With the holidays over and all the surprises behind us it’s time to get back to the story.
As I always say, Gianluca is very different from Piero and Ignazio. I don’t know why but in everything he does he is different. In how he handles things, he is different.
It seemed that Piero and Ignazio were street smart. They knew how things were and how they worked, especially in music, but Gianluca, no, he just led a simple life and he loved to sing but that was just part of who he was!
In Montepagano, Gianluca was moving along in his life, attending school, playing soccer, hiking in the mountains and singing with the choir. While Piero and Ignazio attended school, traveled everywhere for their singing lessons and competed in competitions all over Sicily.
Gianluca’s life was really good. It was laid back and the life every teenager should have. Then one day a lady came along and threw a monkey wrench into it and suddenly, his life changed forever.
Thinking back over the years, Gianluca speaks about how Destiny Knocked on His Door and he found himself on the road to Ti Lascio Una Canzone.
Let’s listen to Gianluca’s version of how he got to Ti Lascio Una Canzone and what destiny had in store for him….
Do you see destiny?
The story of Ignazio shows that things come, and you do not have to force them to arrive. My story is not different from Ignazio. Better, but a little bit different because, apart from the Little Choir of Roses and those modest performances with my father’s theater company, I’ve never done anything else, no competitions, no festival. At home we do not have a bulletin board with the prizes that I won in the singing competitions because I did not want to do them, I never thought about it.
I participated in the Festival of the Adriatic, it could be 2006, and I won it, and in 2007 in Ascoli Piceno to that of young talents, always at the local level and always for fun. I sang at weddings, that’s it, I sang Schubert’s Ave Maria, and they paid me. My first money earned with music. And for fun, in 2007 I recorded a CD in a studio in Roseto degli Abruzzi: it was called Start from Here. The study was by Vincenzo Irelli, a very good musician. His band has accompanied names like Pierangelo Bertoli and Giuni Russo, as well as many others. I remember he’d heard me sing, probably in one of the Little Rose Choir’s performances, and he’d said to my father, “He’s good, Gianluca. Take him to me “. I had chosen songs by Bocelli and Alex Baroni, the singer who died in 2002 and famous for songs like Change and Write Something For Me and that was another of the voices I liked a lot. We spent a couple of weeks recording the CD and then we gave it to all the relatives. If I think about it today, it makes me smile. But never, never would I have thought that it would not be the only one that I would do. I never thought I could make music my life. I told you: I only sang because it made me feel good, when I was singing. I was happy.
Then what happened?
It was 2008 when my father received a phone call from Licia Giunco. It is difficult to explain who this lady was, an incredible woman, known throughout Italy for being the creator of an annual event called Sport for Life, a great international ice-skating gala. The event had reached its thirtieth edition, although the last one organized by Mrs. Giunco before leaving was the twenty-sixth and continues in honor of this extraordinary person who has decided to use the sport to raise funds to donate to charity. For the gala, skating champions come from all over Europe and singers like Alessandra Amoroso and Biagio Antonacci also take part. It is a very well-known event throughout Italy. The reason for Mrs. Giunco’s phone call was my performances with the choir. “We have a great talent here in Roseto” she tells my father. “We must bring him to RAI.” My father had never thought about it. My parents had never even imagined I would participate in competitions, let alone send me for an audition for television.
“Let’s try,” he replied to her. “It would be a great opportunity.” What dad thought was just a different experience, something that could make me have fun. Mrs. Giunco made available to us her contacts: we would talk to Franco Fasano, whom Licia knew, and he would take us to audition with Roberto Cenci for a broadcast of RAI. It was not a talent, maybe it was this that I liked: the idea that it was only a life experience to do, an experience that would allow me to sing for a while. My parents, as they had always been until then, did not force me in the least and, as enthusiastic as they were about the idea of what I could do, they completely left the decision to me. I had not the slightest idea of what awaited me, but I decided instinctively, with my belly, that yes, that audition I really wanted to do it.
The audition….Ti Lascio una Canzone.
Aside from the one Festival in 2006, Gianluca never competed in anything! This would be his first real competition. Piero and Ignazio knew how to deal with the competitions, but Gianluca, though inexperienced, was in a good position because he was effectively selected to do this audition by people who were out there looking for talents like his that were very unique. Little did they know that they would wind up with three such individuals.
What happened in 2009 at Ti Lascio Una Canzone was so unique that it will probably never happen again. But I’m getting ahead of myself.
Gianluca was now in place to meet his destiny! This was the day that Destiny Knocked on His Door and his life would change forever. He would never again live the simple beautiful life he lived in Montepagano. From here on it would be a life of partnership and new realities. He would no longer climb mountains. He would climb the ladder to fame!
(You didn’t think I would leave out my favorite song that Gianluca sings)
I think Gianluca has learned to accept this way of life, but I don’t think you ever forget the simple life that made you happy. Success only comes with great sacrifices.
And sacrifice he did, in fact, they all did. They all left behind their lives the day that they set out for Via dei Gracchi. A road that had no straight path just a sharp left turn that would bring them all to Ti Lacio Una Canzone!
Next week we arrive at the moment we’ve been waiting for. The moment the guys all come together in the same place. The place where the journey really begins!
Join me next week when I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and meet the guys at the Audition.
*What I have written here are excerpts from the book the guys wrote about their lives. “Il Volo, Un’avventura Straordinario, La Nostra Storia.” (An Extraordinary Adventure, Our Story) This is just a small piece of each mans’ story. The book is written in Italian. If you can read Italian, I would highly recommend that you read it. It’s wonderful! If not, I can only hope that someday it will be translated into English. Or you can use Google Translate to translate it.
I also recommend you read their second book “IL Volo: Quello Che Porto Nel Cuore” (What I Carry in My Heart)
If you would like to share a story with me, please email: susan.flightcrew@yahoo.com
The years are truly flying by! This is my fourth Christmas writing for Flight Crew about Il Volo. I love writing the Christmas article every year because, besides talking about the guys, I get to talk about people I don’t talk about the rest of the year! The amazing people who contribute to these articles.
Much of what is written in this article will be from past articles because the facts are what they are, and they don’t change from year to year! And like the facts in this article, we can be certain of one other thing, the guys will be with their families for Christmas, and they will follow traditions that have been in their families for generations!
As you know I mostly look to the past for my stories. After all the stories are “Through the Fields of My Mind” but sometimes my stories are new and as we start to move forward over the next few years, I’m thinking there will be many new stories. New work, new ideas and new productions, and of course new love interests!
Moving forward the guys will be more serious and more involved. What is now their family will one day, in the not too far future, turn into a new family which will include their wives and children, their own families. The past joining the future! Old traditions passed on to the next generation!
Wouldn’t it be nice if we could say we will be around to see the end of their stories but no, most of us will be long gone before their stories end. We’ll have to watch the end unfold from above! But how fortunate we are that we have seen the beginning of their beautiful stories.
I love talking about their futures because I see bright, beautiful, futures for all of them. The Lord put them on this earth and gave them those beautiful voices to bring Joy to the World and what they’ve shared with us, their fans, is a joy beyond compare! And what they will share with their future families is a joy they can’t even begin to understand or imagine! Can you imagine how beautiful their families will be?
Among the stories Through the Fields of My Mind that I will recall today are their traditional Christmases. In some cases, I have their actual Christmas traditions but in most it’s more about the tradition in their region of Italy.
