus and Il Volo! Approximately how old were you?
PIERO= 15/16 years (he goes towards the photo) I don’t understand, but these two scarves here….(his and Ignazio’s)
CATTELAN= You can see there was some air..
PIERO= (indicating Gianluca) Look at him with the French scarf….he was already ahead. 🤣
IGNAZIO= You too were in transition between whipped cream and Myles Cyrus, understand?
CATTELAN= Yes, whipped cream.
GIANLUCA= In fact we had to call ourselves “The Miracle” then we thought Il Volo. 😂
CATTELAN= Il Volo is fine. There is also a photo with Celion Dion I saw, really incredible names. Here it is wow!
PIERO= We never left our scarves behind.😁
GIANLUCA= Guys, Celine also wore a scarf.
CATTELAN= Of course because you had launched a trend, no one was immune now!
PIERO= But do you have another one?
CATTELAN= Maybe, wait there’s Will I Am..
PIERO= Ah, the one from the Black Eyed Peas
CATTELAN= Will I Am, oh, there are always scarves.
GIANLUCA= But these were the elegant white scarves in the evening. 😂
IGNAZIO= Guys, I don’t know if you remember where we were here?
PIERO= At Jimmy Iovine’s house
CATTELAN= Jimmy Iovine of course, my goodness!
PIERO= The founder of the beats.
IGNAZIO= It was a crazy party and everyone was there: Cindy Crawford, Lady Gaga, Puff Daddy…everyone!
CATTELAN= As 15-year-old kids, how do you react to an evening like that? That is, were you the ones who stayed in the corner, did you try to interact with the others?
GIANLUCA= In reality we didn’t recognize many of them, we said: “but who is this?” – It’s Puff Daddy….
CATTELAN= You were too young.
GIANLUCA= Yes, too young.
IGNAZIO= At that time Gianluca had a habit (he touches his ear) he looked at everyone like that.😂
CATTELAN= Were you scratching your ears?
GIANLUCA= It was nervousness, I was there watching…. sorry but, forgive me, from school to that one, in five months…
CATTELAN= Madness, it’s madness!
GIANLUCA= …it’s normal for you to stay there, biting your nails….
IGNAZIO= Did you see Gianluca like this. (he scratches his hand with wide eyes) 😂
GIANLUCA= Yes, completely!
CATTELAN= It’s okay, it’s okay.
IGNAZIO= The callus came after some time.
PIERO= Jimmy Iovine organized these parties to introduce Il Volo, who was a new artist who was part of Interscope Records..
CATTELAN= Yes…
PIERO= …..to all these artists..
CATTELAN= Sure.
PIERO= So in some way we were the protagonists of the evening, but we didn’t know anyone, and that nobody is all the artists: Beyoncé etc.
GIANLUCA= Imagine, the first performance of the first album, then the first songs and we also sang IL MONDO, think about you…. and there is a gentleman in his forties, who goes on stage, pats us on the shoulder: “Welcome to our family”….and who was he??? Did you ask Piero who is he? And he told me it was Puff Daddy!
CATTELAN= In short, it went well for you!
GIANLUCA= There is this scene here, which are things that remain indelible, it’s clear.
IGNAZIO= Well, that was the period of fireplaces, wasn’t it? At first we did all the showcases, which was this five song intro show and coincidentally they were all in front of the fireplace.
CATTELAN= Ah, why was it cold?
IGNAZIO= In the fireplaces at home…incredible.
CATTELAN= Beautiful, intimate… you were very young there, but over the years you have taken on a bit of a star attitude, I always read about crazy requests from artists in the dressing rooms. When I presented Eurovision, there was a legend that I asked for strawberries in the dressing room.
PIERO= Who, us?
CATTELAN= No, no me.
PIERO= Oh you?
CATTELAN= I don’t even know if I like strawberries!
PIERO= So, there is a truth that Il Volo in the quick change, which is that cubicle behind the stage….but you have never asked yourself: “But will someone who sings for two hours pee or not?”😂😂😂
CATTELAN= I’ve actually never asked myself that.
PIERO= One day a promoter friend of ours comes to us and asks: “Guys, I’m curious, but why are you asking for cat sand? Who has a cat?” None of the three have cats! 😂🐈⬛
GIANLUCA= We are the cats! I swear. 🤣🤣🤣
CATTELAN= I don’t want to know!
