And here, Maura did not wait long with the second part of her publication.
Very well Maura, I think this will start a nice debate.
Daniela
Why do you like Il Volo so much?
The answer is found in a video on Youtube: “Il Volo. The ten ingredients of global success” published by Trishia on 9 January 2017.
Who is Trishia? It is the pseudonym of Patrizia Ciava: a flagship for the Il Volo fandom. Graduated in philosophy, writer and winner of literary awards, teacher, lived in various countries of the world, a career of the highest level in the Public Administration. Among her institutional tasks is the promotion of Italian “excellence”, of the Italian language and culture.
Here are the elements that make up the success of the group, identified by her:
1) Three prodigious voices
2) The ability to excite
3) Spontaneity and sympathy combined with talent
4) Empathy with the public
5) The ability to joke and to create a friendly atmosphere
6) Collaboration with other artists
7) Friendship and team spirit
8) Charm and elegance
9) Availability towards fans and simplicity
10) Love for family and for Italy.
I could only add that their knowledge of English and Spanish helps to maximize the possibility of interacting with the public in every part of the world.
That said, let’s see if the definitions of “popular” offered by the vocabulary of the DEVOTO (vocabulary name) fit the music of our group.
Popular is what “represents the continuity and importance of an unbroken tradition, as opposed to what is innovative.”
Here I would like to make a “distinction”.
The definition is general. Wanting to refer it to music, in regards the first part it adapts to the music of Il Volo: “represents the continuity and importance of an unbroken tradition”.
Then popular music, understood here as traditional, should be “opposite” to what is innovative, and this, in my opinion, is a commonplace, a convention, it’s only another genre of music.
Music is a universal category in which all genres, ancient and modern, born before or born after, have found their place with equal dignity, joining, rather than opposing, each other and satisfying every taste and need.
I think I also interpret the thoughts of the components of Il Volo, who have always respected all types of music and all the singers, not “opposing” nor considering “against” anything or anyone.
It is popular, those who “enjoy sympathy and favor in a remarkable way”.
Let’s say that the music of Il Volo and its performers are … very, very popular.
Popular is “something that opposes aristocratic choices and discrimination”.
POP is only an abbreviation of POPOLARE. Pop music is what was once called “light music”, that is songs. Vasco, Pausini, Ramazzotti, Ferro etc. (Italian singers) sing pop music and they are pop singers, and they are Italian … Their music is therefore national-popular.
And journalists and music critics should know that.
Instead, the giornalist, uses the expression “national-popular” in the derogatory sense, identified precisely as to define the music of Il Volo, praising the new genres imported from the United States (rap, trap indie).
These journalists, many of them with white hair, are only intent on tickling the tastes of teenagers, discriminating, not between beautiful and bad music, as they should, but based on the date of birth of that music, in a momentum of “youthfulness”, to appear fashionable and in step with the times.
Il Volo, predominantly interprets the ITALIAN classical musical tradition, with SONGS in the Neapolitan language and dialect, and this justifies, as already said, its nature as a national-popular. But we cannot forget that their repertoire also contains songs of the classical tradition of the Spanish language (Cielito lindo, Historia de un amor and others), and English (Smile, My Way and others).
How about coining a less restrictive and more appropriate neologism for their music? This: INTERNATIONAL-POPOLAR.
All of the above considerations are strictly personal opinions. If you want, and as always, the debate is open.
My dear friend Maura Pucci, whom you all have already known, wrote a nice post that I will translate with great pleasure, knowing that you will surely appreciate it.
Maura, please don’t keep us waiting too long for the second episode !!😉
Daniela😘
Today, I will answer two questions I asked myself.
The first is: “Who is the audience of Il Volo?”
It is necessary to start from two irrefutable statements:
1)Il Volo is an internationally successful musical group. 2)Their audience is mainly female.
Like all the artists who have had great international success, Il Volo is not aimed at an elite group of connoisseurs, but at a vast and heterogeneous audience, both from a socio-cultural point of view and from the point of view of age. As far as the latter is concerned, internationality constitutes the discriminating element, since age varies according to … longitudes and latitudes.