Before I begin, I would like to talk for a minute about La Vigilia. La Vigilia is the Italian traditional Christmas Eve dinner. This dinner consists of fish. Why? Because Italy is primarily a Catholic country and Christmas Eve, up until Vatican II, was always a day of fast to prepare for the coming of Christ. So, even after Vatican II, we continue to keep the tradition of only eating fish on Christmas Eve!
So, how did La Vigilia come to be an Italian tradition? This is a tradition that started in southern Italy in the regions of Sicily, Calabria and parts of Campania. In these regions, people who live beside the sea are primarily fishermen, and they live off the sea. So, on the eve they not only celebrate the coming of Christ, but they also thank the Lord for the abundance of fish they received from the sea which sustains their families year-round.
In the early 1900’s when Italian immigrants came to America, they brought this tradition with them, and the next generation added to this tradition by celebrating the Feast of the Seven Fish. The number seven is symbolic in the Roman Catholic Church. It represents the seven days of creation, the seven sacraments, the seven deadly sins, etc.
By continuing La Vigilia in America, it allowed the immigrants to rekindle the old country’s Christmas Eve tradition so they would feel close to their homes and the families they left behind. Today, it’s considered one of the oldest Italian traditions because most Italians still keep the tradition! I certainly do!
Now, let’s step back into the past to see how our guys celebrate Christmas.
No need to update this story, it doesn’t change. Tradition is tradition! Three years ago, two people helped me write this story so I decided that I would not change anything in it. It turned out because of them the Christmas message was amazing! The two wonderful friends who helped me were our special little nonna, Maura Pucci and Giovanni Granaro local historian and my go to man in Naro. Over ten thousand fans responded to the story! It gave us a look at the different Italian traditions and an insight into our guy’s Christmas. So, I am republishing the article with a few new and interesting facts added.
This story talks about the tradition that each guy has on Christmas. Each tradition is different depending on what region they come from but, they do have one tradition in common and they share that tradition with Italians all over the world. It is La Vigilia which I already have mentioned.
So, without further ado, let’s join Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca for Christmas with our Italian Family!
Yes, Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca are our family! Why do I call them family? We’re their fans, yes but, we are more than fans. We certainly do all the things that fans do but it goes deeper than that because our guys are different than any other entertainers. The difference is the guys think of us as their extended family because they grew up with us. They spend more time with us than they do with their families. And they show us their love in everything they do. Think of how they treat us! When you meet them, they embrace you. Most entertainers just want your praise and accolades. Not our guys! They want to know about us! They ask about our lives and our families. They listen to us and do things to please us. And think about how much time you spend listening to their music!
So, what is family? Family are the people who are there when you need them. When you’re sad you can always feel their love and their encouragement! Family is not just blood it’s the people who are there for us!
So, let’s take a look at how our Italian family spends their Christmas.
The Christmas season starts in Italy on the Feast of the Immaculate Conception of Mary (December 8th) which is also a holiday in Italy. This is the day that many Italians put up their Christmas trees and the cities light up their streets with colored lights. Why? Because Mary is the mother of the Light, Jesus! But there are other traditions that are celebrated on this day!
Let’s go to Naro, Piero’s city, to see how they open the Christmas season.
Every year, on the 7th, 8th and 9th of December, every inhabitant in Naro stocks up on muffuletti. Muffuletti is bread which is stuffed with meat and vegetables. Some people go to their local baker to buy them, and some people prepare them at home. The tradition is linked to religion. Naro’s sandwiches are blessed and distributed in Churches at the end of the Mass on the feast day of the Immaculate Conception. The bakers donate the muffuletti to the Churches as a gesture of generosity towards their fellow countrymen but, above all, of love towards “a bedda matri ‘Mmaculata”, the Most Holy Immaculate, Mary.
During the month of December, the Christmas markets are held in Naro. The Fair is set up inside the cloister of the Town Hall. Many people go to the Franciscan cloister where, every evening, to the delight of the children, there is a special snowfall that whitens the baroque courtyard. On the final evening there is a concert of Sicilian folk music, and an award is given for the best photo taken at the large Christmas tree in Piazza Garibaldi.
During this magical period the streets are colored by many Christmas lights, and everyone visits the living nativity scene of Borgo Castello. There is Mass on Christmas Eve and between hugs, kisses and best wishes there are a thousand good intentions. And then, on Christmas day, the family gathers together for a dinner laden with many local delicacies.
And what would Piero do on Christmas day? Most likely, he will walk around Naro and visit some older people and his friends. He certainly would have decorated his home so I’m sure he will make a video for all of us to see. He will most likely sing at Christmas Eve or Christmas Day Mass. In the past, Piero sang with his grandfather, Pietro. Piero will certainly remember his grandfather when he is singing because he was so important to him and to his career.
Christmas in Bologna! How does Ignazio celebrate Christmas?
Unlike Piero and Gianluca, Ignazio and his family live in a big city and like cities in America there are many events.
The Christmas tradition in Bologna has deep roots. The Bolognese Nativity Scene (Presepe) goes back to the Middle Ages. The tradition of the Presepe dates back to the 13th century and one of the oldest Presepe in the world is preserved in Bologna.
What makes the Bolognese Nativity different? It is life size and includes clothes that are different from the traditional Neapolitan style. They are dressed in a medieval style. In Porretta Terme in the Emilian Apennines another Presepe, which is one of the oldest Presepe in the world is kept in the church of Capugnano.
I’m sure Ignazio will visit the Christmas Tree in Piazza Nettuno. It is a Bolognese tradition. The beautiful tree is a welcoming and bright place to meet friends and feel the warmth of Christmas.
So, what will Ignazio’s family eat on Christmas? I’m sure on Christmas Eve there will be fish on the table. This is the tradition in every Italian house on “La Vigilia,” Christmas Eve.
On Christmas Day, there is another tradition. Lunch is the main meal and Pasta in brodo (pasta in broth) will certainly be served. In Bologna, it’s all about meat-filled tortellini in capon broth. These, small, Tortellini, are filled with a mixture of meat, mortadella and Parmigiano Reggiano cheese but you will find in Bologna every family has its secret ingredient for them. You’ll recall in an interview Ignazio mentioned his family buying Tortellini every Sunday.
The soup will most likely be followed by a roast and the meal will end with a traditional dessert like Certosino (or Pan speziale) which is made with almonds, pine nuts, dark chocolate and candied fruits. The recipe has its origin in the Middle Ages where Certosino was produced by pharmacists and later by Certosini Friars. Certosino is very popular in Bologna.
I know the part of the meal that Ignazio will like the best is the dessert! A dessert he will share with his family to celebrate Christmas Day!
There is one Sicilian tradition that I would like to talk about since we have two Sicilian men in the group, I think it is important to include it in the article.
For many in Sicily, the Christmas season starts on the Feast of Santa Lucia (St. Lucy). In some regions of Sicily, the feast day is celebrated with Cuccia. The word itself is Sicilian. Cuccìa is typically made with wheat berries, ricotta and sugar. How did this tradition come to be?