PIERO= It’s us, because this thing is intelligent, this request was made by Alessio Guerrieri, our back linear, hello Alessio Guerrieri…
IGNAZIO= Besides being a masterpiece, you are also intelligent….
PIERO= Alessio requested cat sand, because we behind the stage, while Ignazio or Gianluca sings, I go behind and pee in the cat sand. 😂
CATTELAN= On the sand for cats! 😳
PIERO= Of course, sorry! 😂
CATTELAN= Then, you don’t do it directly but there will be someone who arrives with a sandbag behind the stage…..😁
GIANLUCA= Obviously there is also the cat bowl.. 😂😂
CATTELAN= To drink if you are thirsty!!! I don’t know if they wanted to know this!!! It was still very beautiful.
PIERO= However when you see Il Volo singing, imagine what happens behind it….
GIANLUCA= We are back there with the sand….😂
IGNAZIO= We are waiting for you…
CATTELAN= I don’t know if I will be able to look at you with the same eyes!!
So, we went through it quickly before, there was this interview on the radio in which you had a bit of an argument and from there it created an avalanche….
IGNAZIO= I wasn’t there!!!🙄
CATTELAN= Weren’t you there????
IGNAZIO= No, I wasn’t there, I had fallen asleep that morning.
CATTELAN= But do you fall asleep every time you go to see someone? You have a problem!
IGNAZIO = Sometimes…
GIANLUCA= But he arrives on time like 8:30 down…. but basically the next day, so you’re there waiting….😂
IGNAZIO= I have my time zone! 😁
CATTELAN= You need to rest.
GIANLUCA= Look, everything was exploited there, then we didn’t immediately deny it.
CATTELAN= But did it have anything to do with the different vision of music?
PIERO= No, no, I said.
GIANLUCA= No, you have to stop, now I’m pissed (he’s re-enacting the scene from then)
PIERO= I only told the truth guys…
GIANLUCA= I simply said that it’s nice to return to Sanremo and sing Queen and show that we can be something else too.
PIERO= And I said: “Excuse me, if you want to be someone else, speak for yourself, I know who I am….”
GIANLUCA= But you can’t answer me like that in front of everyone!
CATTELAN= Stay calm, or beat yourself up.
PIERO= (to Gianluca) But I can tell you..(Piero hugs Gianluca) 🥰
IGNAZIO= I was sleeping. 😁
GIANLUCA= He was sleeping.
CATTELAN= Ah ah ah, certainly!
CATTELAN= However, we thought of exploiting the topic of the discussion….
GIANLUCA= Enough, enough, break away. (to Piero who continues to hold Gianluca)
CATTELAN= ….we wanted to try to make you play a little game. Each of you sings a different song at the same time as the others, three songs in time, but everyone is singing their own.
PIERO= You know you seem more Marzullo than Cattelan. (Marzullo always does complicated things)
CATTELAN= Maybe it stirs something in your conscience, I don’t know.
PIERO= Each of us sings a song together with the others, but isn’t it the same song?
CATTELAN= Put it this way it seems difficult, but now you’ll see what happens, it’s a game we’re about to play called “I understand it on the fly” (it means I understand it immediately) Come, come!
CATTELAN= Ok, each member of Il Volo is about to sing a song. Everyone will sing their own but they will do it at the same time.
The competitor who will play with me and I will have to guess the three songs. The only custodian of the correct answers is our Ilenia, can you confirm that you have them there Ilenia?
ILENIA= Yes.
CATTELAN= Perfect, then you will be the one to give us the right or wrong answer. The competitor who is about to play with us must have particular characteristics, he must be as similar to me as possible, also have blue eyes, support Inter, have a surname that ends in N, give a huge round of applause to Pier Paolo Spollon. (an italian actor)
SPOLLON= Good evening, I see they are looking at me strangely.
GIANLUCA= I want to give a round of applause to the Street Clerks (the band) because without them this program would be a film without a soundtrack.
BAND= Did you see? Other than Coachella, Coachella. 😁😁 Thanks Gianluca!
CATTELAN= It would be a bad film without the soundtrack.
SPOLLON= Can I get out of the embarrassment for a second? I saw them (Il Volo) looking at me and thinking….but who the hell is this?
But you must not know anything about me.. (he means that the game is not on his person)
PIERO= But did I see you in Doc or not? (Italian television series)
SPOLLON= More or less.