For example :
~ in Europe and the United States the public is on average more adult, but no less passionate;
~ in Mexico, Central America and South America a young audience prevails, made up in particular of chicas, which are unleashed like fans of rockstars;
~ a more composed audience of all ages is found in Asia, where classical music is a true cult (many oriental youths come to study in our conservatories) and, during the concerts, we witness the individual performances of the pieces in religious silence until the final ovation.
10 YEARS OF IL VOLO
I take this opportunity to add here, incidentally and for the avoidance of the usual misunderstandings, that, in their repertoire of about two hundred songs, we find only four arias taken from lyrical works (two by Puccini, one by Verdi, one by Donizetti) a tarantella by Rossini and a romance by Leoncavallo …..
The fact that the public in general (fans in particular) is a large female majority is an element common to many if not all the fandoms of famous singers.
But in the case of the Il Volo boys the difference consists in the fact that in Italy and in the United States in particular, they were known when they were almost children, and the sentimental and romantic women, enchanted by their voices, became tender and affectionate. They saw them grow and from teenagers to become young men. They followed their physical transformations, and the maturation of their voices, establishing a particular relationship with them.
Ultimately the audience of Il Volo can be divided into the following groups:
A) The real fans, active on social networks, connected by a dense network of fan pages or fan clubs, in the number of about four thousand. They “adopted” the three boys, creating an intense relationship with them, I dare say visceral. Depending on the age, they are considered older brothers, object of desire, children, grandchildren. These fans follow Il Volo daily through news, photos, videos, interviews. They participate in numerous concerts, including moving from region to country and continent.
B) The most consistent band is represented by the television audience. In Italy, it is the one that contributes to procuring the famous “listening peaks” of Auditel for Il Volo and to make their concerts sold out. The same can be said for the United States where the PBS network has recorded some concerts since 2012 and broadcasts them, I believe periodically, through over 300 television stations that it represents.
A nod to a category of people that I do not consider “audience” but who have a positive relationship with Il Volo. It can be consideration, appreciation, affection, friendship, collaboration. Which does not automatically and in any case entail the liking of their music. I speak of VIPs, characters known in every field. They are too many and I don’t list them. I will only mention two names of “men of power” characters: Pope Francis and Kim, the leader of North Korea, namely the devil and holy water! …
I refer you to the next episode, again for an interlocutory answer. (Why does Il Volo like it?) And finally for my conclusions.
A few days ago we received a nice little email from Sheryl Anderson, sharing her “addiction” with us…. I thought I’d share it with you, with her permission….
Dear Kelly, Pat, Daniela, Jana, Jo Ann,
I just wanted to express my appreciation for all your website efforts to promote IL VOLO. I am in St. Augustine, FL, USA (oldest city in US). Since January, I have become “addicted” to watching their concerts, interviews, etc. With the Pandemic keeping me at home, they are the “light” of each day. If there is any way that you could get a message to them, please do.
My first overseas journey was to the northern part of Italy in May, 2019.
I simply fell in love with Italian history and values. These three young men do such a good job of representing everything Italian–from their self-assured “humbleness”, to their Italian good looks, to the Catholic religion, landscapes, small cars, and not least, the closeness to their families. For me, my brain chemistry is affected by watching the “best possible” for human connection.
I know they must have relationship challenges at times, but they have the foundation of trust in self and trust in the other….Indeed, they are a blessing to me and to the world and I look forward to following their career.
Warm regards,
Sheryl Anderson
Thank you, Sheryl, for your warm thoughts and thanks, it is much appreciated! We keep this site going for you, ours, and Il Volo’s fans. I always say though, we couldn’t have this site without you fans and all of your wonderful comments, etc.!