In the winter of 1646, Sicily was undergoing a terrible famine. People were dying of hunger after a massive crop failure. The people of Palermo did the only thing they could in the circumstances: they prayed. And then on the morning of December 13th a ship full of grain arrived in Palermo harbor with enough grain to feed the whole city. Rather than wait to have the grain milled into flour to make bread, the hungry people boiled and ate the grain to satisfy their hunger and save their lives. The people were convinced that Santa Lucia, Sicily’s most important saint had saved the city, since the grain arrived on her feast day.
I’m not sure if Piero and Ignazio’s family make Cuccia or eat it but I’m sure they know the tradition.
So, now let’s talk about Gianluca’s Christmas!
A Montepagano tradition is the Nativity scene. At the end of the last century a famous living Nativity play was started in Montepagano which is a real theatrical performance, with a director and a narrator.
In the Abruzzi region, there is a tradition that bagpipers, so called zampognari come into the towns and play their flutes and bagpipes for the people. They symbolize the shepherds who come in search of the newborn baby, Jesus. The bagpipers were once shepherds, today they are musicians who walk the streets of the cities, playing Christmas music. Often, they are in pairs, and one plays the zampognari (bagpipe) and the other the ciaramella (which is similar to a small piccolo).
For certain Gianluca will celebrate December 24th, Christmas Eve with a meal of fish including shellfish because he lives by the sea. As far as food traditions are concerned, on Christmas Day, the typical dish of the whole region of Abruzzo is spaghetti alla chitarra (which is prepared on a particular instrument called a guitar, because it is made of wood with metal strings) but most likely Gianluca will eat Lasagna. The second course will be arrosticini, which are pieces of meat, traditionally lamb, strung on long sticks, similar to a kebab. And for dessert, they will most likely have the traditional Christmas cake, Panettone.
Gianluca will surely spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with his family including his Grandpa Ernesto!
As you know my mother is Abruzzese and I must say, Gianluca’s Christmas is very similar my Christmas.
If you’re wondering where Santa Claus is, in Italy he is known as “Babbo Natale,” Father Christmas, who brings presents to children on Christmas Eve but, in true Italian tradition, gifts were exchanged on January 6th the day of Epiphany when La Befana comes to Italian homes in search of the Christ Child and leaves gifts for the children. This is a tradition that is celebrated in the central regions of Italy.
La Befana is an old woman, with a hooked nose, badly dressed, with a handkerchief on her head, grumpy but good, she is not a witch. On January 6th, riding through the sky, flying on a broom, La Befana lands on the roofs, enters the houses from the chimneys and descends from the fireplace, leaving gifts and sweets in the big socks that the children place in front of the fireplace. If they were good, they got sweets. If they were bad, she leaves coal in the form of a sweet black candy. I’m sure there will be many sweets for Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca! No coal for our guys!
I’m going to step away from the story for a minute because while I’m posting I’m watching Rai 1. All the contenders for Sanremo are on to tell us what the name of their song will be for Sanremo 2024.
The guys just announced the song they will sing is “Capolavoro.” English translation “Masterpiece,” and I have no doubt it will be a Masterpiece.
They posted this picture today which I felt needed to be included in this story. Now if that’s not Drop Dead Gorgeous, I don’t know what is!
I’m including the following picture as a good luck omen for Sanremo 2024. We’re all rooting for you to bring home the Lion!
Which brings me to another important member of Il Volo’s family. Michele Torpedine! His family is originally from the region of Puglia. He moved to Bologna when he was twelve years old. So, he will celebrate Christmas with his family and the celebration would be similar to Ignazio’s!
Again, I would like to thank the two people who contributed to this Christmas story. Maura Pucci and Giovanni Granaro. Their knowledge of the regions of Montepagano and Naro and the different Christmas traditions made this story come to life!
Our Team! The best ladies to work with!
Pat Susan Daniela
In closing, I would like to thank my team at Flight Crew! The two ladies who make all my stories come to life! Daniela Perani (a/k/a Sherlock Holmes) who is my second pair of eyes and my English translator for many of my stories and Patricia Farley Ward who edits all of my stories.
I want to wish all of my Christian friends a Merry Christmas and all my Jewish friends a Happy Chanukah! And all my other friends, All the Happiness and Joy of the Season!
And finally, I’m sure you would love to join me in wishing Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca and their families a very Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year with many Concerts and special surprises for us! And I want to thank them for all they do for us! They are truly a Joy to the World!
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure! Next week we ring out the old!
Just in time for Christmas, the guys released a new EP 4Xmas Amazing Grace, O Tannenbaum, Feliz Navidad and Happy Xmas (the War is Over) order yours now on Spotify, Amazon, etc.
If you would like to share a story with me, please email: susan.flightcrew@yahoo.com
I took a break from our story last week to talk about Sanremo. I was very excited for the guys and I’m sure all of you were very happy about the news!
So, let’s get back to the story. We know Piero is on his way to audition for Ti Lascio Una Canzone. That’s one down and two to go. We know Piero almost missed his opportunity. Is it possible Ignazio almost missed his? Let’s go back to Marsala 2008 and see what’s going on with 14-year-old Ignazio.
When we last left Ignazio, he was telling us about a person who was very dear to his family who loaned his parents the money so that he could continue his singing lessons.
So, all was well again, but wait, what’s going on? Ignazio no longer wants to do the competitions! But if he doesn’t compete how will he ever be discovered?
I would think that being able to go forward, Ignazio would continue with the lessons and competitions but no, one day it all stopped. It didn’t go away, Ignazio pushed it away. He had all he could take of the competitions. What Ignazio wanted was to be out of the competitions! All the hard work seemed in vain. Facing one competition after another. After a while the stages change but not the faces.
Those who work so hard just to be on that stage and those who walk in and take what rightfully belongs to another.
No Ignazio had it. He was done with it. Not with the singing, no that was who he was that was never going away. Singing from morning till night no that wasn’t going to end. No, it was Time to Hang Up the Dreams and walk away from the competitions!
What happened to cause this sudden change in his life’s plan. I’ll let Ignazio explain it to you….
Instead, I felt like a crap. No, not when they called me to audition, before I felt like crap, so much so that I almost lost it that night when they talked to me for the first time about Ti Lascio Una Canzone. The fact is that competition after competition, year after year, perhaps because I grew up and became less naïve, now I was fourteen, at a certain point in 2008 I realized that, as wonderful as it was, the music world was starting to give me the first disappointments: people who paid to see their child win, recommendations and various scams.
My problem is that I have always been for healthy competition, getting to the first place because a person really deserves to be rewarded as such. But it was not like that anymore. I did not want to participate anymore in any competition. I began to give up many proposals. I was in this terrible mood when, in September of that year, I was offered a competition in Caltanissetta, which was presented by the great Nico dei Gabbiani and he had as president of the jury Franco Fasano, author and composer of songs like ‘Ti Lascero’ who won the Sanremo Festival, and also singer songwriter as ‘E Quel Giorno Non Mi Perderai Piu.’
It seems Ignazio began to realize that life isn’t always fair and there are people in life who cheat you out of the things that can give your life meaning! Can you imagine working so hard and knowing you did your best, but someone walks in and takes it away from you for selfish reasons? That’s a hard lesson to learn at such a young age. I think this experience was one of the things that made Ignazio as compassionate as he is. He didn’t care about winning for himself, he cared about the competition being fair.