CATTELAN= That’s right, yes!
SPOLLON= The only thing you need to know is that I’m the one who works with Luca Argentero (Italian actor), the one over there.
CATTELAN= He’s a fake doctor. (he impersonates a doctor in the TV series)
SPOLLON= Exactly!
CATTELAN= So, the guys from Il Volo are about to sing. I’ll give a quick recap of the rules, they each sing a song, but at the same time, it will be up to us to try to understand the three titles of the songs. We have a small blackboard that we will have to write on.
SPOLLON= And you called this game for me?
CATTELAN= Because I like to win. Are you ready guys?
PIERO= Wait, I’ll fix this (ear microphone)
SPOLLON= And what is this for? (one button)
CATTELAN= They put this but it’s useless, we crush it but it’s useless! Ready, go!
(the three songs start, difficult to recognize them)
CATTELAN= Damn I miss the first one! At that time…
GIANLUCA= But did you in the audience understand? – Yes-
CATTELAN= Really? So I’ll play mine, I’ll show them here. Mine are: LOVE ME TENDER but I didn’t understand it, I just know that Gianluca likes it and so I tried, then SEI BELLISSIMA and UN AMORE COSÌ GRANDE.
PIERO= Wait, who sang “Sei Bellissima”…..
CATTELAN= “Sei Bellissima”: Ignazio, “Un Amore Così Grande”: Piero and Gianluca : “Love me Tender.”
PIERO= Well done!!
SPOLLON= I’d say you did a really good job, congratulations…
CATTELAN= But what did you write?
SPOLLON= You guessed them all, well done, we have a winner…so I wrote in abbreviation: You’re Belliss+++ and that was it, I wrote Presley because I felt it but I’m not convinced it’s Love Me Tender, maybe it’s Falling in Love….
GIANLUCA= Great, he got it! Great!
SPOLLON= I didn’t understand the last one and I wrote: Caruso!
CATTELAN= So, because a Caruso is always good! Ilenia?
ILENIA= You were wrong, you and him too.
CATTELAN= But what is the way to deliver results? Which are the right ones? Read there.
ILENIA= Piero: “Un Amore Così Grande”, Ignazio: “ Sei Bellissima”, Gianluca: “Can’t help falling in love”.
CATTELAN= Damn, but you got it right. Okay, 2 to 1.
SPOLLON= No, I also understood “Sei Bellissima” and Presley.
CATTELAN= Are you ready (to the public) – Yes-
You can also help us if you think of something, we can cheat easily, don’t worry! Guys….Ignazio the headphones…
IGNAZIO= Go…
CATTELAN= Whenever you want….(three more songs begin…difficult to understand some…Gianluca gives help to Spollon)….But come on…
SPOLLON= Is there a jury?
CATTELAN= No, it’s me. So for this round, as far as I’m concerned it is made up of: MERAVIGLIOSA CREATURA ALMENO TU NELL’UNIVERSO ROCKET MAN by Elthon John.
PIERO= Applause, applause!!
SPOLLON= I start from the bottom: ROCKET MAN and I guessed it before you (Gianluca) said Rocket Man, then I wrote DIVERSO (He wanted to write Universo), and then I wrote Nannini. (he means Meravigliosa Creatura)
CATTELAN= It doesn’t apply and I would say that this is mine too…
SPOLLON= Ilenia, can we say that Nannini is fine?
ILENIA= Yes, it’s fine.
IGNAZIO= Sorry, it would be like saying: What show do you like by Alessandro Cattelan? Cattelan! But what does it mean?
CATTELAN= Ignazio is right, it’s not worth saying Nannini. Oh well, last round, whoever wins this one wins it all.
SPOLLON= Are we tied?
CATTELAN= I would be ahead but I’ll leave you tied. Guys, let’s do the last one, whenever you want! (last three songs begin)
So, what did you write?
SPOLLON= You go first, you have a clean face but you continue to spy.
CATTELAN= I have a long eye. 😁
IGNAZIO= Yes, he spied!
SPOLLON= But it’s bad for you, because I was the last one in the class, so if you copy from me….😁
CATTELAN= Go, what did you write?
SPOLLON= I wrote: IL MONDO, I understood it, then I wrote E POI… So, what did you write?
CATTELAN= Me too.
SPOLLON= And then I (Gianluca) didn’t understand.