I did have to tell her we do not have any direct contact with the guys, but we are told a few of their friends and relatives read this site, so maybe word will be passed along… 🙂
The guys, as well as their extended friends and family, like Alessandro, Giampiero, Eleonora with her beautiful Instagram posts, and Fabio; are certainly doing their best to keep their fans entertained and as happy as possible during this pandemic nightmare. We all hope it will be contained soon, not sure if it will ever be truly over… but I know many of the US fans, myself included, are awaiting the green light to fly back to Italy again… 🙂
Reading, here and there on the various sites and fan pages, I found this beautiful article written by Susan De Bartoli. Several fan pages have recognized the goodness of this beautiful article by publishing it. Since maybe not all of you who follow Flight Crew may have read it, I thought I’d post it here too, and I asked Susan for her confirmation to do so. Here’s what she wrote.
Rejoice by reading: Daniela
Over the last few days, I’ve been thinking about how our lives have changed in just two weeks. It’s surreal! I try to distract myself but it’s difficult to get away from it all. So, I decided to focus on something else. I can usually get lost in my writing. You know before I started my business in 1990, I worked in the motion picture industry. I used to critique films. It was a good job but, I decided I wanted to do more with my life so, I quit my job and I spent two years writing. The best years of my life. So, where am I going with all of this?
Like most of you, right now, I spend a good deal of my day listening to those three amazing guys sing and I said maybe I should do a review of what’s been going on in their lives for the last 10 years. I think, over the last few days, I must have watched hundreds of video clips including interviews and some full concerts and now I’m ready to talk about our guys.
Let me start off by saying these three young men are extraordinary! They are remarkable, exceptional, persons. And, they have revolutionized the music industry. Let’s take a look at each one.
Gianluca is known as the Velvet Voice! I don’t who coined the phrase but, that is right on. Let’s use our senses to understand what that means. Take a piece of velvet and hold it in your hand. Now take your other hand and, gently pass your hand across the velvet. What do you feel? You feel a smooth even surface that is crisp with no breaks in it. The sensation is so good that you automatically go back and do it again. And every time it’s the same. It’s pleasing!
Now take Gianluca’s voice, let the notes pass into your ears, what do you hear? A crisp, smooth, even voice with no breaks in it. The note barely passes into your ear and you are going back for the next note. It’s always pleasing!
Gianluca is a lyrical baritone. He is exceptional because he can sing from the lowest to the highest note in the baritone range. Most baritones are limited in range. Gianluca’s voice is huge. He has a very rich chest resonance which creates a feeling of depth and drama in his voice.
A baritone voice is very romantic, very pleasing to listen to and is always inviting. Most songs are written for baritones. Gianluca starts, almost, every song. Why? In order for a song to be received well you must draw your audience into it. Gianluca’s voice draws you in in a romantic way and you hang on to every note. He can mesmerize you with songs like “Mi Mancherai” where he reaches into the depth of your being. His interpretation of “Surrender” is electrifying. But, when Gianluca sings, “She’s Always a Woman”, he takes your breath away. The highs, the lows, the emotion, the expression. His voice expands like nothing I ever heard before. He has total command of the song. You walk away with your senses lifted to another level.
Let’s talk about Ignazio, who I call the bridge. He is a lyrical tenor. He, like Gianluca, is exceptional because he can sing from the lowest to the highest note in the tenor range. And, God knows he can, easily, hit the high C. Waiting for it and knowing it’s going to happen is so exciting! He brings so much to the production and I’ll talk more about that later!
A lyrical tenor has a warm graceful voice which is bright and strong but not heavy and it can be heard over an orchestra. Ignazio’s voice is smooth, clean and clear, with an acute extension. His voice has the ability to increase the baritone voice of Gianluca while softening the spinto tenor voice of Piero. Ignazio has many faces. He is very whimsical in his songs as in “Libiamo ne’ lieti calici” from La Traviata.
In the aria “Una Furtiva Lagrima” from L’elisir D’amore, Ignazio makes you feel the innocents of Nemorino’s love for Adina. In his dedication to Pino Daniele you hear an interpretation that is emotional and a delivery that is so amazing that you get the sense that Daniele wrote his songs for Ignazio.