Where did he get this sense of fair play? I’m going to venture a guess. I’m getting ahead of the story but, one thing that stands out in my mind is Gianluca’s description of when he met Caterina, Ignazio’s mother, for the first time. He was at the audition for Ti Lascio Una Canzone and he had just come out of the recording room and Caterina told him, “Bravo, that was very good!” Even though she was there for Ignazio’s audition she still took the time to compliment Gianluca. Now that’s a sense of fair play! True integrity! That’s where Ignazio gets it from!
Let’s get back to Ignazio….
Instinctively I said no. I did not want to take part in any competition that could turn out to be made up. But after so many evenings talking to my family and Liliana, who was always present and always ready to give me some advice, I convinced myself. I am happy to say that there are no recommendations in that competition: I reached third place. But the greatest satisfaction was not the result.
At the end of the final evening Franco Fasano took the stage, proposing that I do a test in Rome. He did not promise me anything for sure. The test was for a television program that, having seen the great success of the first edition, had reached its second edition.
That program was Ti Lascio Una Canzone.
This story begs us to look at what Ignazio did after he became a star. He didn’t forget about the competitions and the way people used them to advance their children over those who worked so hard and really deserved to win. No, instead from the very first moment when he was successful, he started to help others!
Let’s look at how Ignazio has helped some aspiring young artist.
In February 2014, Katya Pantaleo, a young singer from Marsala, won the Premio della Critica at Sanremo with the song “Come in paradiso” music, lyrics and arrangement by Ignazio. He sure can write those songs!!!
On August 30, 2014, Chiara Cusumano and Giorgia Vassalo, The Duo Sisters, reached the finals of the Festival di Castrocaro, performing a song composed by Ignazio: “Paura d’Amare”.
On February 2, 2014, Ignazio collaborated with singer Roberto Amadè in a project that resulted in a wonderful concert, the Amadè-Boschetto concert which was organized through the Cultural and Artistic Center “Ignazio Boschetto,” with the support of The Town Hall of Marsala. The Teatro Impero archipelago hall has long applauded this initiative which brought together several artists from Marsala.
For those of you who don’t know who Roberto Amadè is, let me tell you a little bit about him and the wonderful work he and Ignazio did together.
Roberto Amadè is an Italian singer and songwriter. He was born in Vercelli, Italy on April 3, 1982. He is the son of Claudio Chapel bassist in the Orchestra of the Teatro alla Scala of Milan since 1979. Like Ignazio, Roberto plays multiple instruments. He graduated from the Albertina Academy of Fine Arts of Turin. One of his works entitled “Abbado” (dedicated to the conductor Claudio Abbado) is on exhibition at the Teatro alla Scala Foundation.
Roberto was very fascinated by music for cinema and in 2008 he composed the soundtrack for the film “La terra nelanque” (The Land in the Blood).
This certainly brings to mind the theme song that Ignazio wrote for the Italian series Màkari!
In December 2010, Roberto was the winner of Arena Sanremo with the song “Come Poggia,” (Like Rain) and thus was admitted to the 2011 Sanremo Festival where he won third place in the “Young” category. The song “Come Poggia” is arranged by Roberto Amadè together with Celso Valli. (We know the name Celso Valli, he was also one of the producers of Il Volo.)
With his participation in 2011 Sanremo Festival, his debut album “Tutti gli incanti della vita” (All the Charms of Life) was re-released on February 16, 2011, with the new title “Come Poggia,” by Universal Music Group and Roberto, at the time, came under contract with Michele Torpedine. And so, the friendship with Ignazio begins and remains till today.
The Amadè-Boschetto concert was a great collaboration between two amazing entertainers who recognize the value of bringing young aspiring artists front and center and giving them the opportunity they would probably never have without their help.
Let me add to this by recognizing Ignazio’s production company, Floki Productions. At 25 he started his own production company. Does this surprise you? It doesn’t surprise me. It makes a lot of sense to me.
Floki Productions I’m sure is Ignazio’s dream. So, where does the dream begin. It began with Nico Arezzo!
In many ways Nico reminds me of Ignazio. He knows what he wants, and he goes after it. Nico was the first artist to sign a contract with Ignazio under Floki Productions.
You will remember that Ignazio released Nico’s song Gorilla on June 30, 2020 (in the middle of the pandemic) in a “Live on Instagram.” Let’s listen to what Ignazio had to say about that:
On Thursday night we were the first to do a high-quality sound live on Instagram.
People wouldn’t dream of doing what Ignazio did. What a spectacular show!
While the music world was trying to restart, Ignazio, at age 25, made his debut as a producer. And what a phenomenal production it was!
Ignazio tells us…. Production has always been my dream. It started with an idea to give a chance to those who deserve a break. And Ignazio reminds us….as it happened 11 years ago to me, Gianluca and Piero.
That statement truly sums up who Ignazio is!
Following in Ignazio’s footsteps, Nico has gone into production but most recently, Ignazio invited Nico to perform with him in a concert at Milan. A phenomenal performance by two phenomenal men!
Of course, Ignazio did not stop at Nico. In October 2021, Ignazio signed Giada Luppi. You might say that name is familiar. Giada is a World Champion Figure Skater.
Giada is not only a Championship skater, but also a singer!
Giada has a very clear idea about her future. “I will compete a few more years because I think I have already dedicated so much of my life to skating and then I would like to devote myself completely to music.”
With her debut single, in collaboration with Ignazio and manager Michele Torpedine she entered what she hopes would become her career in the entertainment world.
We are now witnessing this dream to come to life for Giada.
Giada’s latest release is Principe is amazing. She has an amazing voice, and she is starting to share it with us now!
Does it seem to you that Ignazio knows how to pick them? Amazing just like him!
Our story today is not just about a teenager who has to face the realities of life but also what he learned from those realities and how he lives his life because of those realities.
Ignazio has always been very kind and compassionate. He’s always worried about the other guy, and he puts everyone else first leaving what remains for himself!
We’re all so very grateful that when Ignazio felt it was Time to Hang Up the Dreams, he didn’t actually do it. If he did, we would have lost a phenomenal voice not to mention the voices he brought front and center in his passion to help struggling artist!
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure!
Two down and one to go but we have to wait until January for Gianluca to meet his fate. First, we have to bring in Christmas Il Volo style and of course we need to ring out the old and bring in the new year with the guys. And I need to tell you which picture was the picture of the year for 2023!
*What I have written here are excerpts from the book the guys wrote about their lives. “Il Volo, Un’avventura Straordinario, La Nostra Storia.” (An Extraordinary Adventure, Our Story) This is just a small piece of each mans’ story. The book is written in Italian. If you can read Italian, I would highly recommend that you read it. It’s wonderful! If not, I can only hope that someday it will be translated into English. Or you can use Google Translate to translate it.
I also recommend you read their second book “IL Volo: Quello Che Porto Nel Cuore” (What I Carry in My Heart)
Just in time for Christmas, the guys released a new EP 4Xmas Amazing Grace, O Tannenbaum, Feliz Navidad and Happy Xmas (the War is Over) order yours now on Spotify, Amazon, etc.
If you would like to share a story with me, please email: susan.flightcrew@yahoo.com
We received the great news on Sunday that the guys will go to Sanremo in 2024. This is what we were all hoping for, and we are all so happy that the guys will be Chasing the Lion again!
For the new fans and the fans who don’t know what the Lion is, I will give a brief description of the Sanremo Music Festival.