CATTELAN= I wrote TI PENSO but it was IL MONDO, you’re right, so E POI and then I wrote A WONDERFUL WORLD.
GIANLUCA= Ah, did you hear it?
CATTELAN = Of course! Piero you were disturbed by the other two, that’s how it went. Guys now let’s do the math to see who won, the important thing is that you give a big round of applause for Il Volo!!
Thank you so much for being with us, guys, it’s always a great pleasure to see you, Gianlu, come here (and hug Gianluca). Happy world tour, where are you going now?
GIANLUCA= China, Japan, then the Arena of Verona and we will tour our new album which is AD ASTRA.
PIERO= First album of unreleased songs.
CATTELAN= I’m in China and Japan, I don’t know if I can come, but I’ll see you at the Verona Arena. Best wishes (for Easter).
Best wishes ladies and gentlemen, Il Volo!!
And here are some short videos of the rehearsals for our guys’ entrance.
A special guitarist: Ignazio.
And three songs at the same time!!
Happiness 🥰🥰
This presence from Cattelan is also nice, but these guys are unstoppable, a new date has been announced on their Asian tour which will start soon and therefore SHANGHAI in China has been added.
Also two instore dates have also been given, one in Verona (which I will participate in) and one in Naples!!
But then there will be participation in the program On The Road Verso il Giubileo, and Domenica In da Mara Venier, and then Radio Italia live, so stay with us, there will still be a lot to read.
MICHELLE = I’ve chosen who will make my wedding dress!
IGNAZIO= Nooooo
MICHELLE= Yes, Elisabetta Garuffi (stylist) of Tosca (atelier in Bologna)
IGNAZIO= of Tosca!!!
MICHELLE= And I’m going now…
IGNAZIO= That is now, in this moment? …and I can’t come???
MICHELLE= You can’t, you can’t!
In the following video, published on Instagram by Tosca spose, at the beginning we see part of the video with Michelle with Ignazio and then continues with Michelle’s visit to the atelier.
MICHELLE = I didn’t imagine that a dress could excite so much! Thanks to Tosca Spose❤️
IGNAZIO= It’s all starting to take shape! I LOVE YOU
So their beautiful story is progressing well and the preparations for the wedding are also progressing, the date of which is not yet known but I assume it could be this summer…..I can already smell orange blossoms!!
And Ignazio also received great satisfaction:
Giacomo Rossi, a young Italian vocal coach who approached listening to Il Volo by reviewing the covers of Sanremo evening and saying that Il Volo deserved the first prize, declared that he liked them a lot and would review them again and therefore he did so by analyzing MY IMMORTAL that Ignazio sang during the TUTTI PER UNO (ALL FOR ONE) concerts in the Arena. What can I say, big compliments to Ignazio from Giacomo Rossi, but you can read for yourself by activating the subtitles.
For me, I am doubly proud of what Giacomo says, who although Italian did not know Il Volo well but only because of how it had always been presented by the Italian press, furthermore Giacomo Rossi’s usual genre of music is Heavy Metal and therefore a completely different genre from pop – lyrical of our boys, but still as a good and serious vocal coach he recognizes the skill and study of our boys.
Thanks Giacomo Rossi and many compliments to Ignazio. 👏👏👏
Truly beautiful compliments for Ignazio, but he is not the only one who has been the subject of review these days, in fact another Italian vocal coach: Salvatore Cilia, has reviewed Gianluca while he sings Capolavoro alone and here is the final result which I will translate for you!!
Gianluca in 2024 showed off vocal control above the average of Italian singers.
Starting from a half voice, in chest voice (M1), perfectly intoning every single sound.
To then masterfully connect it to a breath-controlled falsetto…. With a voice always forward.
Singing the G3 (a challenging note for a baritone) successively in the Mix without showing any vocal effort.
Maintaining perfect phrasing, changing the dynamics of the sound naturally and confidently….. Without ever disconnecting the breath from the diaphragm.
Really a big difference compared to his beginnings when he was still looking for his vocal identity. RATING 10 AND PRAISE
👏👏👏👏👏👏🎉🎉🎉🎉🎉
Wow, what can I say, magnificent and well-deserved review for Gianluca. 👏👏👏
I believe that this is also one of the immediate effects of Sanremo, the greater attention of Italian vocal coaches and I must say that their reviews are beautiful!!
Meanwhile, the release date of the new AD ASTRA CD is approaching and Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca showed us that they are busy signing autographs for the new album.