And finally, Piero. Piero is a spinto (meaning pushed) tenor. A spinto tenor has the brightness and height of a lyric tenor, but with a heavier vocal weight enabling the voice to be “pushed” to dramatic climaxes with less strain than his lighter-voice counterparts. His voice is warm, graceful, bright, and can be heard over an orchestra. Piero has a powerful voice that easily reaches the higher notes. Every note that comes out of his mouth reaches us with such intensity and remains with us for a long time. It’s the voice that reaches out to you and demands your attention. Think of him singing “E Lucevan le Stele” from Tosca. Or singing the beautiful Spanish aria “No Puede Ser” from A Tabernera del Puerto. From the first note Piero pierces your soul! His passion comes through in his music. Arias are very dramatic and, Piero brings all the drama of the aria into his performance. Always a showstopper!
Now let’s put the voices together. Gianluca starts most songs because he is a baritone and most songs are written for baritones. As I mentioned he draws you into the song. Gianluca will sing (in most cases) to Ignazio and Ignazio to Piero. This is how the three voices become one. Select one of their songs. Now close your eyes and listen to them sing. What can you say about this song? You can say, that is Gianluca or Ignazio or Piero singing. In the progression of the song you hear the voices blend to form a symphony for your ears. Their voices are very distinct.
Most groups sing and you hear just a song but with Il Volo you are surrounded by voices. And, the individuality of their voices entices you and it stays with you. “Musica che Resta”. (Music that Remains) Think of what Piero says when he introduces one of the solos, “After we were together a while, we realized we had three different voices.” He wasn’t saying that they suddenly found out they had different voices he was saying we are three voices and one song and, we need to show you those voices individually.
Let’s look at how they described one another when they first started out. I think Ignazio said Gianluca was the serious one, and Piero was the Intelligent one and Gianluca and Piero said Ignazio was the funny one. So, let’s take a look at that.
Gianluca, in most cases, is the spokesman for the group. I’m not sure if this is by chance or choice. He seems to always take the lead when they are in interviews. And, he is constantly monitoring the conversation. A good example is the video that was going around recently. It’s the one with the story about the shrimps. The boys were appearing on a Spanish show and Piero was telling the story about Gianluca and Ignazio’s food fight, when they were teenagers and he mistakenly used the Spanish word cama (bed) instead of the Spanish word cara (face) which turns the story from them throwing shrimps into one another’s face into throwing shrimps at each other in bed. Gianluca picked up on this and immediately corrected the mistake while Ignazio and Piero got hysterical laughing.
Piero is the intelligent one perhaps because he thinks everything through. In interviews he thinks before he speaks, and his answers are always intelligent. He’s very serious and you can tell he thought out the answer before he spoke. And I’m sure that’s what makes his performance so great!
And, Ignazio, the funny one. And that he is! But, is it really about the joke? Or is it more about the production. Let’s turn to the production.
The stage is simple. One sign that says it all – Il Volo. There’s the orchestra. Guitars, drum, piano, violins and whatever other instruments are needed for the performance. I want you to stop and think about the performance. We know these guys have three amazing voices but, what if they got on the stage and for two hours, they did nothing but sing. I don’t think it would work. A performance needs the ability to move on. There’s no change of scenery and no intermission so how do you move the performance along? Ignazio!!! The joking he brings into the performance provides the levity to relive the seriousness of the performance. He brings a certain ease and suspense to the performance. The audience is always wondering, what will he do next. But is it always about joking? I want you to think about what I’m saying. Ignazio is constantly moving around the stage. He’s dancing and keeping the rhythm. He’s swinging the microphone around and constantly nodding towards the orchestra, Gianluca and Piero. Is that the lead up to a joke? I don’t think so. Let me tell you what you are looking at. Ignazio is following every note that is sung or played on that stage. His mind is in motion. He is sensitive and passionate with the music. He has the ability to see the music as it is happening. He knows where every instrument should come in and out. That’s why you notice little things like him smiling, nodding, pointing towards the musicians, Gianluca or Piero. He also grabs the baton from the conductor, sometimes to joke but more often to conduct. Think about him conducting the Asti Symphony Orchestra while Marcello Rota sang his tenor part. He wasn’t joking, he was conducting. And, that’s why everyone was watching him in amazement. And when it was over, they were speechless. Look at Michele Torpedine go across the stage to embrace him. He is in awe of this young man. Ignazio is music! You call him funny I call him brilliant! I am going to make a prediction here! Remember you heard it here first. Ignazio will compose a great opera and will probably also write the libretto for it.