The Sanremo Music Festival, officially the Italian Song Festival is the most popular Italian song contest and awards ceremony held annually in the city of Sanremo. It is the longest-running annual TV music competition in the world on a national level; making it one of the world’s longest running TV programs.
The award for winning the contest is a trophy of a Lion.
The songs selected in the competition are original songs (never previously published) in Italian (or in an Italian dialect), and the three most voted songs are awarded. Other special awards are also given, including the Critics’ Award, created ad hoc by the press in 1982 to reward the quality of Mia Martini’s song, and named after the singer in 1996, after her death.
Il Volo’s “Grande Amore” won the Sanremo Music Festival 2015.
During the final night of the song contest, held on February 14, 2015, “Grande Amore” finished in first place, receiving 56.1878% of the votes and won the competition!
So that is what the award is about and now I will tell you how the guys came to the competition and how they won it!
First let me apologize to the fans for breaking the story I’ve been writing the last few weeks. I’m sure Ignazio will not mind that I am not writing his next episode this week.
In order to understand how the guys came to do the competition, we must first go back to 2014 and understand what was going on in their lives.
Before I begin, I must tell you this is my favorite story in their book. The story as told by the guys is so interesting. They were young and they were very intelligent. They knew what they wanted and what they needed and went for it! Bravo! They stepped up to the plate and did what other groups could not achieve in their lifetime careers!
Since I am not writing Ignazio’s story this week, I will let him begin to explain what happened in 2013 that caused their decision in 2014….
Ignazio begins….
After the Latin American tour (2013) we started promoting the Christmas album.
My house began to fail me. Being four months away, changing cities, hotels and planes almost every day is not easy. From the age of sixteen, finding yourself catapulted into a world completely different to the one I was used to, was not a simple thing to manage. At first no, actually the first two years I thought ‘What a beautiful life!.’ Then I realized that ‘all that glitters is not gold.’
To get satisfaction and achieve the goals you have set yourself, you have to give up many things and work hard. Stay focused on your work. It’s not easy.
Many people say: ‘But these guys never get tired?.’ Well, yes, we get tired too, sometimes. Personally, there was a time when I thought only of friends. I wanted to go out, I never answered the phone, the emails, the messages, I was out of this world.
It was thanks to my family, to the boys and to Michele that I realized that I was neglecting what was always important for me: the Music!
Gianluca….
True, Ignazio is right. It was not easy, and neither is it now.
In those years, in 2012 and 2013, no one knew us in Italy, we were just the three children who had come from Ti Lascio Una Canzone.
But in America, in South America, in Europe we were very well known. And not only there.
After the release of our first CD, we went on tour even in places that none of us could have imagined we would go to: Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan and New Zealand. In Singapore we also had a gold record with that first CD.
In 2012 we arrived in Norway, one of the few European countries that we had not yet touched. We participated in the concert dedicated to the Nobel Peace Prize – that year went to the European Union – in Oslo. A fantastic evening that allowed us to meet Gerard Butler and Sarah Jessica Parker, who were the presenters, and an artist like Kylie Minogue.
And then, in 2014 we were twice in Moscow, once guests in a concert by Toto Cutugno and once with a concert of our own, and at the beginning of 2015 we were in Beijing, guests of a TV program for the Chinese New Year.
So, before Sanremo, we lived two lives, two completely different lives. Abroad we were stars, and we came to Italy to rest. I took refuge in Montepagano, Piero in Naro, Ignazio in Marsala. It was nice to come back to ‘normal’ life.
Even if we felt that something was missing, that it was bad to be so successful outside of our country and not be able to have it in Italy.
Ignazio continues….
2014 was not our best year!
In fact, along with Eurovision, one of those things that I do not like to talk about, but we’re telling the truth, so let’s tell it all. That year the contract with Universal expired, so we started looking for a new record company.
Universal makes more pop, hip pop, rap and for us it was time to look for a label that would make a more classical and more suitable music genre for us.
It’s just that finding a new record company is not something you do in two days.
We did not sleep at night.
We talked with Michele about it until late in the evening to look for solutions.
The first thing that came to mind was to take charge of everything. Not that we could stop because we were looking for a new record company. We had earned and then we would have invested those profits on ourselves. So, we continued to work on the projects we had, new records and tours. We were planning a new tour in Canada and the United States for that summer. We could do it.
We learn that being brave has brought us luck because, after a few months, an email from Sony Latin arrived: they were interested in us.
Sony Music Latin, as you understand by the name, is a label of the record company Sony all dedicated to Latin music. And the label includes, to name a few, Gloria Estefan, Marc Anthony, Ricky Martin and Shakira.
After a few weeks and long negotiations, we went to Miami to sign the contract.
It was unique and emotional because we were underage when we were signed by Universal, our parents signed for us. This was the first record contract signed by our fist!
It was also at this time that Italy began to recognize Il Volo!
Ignazio continues….
Italy made us close in 2014 with a flourish. What started out very badly finished very well: with the Christmas concert in the Senate.
“…the hymn of Mameli was the heart-pounding one… singing in that place, with everyone singing along with us, including Giorgio Napolitano (President) and Pietro Grasso (President of the Senate).”
This is one of my favorite concerts!
We also want to talk about the thrill of singing in front of the highest offices of state! What twenty-year-old boy has something like that happen? It happened to us, and it seems to me a beautiful result, an honor.
The concert was on December 21st. You cannot imagine the emotional feeling to be called ‘guests of honor’ inside the Senate.
The fantastic Filarmonia Orchestra Veneta conducted by Diego Basso. Half the beauty of the song is in the orchestra.
We start with Christmas classics such as Adeste Fideles and White Christmas, but then there was also Caruso, Mattinata, No Puede Ser, Memory and of course our classic ‘O Sole Mio.
The most exciting moments? Everyone! But the hymn of Mameli was the heart-pounding one, the first song, singing in that place, with everyone singing along with us, including Giorgio Napolitano, (President) and Pietro Grasso (President of the Senate). It is one thing that I cannot explain.
And then, of course, the pleasure of shaking hands with the President of the Republic and of feeling that he knows Marsala, he has been there.
In short, in the end, instead of remembering it as the worst year of our lives together, 2014 brought us well: great changes and an important step towards Italy, towards home.
Piero begins….
Meanwhile, the first thing that comes to mind, after so many years of great success abroad, the greatest successes there has been, one wakes up one morning, indeed, three wake up one morning and decide to go to the Sanremo Festival.
When one is famous all over the world, there comes a moment when he must also be able to say: ‘Wow, they love me even in Italy.’ He must be able to say: ‘They also love me in my country.’
You go abroad and, during the interviews, you hear the fateful question: ‘You are loved even in Italy, right?’ and you have to answer no.
No one can understand how much we suffered in those moments.
Also, in meetings with Universal, in the United States, we sometimes tried to say: ‘Why do we publish concerts all over the world, except in Italy?’ We wanted the record company to try to support us in this sense too.
I remember that once, during a meeting with the president, I asked him for the thousandth time. And what does he do? He had a globe on his desk, I’m not joking, he gives it to me and says: ‘Turn it around, then stop it and find Italy at the first shot.’
The problem is that you have to look for it because it is a small country, very small compared to the United States and Latin America or Australia (and we have been on both of these continents). Then I got mad: ‘Oh, no, it’s my country, and the country where I was born, and the country where we come from, you cannot say it’s not important, do not think about it.’