We hope that sales are high and above all that people like the album, there is a lot of expectation.
The newspapers that published numerous articles and interviews on Il Volo during the Sanremo period continue to publish new interviews and I would like to point out that of the weekly GRAZIA which dedicated its front page to Il Volo.
IL VOLO: Music unites us. Every day we work to be a trio.
Protagonists of the digital cover of Grazia, Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca told us about the 15 years of their career, from the luck of the first meeting to the daily work to keep the trio together.
They met as little more than children and today the three guys from Il Volo, Piero Barone, 30, Ignazio Boschetto, 29, and Gianluca Ginoble, 29, celebrate their 15 years of artistic collaboration. It was 2009 when they presented themselves as soloists at the singing talent show for children hosted by Antonella Clerici Ti lascio una canzone on Rai Uno. They didn’t know each other, but the program’s authors thought that a trio of talented little tenors like them could work. And that was their luck.
After the rumors of the last few days that they were in crisis, we met them to create this digital cover and they told us how to live in a trio having different personalities.
The three musicians were the only Italian artists invited by Quincy Jones to We are the World for Haiti in 2010, they sang in front of Pope Francis and sold millions of records. We saw them on stage during the last Sanremo Festival, a competition they won in 2015, and on March 29th they will present their first album of unreleased songs, entitled Ad Astra.
The World Tour will start at the end of April which will also take them to China and Japan, in May they will be protagonists of Tutti Per Uno on Canale 5, four evenings at the Verona Arena with numerous guests. Then from June to September they will be engaged in a 20-date tour in the most spectacular locations in Italy and in autumn they will perform in the main European capitals. When they are not on stage, they live in different places: Gianluca in Abruzzo, Piero divides his time between Bologna and Agrigento and Ignazio in Bologna. And connected via zoom from their respective homes, they tell their stories.
You started singing together at just over 14 years old and are still close, a rarity for a successful group. What’s your secret?
Ignazio: The passion for music and for our work.
Gianluca: Ours was an arranged marriage, like those that were used in the past, with the luck that we then truly fell in love. Because you can only continue if you feel love and passion for the people around you and if you really believe in the project. Aside from historical groups, many bands have actually broken up. We are different, but there is always dialogue between us. Each of us has our own personality: in difference and contrast there is growth.
Piero: When I walk down the street with my friends I often hear people whispering, “Look, it’s the guy from Volo”. Usually they don’t even remember our last name. But that’s right, it doesn’t matter, because our goal was and is to be the Volo trio. And every morning we work for this. Living together is different, requires commitment and involves a certain maturity. Aside from a few misunderstandings, when there is a lot of confidence we can tell each other frankly what we think. We have always been used to open dialogue and have never held grudges, we are satisfied with our path together and we will continue for many years in the future. I always say that, if one day I meet my soulmate, I already know the rules for a lasting relationship: respect, listening and compromise.
How would you describe yourself?
Ignazio: Piero is perspicacious, stubborn, ambitious and altruistic, all strengths that can also become flaws. Gianluca is the perfectionist of the group, very attentive to details and stubborn at industrial levels. All these characteristics unite us, because I am like that too, only for me I would add that I am a little touchy. We had the great fortune of recognizing our talents very early and of being in the same place, at the same time on that show. And after leaving the talent show we had a film life.
You have become very popular all over the world, including in China and Japan. What is the thing that struck you most about Japanese culture?
Ignazio: Great respect for people. During the first concert in Tokyo, on stage I said to Piero: “Look, they’re asleep”. Instead they had their eyes closed, absorbed by the music, and at the end of the song they applauded.”
Piero: We went to China in 2015 and sang for their New Year’s Eve, we went to Japan several times and that country changed me.
Gianluca: Abroad they really like our music. In Japan they also love a certain type of Italian elegance, like that of many artists who have made history, from Luciano Pavarotti to Frank Sinatra. Now Italian music is moving in opposite directions and even we, who are only 30 years old, have decided to take some risks by putting ourselves out there and trying to do what we have never done. In the last album there is a duet with Irama, one of the most beautiful pieces on the album, which contains all unreleased songs.
Where did the title Ad Astra come from?
Gianluca: As in the Latin saying “Per aspera ad astra”, through sacrifice you reach the stars and all your goals. It was a message we wanted to send to the younger ones. We also talk about life, how we have built the sense of the group in these 15 years of career and our personal growth.