Let’s go to the beginning. When these three young men started out, they were 15 and 16 years old. Think of being 15 or 16 years old and you have a dream, and someone tells you that that dream, needs to be shared. To fulfill that dream you have to leave your family, your friends, your home, you have to go to another country and you have to share this journey with two people who you really know nothing about except that they had the same dream you did. You have to trust that the decision that was made by you and your family, was the right decision. If not, it’s back to square one! You’re going to be lonely and you have to learn to survive without the people you love. So, you learn to lean on one another. That dependence turns into a friendship and that friendship into a brotherhood. It enabled them to trust enough to collaborate and perfect something truly amazing. Something that revolutionized the music industry. Let me go further by showing you a collaboration by these three amazing, very, very talented, young men that is so unreal that it boggles your mind. This is a collaboration of love. Stop and listen to this performance of “Por Una Cabeza”.
Look at how they smile at one another during the performance. A smile that says yes that’s it! Their faces are ablaze! Their expressions let one another know that it works. And, finally, when it’s over, they are so excited they can hardly contain themselves. Look at their smiles, their faces are lit up in joy and their embrace says it all! They are brothers who love one another! So, in the beginning I said they were three voices and one song. I can now say they are three voices and one Love! We Are Love! ❤️❤️❤️
Susan De Bartoli
Susan, I really have to thank you for your nice words, you hit the mark in the description of Gianluca, Ignazio and Piero.
Thanks also for allowing the publication. We will be happy to have your other posts if you wish.
Finalmente il Primo (e il Secondo) Concerto (Finally, the First and Second Live Concert)
By Giovanna
After Italy and our planet recover from the current viral onslaught, the world may be different. As Gianluca said in his live videocast last week, when this is over, it may be hard for many people and many things to go back to the way they were. But we can still look forward to the fact that music and laughter are universal and unstoppable.
In my last submittal, I promised to describe my first Il Volo concert(s) from 2019. But first, I wanted to recount a funny story from my 2018 trip to Sicily. That was my fourth hiking or cycling trip in Italy. Due to the travel dates, I knew I would not be able to hear any Il Volo concerts. I spent the time becoming addicted to the Mediterranean and Ionian coasts of Sicily.
When we first arrived a few days before the start of our hike, I had trouble calling our bed-and-breakfast host near the Palermo Vucceria. So I ended up pressing the citofono and climbing stairs looking for his suite. A middle-aged guy in the street, who was a friend of his, called him on the telefonino (cell phone). While on the phone this buddy was ribbing me in Sicilian, telling Claudio that he better come down quick, because his guests “si stanno impazzendo” (are going crazy) and every other tease he could think of, winking the whole time. My helper was a typical Sicilian – extraordinarily courteous and kind on the one hand, and ‘nu sperto (smart aleck) on the other. Then he hugs us and tells us his name is Piero. I burst out laughing. Of course, it is. What else would it be? (But it’s a common name, right?)
Even wilder was the historian/guide at Segesta a few days later. He was a little bantam rooster of an athlete in his 20’s. Black jeans, dark curls, trim beard, soft eyes, deep dark voice, movie actor face. He announced his name was Gianluca.
I was in tears laughing at this point, and just had to ask him if he sang tenor or baritone. He pulled me aside and we promptly got into an argument (‘na schariatina) in Sicilian. Two Sicilians arguing – what else is new? He insisted that our driver, Maurizio, lied when he said we were Americans. As short as I am, and with my left hand in the air for every other word, I had to be Italian. I also learned that this particular Gianluca refers to himself as “Sicilianissimo” (ultimate Sicilian) and considers himself an expert in recognizing his own kind.