For us, Sanremo was a decisive opportunity to let us be known to Italians, to say to Italians ‘We exist.’ And we are proud and really happy that our music genre was appreciated.
Operatic pop, it’s called, or pop opera, that is – just to be precise – a set of pop music and elements of lyrical music. And where was the lyric born? In Italy, belcanto is Italy.
It made us suffer that abroad we were loved and in Italy snubbed for something that is ours. And a bit like if the pizza was loved only abroad but not here.
Ignazio….
As they say, Piero? A prophet is not recognized in his own land, so we were snubbed, perhaps because they never had the opportunity to really know us and show, once and for all, who we are personally and humanly, as well as being singers.
Then, after a few months of night phone calls with Michele, towards the end of 2014, we finally decided: ‘new year, new life: we go to the Sanremo Festival.’
It must also be said that in the meantime in Italy people were starting to get to know us better as Il Volo, and no longer as the Tre tenorini, thanks to our friend Bruno Vespa who invited us to the Porta a Porta episode on November 20, 2014 on Rai One, we conquered the maximum, of the television ratings of the season.
Then, not to mention Piero, the fussy one, but we have never been three tenors, neither small nor big. Piero is the only one who is really a tenor. He has a more classic voice. Gianluca has a baritone voice, a warm tone. I am the most pop one. Let’s say that these are three different ways of expressing emotions but, we are not three tenors.
However, even if they began to appreciate us in Italy, the fear of participating in the festival was so great. Fear of giving way to people to say: ‘Here, now they want to come and do the phenomena here.’ The only way to not have to hear certain things was to win.
Personally, I did not believe it so much. I have always been a bit pessimistic; you know it by now. But who really believed we could do it, Gianluca!
Gianluca….
Not so much, I believed it very, very much, I felt it inside that we would have won.
I am like that, I’m not immediately enthusiastic about things, or rather of us three, maybe I’m the one who wants to think about it more, but if I have positive feelings, nobody stops me. Let’s say I have a certain sensitivity.
No one trusted, no one believed it. It was I who persuaded Piero to persuade Ignazio to go to Sanremo. Because? I told him: ‘Guys, if we go, we’ll win it, I’m sure, I’m sure.’
I do not even remember anymore how many times I heard it repeated, even from my father: ‘If than, they throw you out, you do not make long faces.’ But I if nothing, am stubborn to the end, and in the end, I convinced them.
Piero….
Yes, even if we thought about the participation really until the last possible day, we were not very sure. But then we said to ourselves: ‘Guys, make it or break it, in the end, we were not anyone here in Italy, at most we would not be anyone even afterwards.’
So, first problem solved: we go to Sanremo, It’s official.
But then there was the second problem: the song. True, Gian?
Gianluca….
I did not agree to go with that piece. If I think about it now, I’ll say to me that the next time I have to reflect better before judging, try to sing a song and then judge because we ‘change’ the songs, arranging them by cutting them on our voice, and I did not have this fact taken into consideration, despite the song on first listening was not very ugly.
Ignazio….
It’s not that we’ve heard only that, no. Do you think it is easy to choose a piece for Sanremo? We started to do a search and a selection of unpublished tracks. Our policy was: either we go with something strong, or we do not go right.
One day this song comes through Michele: Grande Amore by Francesco Boccia and Ciro Esposito, two Neapolitan authors. As usual, I am pessimistic. I listen to it and it does not make me crazy. Not even Gianluca was convinced. The only enthusiast was Pie …
Piero….
I loved Grande Amore! I did not believe that we would have won, but I was the one who pushed, I and Michele pushed for Grande Amore. Because the audition that we heard was not beautiful, but we imagined if it was made by Celso Valli! and I must say that he had guessed right.
Ignazio….
And I said it too if you let me talk.
I was saying, in fact, that Grande Amore was not as we hear it today. It was always called Grande Amore, but it was totally different. So, we start to think: who can produce the piece? And Michele calls the great Celso Valli. After several weeks of work in the studio, we managed to churn out a song that for us could have left its mark at the Sanremo Festival.
Gianluca….
That’s why when we left for Sanremo I was very convinced: we had the piece, the right project.
Piero….
He wanted to influence us, but we are superstitious …
Gianluca….
Every day at lunch and dinner with Michele and the president of Sony, I said: ‘Guys, we will win Sanremo.’
Piero….
Do you know what a week like this means?
Ignazio….
Piero and I were all day touching iron and the low parts. Gianluca was convinced that the little lion (the Sanremo award is represented by a lion) would be ours? And the two of us tried to keep the situation under control.
Gianluca….
What should I tell you? I am an optimist. They took it something like ‘he makes fun of us,’ but I felt it inside. I do not know why.
Ignazio….
The sixty-fifth edition of the Festival begins Tuesday, February 10th. We sing the second night, Wednesday the 11th. The strange thing is that normally my legs tremble before the performance, but mine trembled even after the performance! Perhaps too much adrenaline, it never happened before.
Piero….
Or maybe it was because we came back to the Ariston stage after going around the world. It was like coming home, because we experienced the beginning of our career here with Ti Lascio Una Canzone. One thing that cannot be described: in Sanremo, in Italy, to sing and receive the applause of the Italian public. It cannot be explained.
Gianluca….
Can you imagine for me, this was also my birthday: I turned twenty on Ariston’s stage? Of course, I was moved in the end, and it was too much emotion to my sensibility to play bad jokes at times.
And then, we felt the pressure in the air. Even though I was optimistic, the tension was there.
Although we had taken care of the smallest details of the song, we had tried and tried again, and we had taken care of even the smallest details of the clothing. The first evening look more rock: total black with leather jacket.
Because when we do our work, too, the image matters.
Piero….
Count, of course that counts.
But do you remember how we were dressed before? I remember that time at Una Notte per Caruso, in July 2009, it was the second time we saw Torpedine.
Michele arrives with another white Range Rover, not that of Jesolo, and as soon as he arrives we do not even say hello and we go to see the car. Let’s run, let’s open the car.
Ignazio immediately goes up to the car. We went crazy for the cars, one like that, we did not see every day. The day after we go for a ride in downtown Sorrento, a shopping trip, and we enter into Gucci. Michele spent almost two thousand euros and we with that written number at the counter, we exclaimed: ‘Mizziga! (Damn!) Two thousand euro!’ with wide eyes. And we still have those clothes, at least I personally still have them.
He had bought us a jacket, but above all the need for us to dress all in white and blue.
I had the blue jacket and the white shirt, Gianluca had blue trousers and white shirt, Ignazio the blue shoes and everything else white, Michele the blue jacket. And we took a picture in front of the hotel.
Gianluca….
We were just dressed badly to be the singers by trade, we were children, we came from families of workers. What could I buy? There was not even the need.
Piero….
And then you remember the restaurant? Afterwards we went to a restaurant near the sea. When we finished eating, the three of us took off our shoes and ran to the beach. Michele ran behind us telling us: ‘Guys, calm down. Guys, slow down.’
Ignazio….
Yes, but what does that have to do with it, Pie? We’re talking about Sanremo. What has Sorrento got to do with it?
Sanremo 2015, from 10th to 14th of February, we sang on the second evening, legs shaking, Gianluca’s birthday.
