SARETTO = My friends, he was abstinent from slushes, now he has come for a few hours and ate…..
PIERO= For a few minutes…. how many are 8?
SARETTO= I think it’s 7 or 8 granitas.
PIERO= 8 and a brioche.
SARETTO= Bye guys!
I was wondering why, maybe there was something we didn’t know anything about or was it just a quick trip back to Sicily?
In fact there was also a specific reason, a prize awarded to Piero.
On July 10, Piero collected the Ignazio Buttitta special prize, which is a prize for a literary competition, but as a special prize, it is also recognized for those who spread Sicilian art and culture.
It is an award established by the province of Agrigento, of which Piero belongs.
And here is the video of the award delivery and the motivation.
MOTIVATION = Pure singing talent, he gained international fame and popularity together with his travel companions : Il Volo.
In his short but intense career he has performed on the most prestigious stages in the world and has undertaken collaborations with the people of the musical firmament.
His singing ductility allows him to face any repertoire, from the more properly bel canto one, to pop.
Strong musicality, desire to improve, mild and strong-willed character, in a perfect mix, make Piero Barone an extraordinary artist witness of the best Italian musical culture in the world, congratulations!!
Special Presidency Prize, Piero, you made truly extraordinary flights to be here tonight (evidently Piero managed to be present between one engagement and another).
PIERO= I did it willingly, good evening everyone. In recent years I have never taken any recognition for granted, I believe that every recognition, individual or collective, human, artistic, is always important. I’ve always thought that recognition ennobles success.
Back to Sicily, I’m going home.
Piero with a journalist.
Now I’ll update you on the free event in Ascoli Piceno with the translation of this beautiful article.
ASCOLI – The ticket office opened at 8 this morning. After 30 minutes the tickets were finished, and only the very long queue of those in possession of the precious “number” remained. Fans from out of town and even foreigners too. Some have spent the night in Piazza del Popolo in the loggias under the Palazzo dei Capitani. The countdown officially kicks off to attend the gift to the city of Battista Faraotti who celebrates the thirtieth anniversary of his Fainplast.
All lined up for “Il Volo”. This morning, Monday 10 July, at 8:00AM the distribution of tickets for the concert of the most famous trio in the world, scheduled for 21 July in Piazza del Popolo, began in Ascoli.
A free concert, a “gift” to the city of Battista Faraotti who is celebrating the thirtieth anniversary of his company, Fainplast.
As was widely expected, the ticket office in Piazza del Popolo was stormed. There are those who even lay in wait during the night to earn a front row seat, even sleeping in their sleeping bags close to the Palazzo dei Capitani. Many people, even not very young, queued shortly after dawn.
Many for hours under the scorching sun, including those who have come from outside the region and also several tourists. Two of them, Americans, managed to grab the ticket.
An man from Ascoli arrived very early in the square. There were already a few dozen people, and he then took the initiative to organize numbered slips of paper which he distributed to those present while waiting for the various procedures to begin: the arrival of the City workers with the barriers, the security, the Municipal Police and the State Police. All aimed at finally getting hold of the ticket.
The comings and goings of enthusiasts who don’t want to miss out on the most eagerly awaited event of the year are continuous, like a river in flood. Tickets sold out within half an hour. 600 tickets were distributed, considering that each person could take a maximum of two.
There are two women from Ascoli who managed to pocket the precious coupon. “For the love of Il Volo I’m here in the Piazza from 5:40AM, finally says Pacifico Mariotti, who arrives from Fabriano (province of Ancona).
“I’ve been here since 6:00AM, I come from Montalto Marche and I’m in the company of two friends from Offida,” says Rosanna di Silvestre.
Among the hundreds of people in line, also the city councilor for commerce and sport Nico Stallone. “I arrived in Piazza del Popolo at 6:30AM and I already had 200 people in front of me. A first group of 280 people was made, then another. I had the pleasure of meeting the first person who arrived tonight”.
On July 12, Ignazio posted a nice photo of Budapest, will he be there for a short vacation?
But before evening, Gianluca also publishes a photo of leaving for Budapest.