Piero: Today we think that we can achieve a lot very easily and we think more about money. When I was little I don’t remember any numbers, our dream was to sing. I’m not saying that everyone should sacrifice themselves to reach a goal, but it’s right to know.
Have you always been so wise?
Ignazio: The education we received at home certainly helped us, but it was also the life we have led up to here, traveling and getting to know the world in its thousand facets, that made us grow faster.
Gianluca: We’re also a little crazy. We have been traveling since we were 14, we eat everything without problems, we have been to Rio De Janeiro at least 15 times, to America 50 times. At 30 we have already lived a hundred lives.
Piero: For this reason we could live anywhere and traveling has taught us to be open to other cultures. The traveler is always ready to accept what a place, a people, a culture offers you. But in the East I will struggle to eat jellyfish again: they are my terror when I dive into the water.
And now I propose this short video of Il Volo with Alexa (voice assistant), very nice, Ignazio Piero and Gianluca spoke with Alexa and now they listen to their messages recorded in all the Alexas in Italy.
For one day, anyone in Italy who has Alexa can listen to the voices of Ignazio, Piero and Gianluca directly in their home, I have Alexa and I did it, it was exciting. 🥰
ALEXA= Good morning, today is a truly incredible day, the three guys from Il Volo came to visit me in my cloudy sky. I’ll leave the microphone to you, the stage is all yours!
IGNAZIO= Good morning everyone, we wanted to thank you for all the support and love you sent us during the festival.
PIERO= We came by to say hello and to tell you that our new Sanremo single, Capolavoro, is contained in our first new album of unreleased songs entitled AD ASTRA
GIANLUCA= And it will be released on March 29th. We can’t wait for you to listen to it. We’ll talk to you very soon, but in the meantime you can continue listening to Capolavoro.
ALEXA= Legendary!! If you want to listen to it, ask me: Play Capolavoro!
Little thing, while yet another car advertisement was scrolling on TV, something caught my attention…..but of course, the background music is Capolavoro!!
And now this final gem, when Il Volo was at Iene, recorded this reading of comments on Il Volo. This video was published by Le Iene now and it is truly hilarious. I think Piero, Gianluca and Ignazio had no idea what they were supposed to read, because their reaction is really big laughter, and it’s nice to see them so self-deprecating. There’s a lot to laugh about!! 😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣
1) GIANLUCA= Great those of Il Volo who carry the name of Italy high in the world. My favorite is Ethan, but Damiano isn’t bad either…. (these are the names of two of Maneskin’s singers) 🤣🤣🤣
We also have Victoria (the female guitarist of Maneskin…. but it’s Ignazio), look how she has changed! 😂😂😂
PIERO= Our version of Victoria 😂🤣
2) IGNAZIO= One thing in four, with those of Il Volo…..can it be done or VOLO (flight) with the imagination?? 😂😂😂
No! Fly (in Italian: vola) away, no, no…..😂😂😂
3) PIERO= But since Il Volo is so popular abroad…..why do we want it back??🤣🤣🤣
We have an Italian passport!🤣🤣🤣
4) GIANLUCA=
Gianluca the handsome 😍
Piero the good 🥰
Ignazio the bastard 😱
When I see them I need the defibrillator. 🤣😂🤣
PIERO= No, you need an ophthalmologist 😂🤣😂
5) PIERO= Can I get engaged to Il Volo?
In the sense that I get engaged to each of the three in turn? Are you jealous?😍😂
IGNAZIO= I would be busy, so no. 😉
GIANLUCA= I’m here in the summer (in the sense that he’s available in the summer) 😂
PIERO= Me all year round. 🤣
6) I+P= My favorite band? IL Volo
My favorite writer? Fabio Volo (an Italian writer)
My biggest fear? The flight (Il volo in Italian)
Are you saying I have a problem?
PIERO= Yes. 😂
GIANLUCA= I would say yes.😂
7) IGNAZIO= Il Volo is about to disband…..?I want to hear a loud NO from the chest!