I’ve had this happen in a number of places in Italy over the years, where Italians sometimes confuse me for an Italian, not an American. A few examples:
Near Catania: “Si pare dalla faccia” (It shows on your face).
Rome: “L’accento si senti” (I hear your accent).
Giardini, Sicily after two days of swimming in the Ionian Sea: “Una verissima Siciliana – nera, nera come ‘na magrebina” (A real Sicilian – dark as the rest of us Mediterraneans.)
Storekeeper in a negozio in Florence: “You remind me of my mother in Calabria. I’ll take off 40 euros if you come in the back with me for an espresso e una chiacchierata” (some conversation).” I told him the last thing I wanted to hear from a handsome young Italian is that I looked like his mother.
Our driver outside Cefalu: “How long since you emigrated from here to the States?” My answer, “Non ho mai messo piede qua!” (I’ve never set foot here!).
Near Milano: If you’re a ciclista, you’ll know who the great designer Ernesto Colnago is. He refused to make me a custom road racing frame years ago. “Sei Italiana, ma sei troppo bassa. La bici uscira brutta!” (You’re Italian but you’re too short. The bicycle will come out ugly.)
Eventually I gave up arguing.
I didn’t meet any Ignazios in 2018, but I didn’t need to. I have two Sicilian-American cousins called Ignazio. One’s tall, one’s funny.
Despite following Il Volo for years, and even going back and forth to Italy, I never attended a live concert until 2019. As I mentioned, I returned to Italia to hear them on their home turf in Taormina, Sicily and Lecce, Puglia, both shows in July. It gave me an excuse to be around the beaches, the white marble architecture, the restored synagogues, and the marketplaces of eastern Sicily and southern Italy for a month. Americans haven’t discovered these areas, but the northern Italians flock there for vacanze and ferragosto. I was delighted not to hear a word of English for a month. Siracusa and Ortigia, with exotic fruit, baking hot sunshine, blinding white marble, noisy markets, singing in the stalls, street signs in Greek and Hebrew, the sparkling Adriatic visible at every turn, make me ubriaca di gioia (drunk with pleasure). I finally found a place I feel really at home.
Besides, there’s nothing like Sicilian pasta al salmone, and the Pugliese really know how to roll their dark bread dough in black sesame seeds. And where else do the vending machines along the beach have bottles of Inzolia Sicilian white and Nero d’Avola red instead of Coca Cola? Antonio, one my limo drivers, told me that Italians have a name for a meal without wine. They call it colazione (breakfast). E magari, a volte… (Even then, sometimes, too). Using wine all day is not the case for every Italian since, for example, Piero Barone, and even my landlord in Giardini, sono astemi (don’t drink at all).
Ora Arriviamo al Dunque (Now We Get to the Point)
Jana, Daniela, Pat and others in the Flight Crew reviewed last year’s concerts as they occurred. I wanted to tell you about some things that didn’t make the web pages or the blogs. These things will not change, even if the Meet and Greets, Wine and Dines, and whatever else they’re called, come to an end. I’ve never been to any of those things, anyway.
Aside from their voices and their stage presence, in the short time I was around the Il Volo concert setting, I was most impressed with the humanity and grace of these young men, and what veri gentiluomini (real gentlemen) they can be, when they choose to. Non fraintendermi! Don’t get me wrong! I raised an Italian Jewish son exactly their age. With young guys, including mine, sometimes they are delightfully charming, and other times “it gets real.” I suppose these three guys are the same as mine. Here are some examples of what they can be:
First, my all-time favorite, and Sicily’s greatest mystery writer, Andrea Camilleri, died the Thursday before the Il Volo Taormina concert. If you’ve ever read Il Commissario Montalbano Mysteries or watched them on TV (starring Luca Zingaretti, Cesare Bocci and Peppino Mazzotta), you know who Camilleri is. I didn’t hear the news until I went up to Taormina that Friday to buy some paperbacks in the tabbacheria and catch the local gossip in the cafés on Corso Umberto. Those of us who are Sicilians were still lamenting his death a few nights later at the Il Volo concert. (Sicilians are really good at that). During the concert, Piero and Ignazio, Sicilians both, had the extraordinary sensitivity to ask for a few minutes to honor the memory of our Sicilian hero with a farewell aria in the middle of the show. Lots of hugging and swaying in the audience – but well deserved.