Instead Piero is with his family and publishes a photo with his brother and sister Mariagrazia who graduated.
But not even a day goes by and Piero has also flown to Budapest, what will there be? There is no event or concert at the moment.
Here is the mystery revealed, a press conference in Budapest for the new concert on October 9 at the Budapest Arena.
The Hungarian singer with whom they will collaborate is also present at the conference: Gabi Toth.
These are her words: Great honor for me that the world famous Italian opera singers pop trio formed a joint song.
Il Volo October 9 – I will perform in the Arena and the concert will be previewed. 🙏🏻
I look forward to working together as this is a new challenge and an exciting musical journey. 🙌
After the press conference a nice and long interview was published of which I translated the most interesting questions and omitted the part where he describes Il Volo from its beginnings to today.
QUESTION= Let’s go back to the beginning. How do you remember your childhood, was your talent already manifested then?
GIANLUCA: On behalf of all three of us I can say that we owe a lot of gratitude to our parents, who have believed in us from the beginning. I’m very happy because they always gave me the chance to show my talent and believed in me. I was never told what to do. This is the most important thing to support the emergence of the talent of a young man who is just trying to express himself. The main direction in my life was that I wanted to be a singer. It’s the one thing I’m good at that my parents recognized and helped me figure out who I really am.
QUESTION= Your career started in a talent show where you competed individually. What do you think of the current talent scouts?
GIANLUCA: Sometimes I have the feeling that the singers in the TV show are just part of a big machine. It’s not easy to find new talent every year or even every month, and only a very small percentage of them manage to unleash their talent. It’s like they sacrifice everything on the altar of quality. That’s why it’s very important that singers who want to be famous try to express themselves as much as possible. A strong personality is essential, which is not easy to find, but social networks and TV shows are also based on it. I think there are a lot of talented people in the world, they just do something different. It’s also important to be able to plan ahead, and talent is useless if you don’t know how to use it. Just getting bad advice from someone and you can already be lost. This is why many still do not know how to express themselves.
QUESTION= It has become obvious in the search for talent that opera is closest to you. Why did you choose this genre?
PIERO= Actually our genre isn’t even opera. The pieces we perform are all part of Italian culture, interpreted in recent years by singers such as Luciano Pavarotti and many others who have brought these compositions from the theater and brought them to the public. They are traditional songs known all over the world, and perhaps people confuse them with opera due to the powerful sounds, even if it is bel canto. To hear an opera you have to go to the theatre. However, our program does include some opera pieces, including La Traviata and Nessun Dorma. Whoever comes to the Budapest show will feel as if they were in Italy for one night, it will be a trip through the last 14 years. In addition to Italian sheet music, we have previously covered American compositions as well, including My Way. Our most characteristic song is Grande Amore, with which we had the opportunity to represent Italy at the Eurovision Song Contest in 2015.
QUESTION= You mentioned the Eurovision Song Contest. You took part in the competition in 2015, where you finished in third place. What memories do you have of this period?
PIERO= In Italy the only way to participate in the Eurovision Song Contest and represent the country is to win the most famous festival, the Sanremo Festival. Thanks to this, we also managed to enter the competition in 2015 with the song Grande Amore , as we won the festival with it. At that time, the Eurovision Song Contest in Italy was not as well known as it is now, but we have good memories of it. The passion with which every interpreter displays the flag of his nation. We had the best time of our lives then, because overall our only goal was to represent Italy, as we felt the love and support of our nation.
QUESTION = In 2021, another Italian band, Maneskin, won the competition. In the history of Eurovision, they managed to do it for the third time among Italians. Did it mean a lot to you that an Italian band finally won?
PIERO = We were happy that Italy could finally win and host the next Eurovision. In fact, we were invited as guests to Turin to perform that evening. We performed another English version of Grande Amore and believe me, seeing the Eurovision Song Contest in Italy gave a completely different feeling of freedom.
QUESTION= It’s already official that you will duet with the singer Gabi Tóth at the concert in Budapest, why was she chosen?