PIERO= This thing has come out that Il Volo is breaking up, I don’t know who spread it, but it’s not true. 🙄 Where are we going alone? 👏
IGNAZIO= I’m just telling you that the wind takes words away, the facts remain. The facts: we are together. 👏👏👏
GIANLUCA= And we are not facts. (play on the pun) 😂😂😂
8) GIANLUCA= But do you think Il Volo was annoyed by Angelina Mango’s victory? (lei è la vincitrice di Sanremo) In my opinion, yes! 😁😤😤
PIERO= He nods his head. 😁
IGNAZIO= We didn’t get angry because she won, but because someone else won and not us! 🤪😤
GIANLUCA= No it’s not true, it’s not true, it’s not true, because otherwise people think: “presumptuous, they always want to win” 😂😂
IGNAZIO= Yes, yes yes!! 😂
PIERO= But if you wanted to win…(to Gianluca) 😁
GIANLUCA= It’s not true! 🙄
IGNAZIO= We argue again, so then they say we broke up!! 😂😂😂🤣🤣🤣
There are many appointments in the next few days for Il Volo, intense days of commitments and therefore there will be many posts to read.
Stay with us, we will try to satisfy all your curiosities.
On March 12th there was a beautiful press conference in Pompeii “POMPEII IS ART”, held by the MIC (Ministry of Culture) in which the concerts that will be held this year in Pompeii were presented.
I want to point out to you that in this conference there was really “consideration” and also very nice words towards Il Volo.
As people took their seats, there was Makari music playing in the background (it wasn’t added to the video, it was played in the conference) and at the end of the conference Capolavoro will be played!
The conference is very long and I will not translate every speech for you but only the direct and quick one made by Il Volo and I will summarize the other speeches.
It was a very interesting press conference with important guests.
The speaker at the beginning invites you to begin and introduces the guests:
The Minister of Culture Gennaro Sangiuliano
The undersecretary of culture Gianmarco Mazzi
The director of the Pompeii Archaeological Park Gabriel Zuchtriegel
The mayor of the municipality of Pompeii, Carmine Lo Sapio
The artists of Il Volo: Piero Barone, Ignazio Boschetto and Gianluca Ginoble.
Undersecretary Mazzi begins by presenting a video of Ludovico Einaudi (pianist composer who will give one of the concerts) who in the video reiterates that he is happy to play in a site like Pompeii.
Mazzi thanks everyone present and says he is a supporter of coexistence between artists and places of culture, he finds it a natural alliance because in his opinion artists bring life to monuments and these archaeological sites. Artists are ambassadors of beauty and culture, they talk about art, they communicate emotions.
He also appreciates a less elitist and more pragmatic approach to culture.
“Artists, especially singers, are very important because they very often represent a crucial first step in the education of people, let’s say young people.”
“We know that our task comes from the law, it is the protection of monuments, but also their valorisation and in this, in my opinion, artists can help us a lot.”
Furthermore, Mazzi says that today people are always in contact with the internet world and all the artists who will give these concerts have a lot of presence in this sense, so there will be a lot of diffusion via the web and therefore it will benefit the world of culture, museums, art.
Speaking of Il Volo he says that they have more than 5 million followers and their song Grande Amore has more than 250 million views, so these sites need the contribution of these artists like “bread and butter”. So he thanks Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca who are also ambassadors of Italy in the world, they are known all over the world and carry messages of Italianness everywhere. So Mazzi believes this partnership is essential to also stimulate tourism and all those who love the “Italian style” in the world and that artists such as Il Volo and Bocelli and others certainly contribute to this.
A video of Pooh is shown, then the word is passed to the director of the Pompeii Archaeological Park Gabriel Zuchtriegel.
He says it’s a great honor to be there in that conference with those guests. He talks about the Pompeii site and the archaeological excavations, thanks Minister Sangiuliano for his support in the budget law. The excavations of Pompeii are enormous, they continue to find treasures, but at the same time they must guarantee access to people, to museums, all infrastructures that must be supported and therefore these musical festivals are an opportunity to bring young people closer to the ancient, archeology and also the many travelers and therefore these events that attract people to visit archaeological sites, such as Pompeii, a UNESCO heritage site, must be encouraged.
Russel Crowe’s video follows and then the mayor of Pompeii, Carmine Lo Sapio, speaks.
Lo Sapio says that the city of Pompeii is experiencing a new season. Pompeii is history and thanks to the agreement with the minister of culture and the director of the park they are pushing culture which in Italy is also the engine of the economy and this favors tourism and this influx of tourists to Pompeii has exceeded all expectations and therefore, on behalf of the city, he thanks him for this contribution and will guarantee the support of the infrastructure.