Second, some of you may have seen the 2019 Taormina concert photo of Piero holding a teenaged girl at the left side of the stage, late in the show. I think I even saw the picture on the Flight Crew page. What wasn’t obvious is that this very disabled young lady, in her prettiest summer dress and barely able to walk on her brace supports, spent the length of two songs being held by Piero, while he sang his parts. To take care of this young lady who had trouble standing, Piero had to crouch and sit at the edge of the stage to hold her so she wouldn’t fall, as her caregivers temporarily took her walking equipment away, and he stayed that way a long time. This brave young lady didn’t want any crutches in her arms; she wanted Piero in her arms, and he obliged her. I was really touched by the look on his face afterwards, as he sighed with compassion, moved by what this young girl went through to get near him, and watching her struggle on her supports as she left him with her helpers around her. I didn’t expect a young star to be that human. In Yiddish we would say What a mentsh! and in Italian Che persona! (What a person he is!) But of course, if he’s like his coetani (guys his age) there are probably other sides to him.
These are Flashes of Memory and a Few Things to Look Forward to When Italy Recovers
Snapshots from Taormina Concert
Ignazio teasing that every time Gianluca tries to speak Sicilian, he growls like a Mafiusu.
Ignazio doing a fake Italian TV commercial with a dial-in phone number to raise money to save Piero’s home village of Naro. Every time the other two interrupt him, he starts the “tape” over.
Piero charging up the center aisle to sing at the back of the amphitheater, then unable to get back to the stage because he’s nearly covered in girls.
Gianluca completely cranked up, running victory laps back and forth at the front of the stage hand-slapping all the young kids, while everyone in the audience is standing and singing “Volare.”
Late night after the concert, people singing Il Volo songs up and down Corso Umberto, even those who didn’t go to the show.
Snapshots from Lecce Concert
After centuries of never having public entertainment in the Piazza del Duomo, watching as the stage was being built up each day across from the archbishop’s palace – for Il Volo,
Gianluca accidently delaying the show because he left his stage clothes at the hotel. Ignazio joking that they decided to wait for Gianluca’s clothes because it didn’t seem right to make him do an entire concert in front of the Archbishop of Lecce in mutande (in his underwear).
Gianluca personally thanking Archbishop Michele Seccia “chi mi ha dato la crisma” (who gave him the oil of anointing at his confirmation 12 years ago), because look what happened to his life since then.
Folks watching the show for free from the roof of their apartment building above the piazza teasing Ignazio. Ignazio, always in fine form, yelling at them to go buy a ticket.
Gianluca doing a goofy American accent to make fun of how badly Americans pronounce “Arriverderci Roma.”
People in front of me betting on whether Gianluca could make it to the end of the show without climbing off the stage to play with a small boy down front. (He didn’t make it to the end).
Piero describing how ten years ago they were so young that they were this short . . . except Ignazio, who was this wide . . .
Che Dio vi benedica tutti voi, e anche i ragazzi e le loro famiglie.
May God bless you all, and the guys and their families, too, during this time.
Some pictures….
They needed more publicity than this!
Taormina – the light crew can do wonderful things!
String bending on a Fender Stratocaster Brownie
Gianluca got his pants back, but notices shoes are different?
Alessandro got a shirt long enough to cover his belly!
10th Anniversary thank you poster…
Yours truly – my feet do not touch the floor – kind of like an Il Volo concert!
C’è di più.
There is more to come.
Jo Ann…
Come in and share the love of life, friends and Il Volo!