PIERO= It was introduced to us via Spotify, because when we travel to certain countries, we like to collaborate with artists there. We got to her with the help of an agency and we liked her. If only because a great experience connects us. She has also performed in front of Pope Francis which is quite amazing. When we first met, we had a chance to talk a bit and it became obvious what feelings drive all of us.
QUESTION = In 2021 you sang in honor of Ennio Morricone in a concert, and then you released an album in his memory. What did that composer mean to you?
PIERO= He has done a lot for our culture, he is an icon and we all grew up listening to his songs. While many people may not know at first when they hear a song that he composed, we’re also talking about an Oscar-winning artist. As Italians, we are very proud that he was also Italian, and we want to thank his family for believing in us for this project, as well as we are grateful for his melodies, which fill us with emotion when we hear them on stage.
QUESTION= Most singers and musicians have some sort of mission through music. What is your main motivation?
GIANLUCA= Next year we will celebrate our 15th anniversary and we have created a very strong show. In addition to songs belonging to our culture, we have already sung Smile by Charlie Chaplin with Barbra Streisand, among others, but currently our goal is to have our own repertoire and be able to sing for our generation as well. This is a very difficult challenge, but we strive to achieve it with our new songs. We are already thinking about the distant future and let’s imagine the next 15-20-30 years together.
QUESTION= Among the younger generation, music genres like r’n’b or pop are considered mainstream these days. How can you make them fall in love with bel canto?
GIANLUCA= We are young too and we love this music. We have different audiences in different parts of the world, for example in South America 80% of people belong to our generation. It all depends on the country we are talking about. In Japan and Europe, for example, we are mostly listened to by adults. The goal is to make good songs, because if we do that, people will listen to our music.
QUESTION = You have already proved yourself to Hungarian fans in 2018 and 2019. What is your experience with this audience?
GIANLUCA= Hungary was one of the first places we went after the Eurovision Song Contest. We were constantly on the road and playing concerts. It was very touching to see the arenas full even outside of Italy and to experience the love we received from the Hungarian audience.
QUESTION= As mentioned above, during your career you have performed duets with, among others, Barbara Streisand. Who else is left out of the line-up you would like to work with?
GIANLUCA= We never know who life will bring us together with, and we can also mix different musical genres. We have achieved so much in our career so far and now a new chapter begins as we want to bring our music to an even bigger audience. This is one of our goals.
QUESTION= Do you have other role models?
PIERO= Hans Zimmer, is one of the most brilliant composers.
QUESTION= Is there an artist whose career you would like to have?
IGNAZIO= Ourselves.
PIERO= There was a singer in Italy who was asked who he wanted to be, and he replied: myself, the best form of myself.
GIANLUCA= You have to reach your goals and dream big, but at the same time you have to recognize your limits. It wouldn’t be true if I said I wanted to be like Michael Jackson. You have to realize that you have to give yourself in life, you have to believe in yourself and, as Piero said: you have to be the best. If I only express 60 percent of my being with my music, I have to think about how to reach 100 percent. This is what we stand for.
And the second concert with POOH has also arrived, this time at the stadium in Rome.
Once again a good experience, they sang the same one song: Uomini Soli (lonely men).
At the beginning Ignazio says that he has studied the song well these days, otherwise Red gets angry.
Red replies laughing that Ignazio is a scoundrel, because in the afternoon during rehearsals he pretended to get the song wrong and Red really thought he was wrong. And Ignazio says he does it on purpose to make Red angry!! 😁😁
This beautiful photo was posted by Red (he has a red jacket), with these words:
“THOSE GOOD GUYS FROM IL VOLO –
They are like us, three different worlds, but which complement each other… they are kind and they are certainly very good. Singing with them was a real joy… and we also laughed and joked a lot… they are three little pests and Ignazio managed to deceive me, during rehearsals, by pretending to get the verse of Uomini Soli (lonely men) wrong and I fell for it like a pear tree… but there’s time… and I’ll do it again 🤣”
But there is yet another news, which Susan has already informed you about, it has been published that Il Volo will participate in the “match of the heart” a football match with a charity background, where the teams will be: Singers versus Artists.