The word goes to Il Volo.
PIERO= Good morning.
IGNAZIO= Good morning everyone
GIANLUCA= Good morning
PIERO= For us it is a great honor to be present here today and in some way try to share our thoughts with you. This year is a very important year for our group because we are celebrating 15 years of career and we could only celebrate them in music, we will start with this two-year tour and as we have always done from day one we try to be promoters of our music and if December was a very important date because we all know that the art of “Bel Canto” has become a heritage of humanity, we do it with infinite passion. I want to conclude, I promised myself not to be verbose, it is often said that Il Volo takes Italian music around the world, but we have always thought that it is this musical and cultural heritage that we have inherited that makes us travel the world and therefore we must to all be very proud of what we have inherited.
GIANLUCA= Yes, it is a great pleasure to be here and thank you for making us part of this wonderful project that promotes beauty, that promotes culture, because culture, like art, is beauty. Beauty strikes us immediately, but behind any kind of beauty, be it works of art like Pompeii or great music like opera, there is a lot of work behind bel canto and beauty can only be appreciated through time, sacrifice and also culture. We try to bring with great passion, this music which is immortal and certainly to combine this great music through the beauties of Italy, starting precisely from Pompeii, it is also one of the objectives, to associate our name also with Pompeii, so it will be a new start, for us too, so thank you very much for everything.
IGNAZIO= Well, there’s little left for me to say, obviously, they said everything, but we can’t be anything but happy to return to Pompeii, the first time was in 2016, if I’m not mistaken, but in another area different from the one where we will perform in July. We are really happy about this opportunity, thank you so much for sending us today. See you in Pompeii, you’re all invited, Piero pays!
And at the end the words were given to the Minister of Culture Sangiuliano who said beautiful words for Il Volo. He begins by thanking everyone present but then focuses on Il Volo.
“…thanks to the artists of Il Volo because meeting them was truly a great pleasure because I am an admirer of theirs, once a colleague from TG1 gave me one of their CDs for my birthday and I then listened to it several times, I didn’t tell them this before, so I’m glad they’re here.”
He continues explaining the notion of beauty, saying that it is a philosophical term, which can be traced back to the extraordinary nature of Italian historical places and asks which of the three boys is from Agrigento, the world of Magna Graecia, while Pompeii is that of Roman times, then there are immaterial beauties, recognized by UNESCO, such as bel canto, therefore the minister compares our singers to artists like those who have handed down concrete beauties to us such as sculptors or painters and therefore by harmonizing everything together, we can celebrate the union between the heritage artistic cultural (archaeological sites) and the Italian excellence of bel canto, therefore two elements that come together and by doing this, article 9 of our constitution which speaks of the protection of artistic heritage but also valorisation through dissemination to the world.
Then he speaks with pride about the latest findings in the Pompeian excavations, and adds that the quality of life today is not only given by comfort but also by culture and today’s tourism is aimed a lot at the study of ancient beauties, it informs itself, it wants to know the history traditions, so what better way to spread all this with bel canto, furthermore these concerts will also bring an interest not only for tourism but also for the citizens of Pompeii and surrounding areas who will be able to participate in these events.
He ends by saying that after you have participated in a good concert and visited a beautiful ancient site, from a cultural point of view you have enriched yourself and that is why they believe a lot in this project, all in the rigorous protection of the sites.
Conference finished, Masterpiece is heard in the background, the usual photos are taken.
Here is a list of artists and the dates they perform in Pompeii:
Carmen Consoli (8 June);
John Legend (11 June);
Russell Crowe (9 July);
Ludovico Einaudi (12 July);
Il Volo (17 July);
Biagio Antonacci (18,19,20 July);
I Pooh (22 July) and
Francesco De Gregori (26 July).
Naturally the news was reported on the news, I propose this one which has English subtitles to be activated.
Here the subtitles are only in Italian, but at the end things are repeated.
What a wonderful initiative, it will be a magnificent event, a series of concerts in an amazing site. and what a pride to hear the words of the Minister of Culture Sangiuliano towards Il Volo, he publicly admitted to being a fan of theirs.
I await your comments, I imagine you would like to be present in Pompeii during the Il Volo concert!!!! I’m keeping my fingers crossed…..who knows!!!
See you soon:
Daniela 🤗
Credit to owners of all photos and videos.
Come in and share the love of life, friends and Il Volo!