Video with English subtitles.
Among the many interviews, the diary that we kept every day for ‘TV Sorrisi e Canzoni’… We had fun with the diary!
It was a sort of ‘pill,’ a very few minutes, in which we recorded from the 9th to 14th of February (the last episode after the award ceremony). We told about some of the emotions we felt. For example, the time that Gianluca almost stumbles on stage or the happiness of seeing the audience get up and applaud the first night we sang Grande Amore. The recording then, went online on the site of the magazine.
What was I saying? Ah, yes, among the many interviews, the diary that we kept every day for ‘TV Sorrisi e Canzoni,’ meetings and press conferences …
Piero….
And the criticisms we felt in those days? People at home voted for us, appreciated us, and journalists gave us votes that we thought were postponed until September, I also said this at the press conference after the victory. Five that flew (Bad votes given by critics). But we see that the criticisms have done us good.
Ignazio….
Can I do too, a criticism of you?
Piero…
Ah, tell me…
Ignazio
You interrupted me. I was about to tell the final. I can continue?
In short, the final evening arrives, February 14th. I realize from the shirt that in a week we have eaten more than sung.
Unfortunately, or fortunately, I’m a boy who does not say cat if I do not have it in the bag, then until Carlo Conti said….
Piero….
And indeed, whoever wins does not know it until the end! Sorry, Igna Speak you!!!
Ignazio….
Until Carlo Conti said: ‘The winner of the Sanremo Festival 2015 is … Il Volo!,’ I said to the boys: ‘No, guys, we do not win, it’s difficult.’ And on the one hand I had Piero with shining eyes and on the other Gianluca with a smug smile as if to say: ‘Do not worry.’
Gianluca….
The truth is that I was right from the beginning, and no one has ever listened to me, ever. I believed it so much that, if you notice, maybe I’m the one with the least surprised look when Carlo Conti announces the winner. Then, of those moments, one remembers little, there is great confusion, emotion. It was a dream to be able to shout ‘Thank you, Italy!’ from that stage. I looked at Sanremo as a child when there was Pippo Baudo, and I was there and won because people were on our side and it was a dream, I repeat even if I have already said.
The emotion was only when my grandfather told me almost in tears: ‘Who would have told me that in life I saw Modugno win at the Festival and then I saw you win.’
In short, Sanremo was just a dream that brought us many different emotions.
You have to admit that is the most incredible story! Every time I read it I find something else about it that amazes me. These three men proved you have to go after your dreams. This dream was different because it was not a dream that in the end would make them superstars; they already were superstars! Their dream was to follow their hearts and win the hearts of the people of Italy. That was the dream! It was the dream that would make absolutely no difference in their lives except for being close to the people they loved. So they ran with it and started Chasing the Lion until they caught him on February 14, 2015! That night they brought the Lion home along with the hearts of the Italian people.
The other thing that makes the story incredible is that they did it on their own without the support of the press.
Today things are really good for them in Italy. They have come into their own and much of the press is out there supporting them. As to the others, for the life of me I will never understand what they could possibly dislike about three amazing teenagers who won fame on the stage of Ti Lascio una Canzone.
They traveled around the world and won the hearts of every nation and then risking the possible of losing Italy forever, they took a big chance and finally won the hearts of the Italian people.
Welcome, guys, to Italy, your life, your home! No one is better than you guys! The Italians were always there for you; you just didn’t know it! And they will be there for you for the 74th edition of Sanremo! I can’t wait to hear the song! I have some idea about who it should come from, but I’ll keep it to myself for now! We are all cheering for you! As for me, you already won!
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure!
Next we week we go back to our story and pick up Ignazio’s story and follow him down the road where he meets his fate.
For your listening pleasure and staying with 2014, I give you The concert at Taormina!
*What I have written here are excerpts from the book the guys wrote about their lives. “Il Volo, Un’avventura Straordinario, La Nostra Storia.” (An Extraordinary Adventure, Our Story) This is just a small piece of each mans’ story. The book is written in Italian. If you can read Italian, I would highly recommend that you read it. It’s wonderful! If not, I can only hope that someday it will be translated into English. Or you can use Google Translate to translate it.
I also recommend you read their second book “IL Volo: Quello Che Porto Nel Cuore” (What I Carry in My Heart)
Just in time for Christmas, the guys released a new EP 4Xmas Amazing Grace, O Tannenbaum, Feliz Navidad and Happy Xmas (the War is Over) order yours now on Spotify, Amazon, etc.
If you would like to share a story with me, please email: susan.flightcrew@yahoo.com
To read more Il Volo stories visit us at www.ilvoloflightcrw.com and don’t forget to visit the Archives.
When we last saw Piero he was in the Choir of the Little Singers of the Philharmonic Association – Santa Cecilia of Agrigento. The time came for the change of voice, as happens with teenage boys, and this meant new decisions had to be made. All agreed his voice needed to be preserved so he had to step out of the choir. Rather than remain idle, Piero accepted singing engagements such as weddings where he would sing the Ave Maria and earn one hundred euro. He saved this money and when his mother needed something for the house he would say, “Here mom use this!” He learned the value of the dollar or should I say the euro at a young age and saved all his earnings. Piero’s always been a smart man when it comes to money. Just ask Ignazio and Gianluca. He handles their accounts. Or at least he used to!
Getting back to the story, when the change of voice finally happened, Piero moved on in his life. One way to move forward was to enter competitions. Piero, in fact, participated in many singing competitions and won most.
Piero has a funny way of describing the competitions. Let’s listen to him describe it….
And then there were the cups. In Sicily when you win a festival, they give you huge cups, two meters by four, heavy, bigger than you.
Okay, let’s stop for a minute! If the size is 2 meters by 4 meters, that would mean the trophy was 6 ½ feet by 13 feet. I hope he brought along a truck to carry them home!
Piero continues….
But how did I start to perform at regional festivals? With the school! And here a great chapter opens up. In elementary school there were no music classes. So, I looked forward to middle school where there would be music lessons. On the first day of middle school professor Nisi called everyone in alphabetical order and made everyone sing. Our teacher wasn’t from Naro, so she didn’t know me. She had no idea I was a singer. I really wasn’t looking forward to the first hour of music and getting up and singing. I was the second on the list. The professor calls “Baldacchino” and Baldacchino sings. Then she calls “Barone” and I sing Un Amore Così Grande, my battle horse from that afternoon under the carob tree in the garden of Riolo. In practice, from there I started, and I never stopped: with the schools there were musical reviews, and the music teacher brought me to make them all. I did the first Valledolmo festival singing Un Amore Così Grande again, and I finished third. I remember it like it was yesterday: I with a tuxedo, all classic, pulled. After Valledolmo I went to Vallelunga, I won that festival and from then on, I won them all. Three years of middle school, three years of regional music festivals. Until it has arrived, the change of voice, between thirteen and fourteen and a half years.
So, what happened? When I resumed singing, I was in high school, an accounting school, and there’s no music, no music teacher and no festival. But is it possible that I could quit like that, to participate in festivals? My father took the situation into hand, and I started again. I won them all. One summer I took part in six festivals, and I won all six. I sang La Voce Del Silenzio and Un Amore Così Grande, I arrived and all the guys who saw me already knew that I would ruin their evening. I had a lot of fun, I accumulated cups – always two meters by four – and I was more and more convinced that if there was one thing I wanted to do in life, it was singing, Living For and With Music.
The festivals were wonderful, but Piero needed more. He needed to decide where his future lies. So first he needed to decide where he would go with that magnificent voice. It was already obvious that his voice was an opera singer’s voice but that is a difficult path to take. And the road is usually lined with many disappointments! But decisions had to be made and now was the time to make those decisions. What did Piero do? Let’s get back to his story to learn how he moved forward….
If I have to tell the truth, my project was to become a tenor and a singing teacher. Many opera singers have this double life because, unless you reach certain levels, you cannot live by singing alone.
I always thought I would sing alone for the rest of my life. I imagined myself a tenor divided between theater and teaching. But before I got there the road was very long, and it was in the strict sense of the word. I went from Naro to Vittoria, where there was the master who had advised me to go to the teacher Bavaglio in Palermo. There was a two-hour drive in the first leg and as many in the return.
Having to travel to sing was not new to me, indeed for us, because I always traveled with dad.
Every Saturday my father took me to Agrigento to the rehearsals of the choir of Santa Cecilia, those afternoons were so beautiful. He sacrificed those afternoons he could have spent at the bar playing cards with his friends and he took me to Agrigento, a fifteen – twenty-minute drive from Naro.
I remember that we were following Series B because the time of the matches was the same as the choir rehearsals, from 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm, so I went to sing, and my father listened to the radio.
On the return of from Agrigento to Naro, we commented on the results and in the meantime we stopped at the Eurospin to do the shopping, at the shopping center ‘The swallows’ of Porto Empedocle, and we did shopping, but not clothes, no! We were buying ham and food for the whole week. We came home with these three-meter receipts, and I was so happy. Going to Vittoria was a different matter. Yet when the teacher told me: ‘You must study in Vittoria,’ my father answered only: ‘Okay’ and changed the car to travel more comfortably.
At the first lesson we get to Vittoria, and I go to this baritone, all excited, and he makes me do the vocalizations and comments: ‘I expected more from you as the master Bavaglio spoke about it.’ I was really demoralized. But the goal was there, I wanted music to become my life and so, despite the disappointment, for four or five months I kept going to him. In the meantime, I continued my piano lessons. My first master Stefano Tesè could no longer come to Naro and had sent me to Canicattì from the master Pietro la Greca. He was young and good, I felt like I was with my contemporary and I was more motivated to study. Sometimes, since my father worked, my cousin Giuseppe took me to the teacher La Greca.
Before the baritone of Vittoria, for about two or three months, I had studied with a soprano from Caltanissetta. It was at that time that Giuseppe had begun to accompany me to singing lessons, when dad could not. So, my cousin took me to the teacher La Greca and on the way back I was given a ride by a boy from Naro who was studying the next hour after me. I waited for him to finish, and we would go home with his father.
So, it seems a plan is in place. Piero is traveling to his singing lessons. And it’s all going well and then one day everything changed….
What happens one day? Usually, as the boy who gave me a passage lived near my paternal grandmother, he always left me with him, where my father came to pick me up when he finished work. Only that evening my father was already at my grandmother’s and was talking on the phone.
“Who was that, dad?” Was the first thing I asked him when he finished speaking.
“Wait, let’s go home and I’ll tell you.”
It was strange that he was so mysterious with me, but I always trusted him blindly and if he said ‘after’ he meant that it was okay. I was curious, for sure, but I waited calmly. We finished dinner, and daddy keeps his promise and tells me: ‘On the phone was a lady, a certain Isabella Abiuso. She is part of the casting of Ti Lascio Una Canzone and she got your name from the Tour Music Fest.’
Now things are about to happen but wait, it was almost a missed chance! Piero almost walked away from his future. He was tired, he wanted to stop the competitions. But let me let Piero explain what happened. He tells it much better than I do….
Stop all and take a step back: what is the Tour Music Fest? It’s a festival that I did not want to do. It’s not that I was undecided, I wanted to think about it. No, I did not want to do it just because I won all these festivals, and I was a little tired. Yet it is a great European festival dedicated to emerging music born in 2003. It has several stages, runs throughout Italy and not just singers, but also bands and musicians participated.
The stage closest to us was that of Cosenza. ‘I have to drive,’ Dad had told me. ‘We have a comfortable car, you sleep, and we go, you do not even notice.’ Twenty-four hours to do Naro-Cosenza, Cosenza-Naro. We arrive there, I sing, and they do not give me more news. And they gave it to someone else.
But it doesn’t end there….
Isabella Abiuso, one of the talent scouts who selected children for the broadcast of Ti Lascio una Canzone, called the editors of the festival and asked for a name to try, someone interesting for that kind of television program. The organizers of the Tour Music Fest tell her, ‘Mrs. Abiuso, here there is nothing that we can give, apart from a certain Piero Barone, which for us has not gone well because it is not the kind of music that we deal with, but he certainly has an innate talent.’ I was not sixteen yet, it was November 2008. ‘Dad’ I immediately said, ‘this Ti Lascio Una Canzone, I’d like to do it. Let’s try, why not?’
The first edition of the show was very successful and the second was aired from April 4th to May 30th, 2009, every Saturday evening for a total of nine episodes. The director would once again be Roberto Cenci, as in the first edition, produced by Ballandi Multimedia, and the management would have always been entrusted to Antonella Clerici. My father thought about it and said: ‘Wait, let’s talk with the maestro to Vittoria.’
‘You are crazy,’ was the teacher’s answer. ‘You ruin him with these things because television takes the boys’ heads, it spoils the future.’
Possible? Before I was not good enough and now I could not do the audition because I could ruin the future? My father did not see this anymore. ‘No, I have to make him do it.’ But if you ask my father what he remembers about that audition, he certainly will not tell you about the master of Vittoria, but the first answer will be a number: 1280. These are the euros that he spent to buy two or three complete clothes in a very nice Naro store, because as a good Sicilian he said, ‘How? I do I bring my son to an audition at RAI, I have to make a good impression, no?’ I felt like a king with those clothes.
One thing we know, Piero can dance!
So, there you have it! Piero dressed like a king is on the road to via dei Gracchi where he will meet his destiny. His desire to Live For and With Music will be fulfilled but first, he must be accepted.
Next time we meet Piero at via dei Gracchi where he will come up against hundreds of young people looking for stardom. We know for sure he will be on a collision course with Ignazio and Gianluca but let’s not get ahead of ourselves. We still need to get Ignazio and Gianluca into the mix.
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure!
Next week we witness Ignazio almost miss his opportunity at fame.
*What I have written here are excerpts from the book the guys wrote about their lives. “Il Volo, Un’avventura Straordinario, La Nostra Storia.” (An Extraordinary Adventure, Our Story) This is just a small piece of each mans’ story. The book is written in Italian. If you can read Italian, I would highly recommend that you read it. It’s wonderful! If not, I can only hope that someday it will be translated into English. Or you can use Google Translate to translate it.
I also recommend you read their second book “IL Volo: Quello Che Porto Nel Cuore” (What I Carry in My Heart).
Just in time for Christmas, a new EP release 4Xmas Amazing Grace, O Tannenbaum, Feliz Navidad and Happy Xmas (the War is Over) order yours on Spotify, Amazon, all media.
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