And here is the promo video, to advertise the match.
It’s always a wonderful initiative, and with a very honorable goal, but I wonder how the guys will do, given that they have to be in Ascoli Piceno for the free concert the next day?
Let’s hope they let them play in the first half.
Lately they have been spinning like tops, they don’t have a moment of time for themselves and their families, in fact in this period there were also the birthdays of Ignazio’s mother and also of Gianluca’s father and Ignazio and Gianluca were in the company of their parents, just one day and that’s it, just like Piero just one day for his sister Mariagrazia’s feast.
The things they said in the interview in Hungary are really interesting, they are preparing big surprises for their 15-year career and different music that can also involve the youngest, but as Gianluca reiterated: “The goal is to make good songs, because if we do that, people will listen to our music.”
So don’t be afraid, Il Volo will not distort its nature, it will promote new beautiful music and of course it will always have its baggage of bel canto and opera that we all know well, I’m sure of it and I really hope they will succeed in their intent.❤
But July is not over yet and there are still many events, see you soon!!
And here is another of the events of this hot September that has arrived: the SEAT Music Awards.
Il Volo participated and received a special award.
Do you remember, during the press conference that Il Volo had before the concert in Verona, the mayor had said that Il Volo would be rewarded with a specially made statue, which represents a woman with the Arena on her head as a crown.
This award was presented to them last evening.
Rehearsals for the show began in the afternoon at the Verona Arena.
Here is a short video of the singing rehearsals.
Even if very short, you have certainly recognized Your Love. Too bad there will only be one song.
They were briefly interviewed by RAI Radio 2.
Click the photo below to view the video.
NEK = Here we are guys.
PIERO = Good evening gentlemen, welcome. (Piero pretends to be the one running the program) 😁
GIANLUCA = But it’s not you …..
NEK = You can’t steal the show ….
IGNAZIO = He had also prepared the sheet !! 😁
NEK = What should you have said ???
PIERO = (pretends to read) And now we have Il Volo, Arena of Verona special award ….
WOMAN = Guys, you were really, really good, when you were conducting (the concert), because you conducted in every sense, we have to say it, really in a very nice way, this is my opinion and I wanted to tell you ….
IGNAZIO + GIAN = Thank you
PIERO = Are you sure you have watched the whole program?
WOMAN = I watched it and I did all the live coverage on RAI2.
PIERO = OK
WOMAN = I was commenting on the live broadcast, so I followed it all.
PIERO = Thanks
WOMAN = Because you have kept the freshness of your years, if I may say my opinion.
IGNAZIO = Look, if you want I can tell you a little anecdote from that evening.
WOMAN = You’re welcome
IGNAZIO = We were preparing the show and, as is done in all TV shows, the spoken words were all written. The day before, during the dress rehearsal, we eliminated everything and said “let’s go free” (he means without reading the hunchback) , because it’s not us, we are three guys who like it ….☺😉
NEK = Therefore you should have read the hunchback ….
IGNAZIO = Yes, instead we only read the institutional things, and I also got them wrong ….
WOMAN = No, that’s not true, you did well
IGNAZIO = Like the Legambiente ad with the turtle Carella, Casella …
WOMAN = Caretta Caretta, he didn’t even learn it later …
GIANLUCA = Yes, he didn’t even learn it later (laughter)
IGNAZIO = So I screwed up, but we had fun.
WOMAN = This is very nice and above all it was nice to do it in that context, when you had “a giant” to deal with. (I think she means live RAI)
NEK = Now, what do you do ?? A trip around the world, always ??
IGNAZIO = Now we start in March of next year, finally with the concerts, we start from America, then there is all of Europe, Japan, New Zealand …. we have fun.
NEK = Ohhh, good luck then.
WOMAN = Guys, then have a good trip. What can I tell you now, have a good trip and a good concert.
GIANLUCA = Good flight, because we will take so many planes.
WOMAN = It is usually better not to say it (for superstition)
IGNAZIO = No, you can say it, we go against everything.
NEK = Bring me a present.
WOMAN = Thanks guys, thanks to Il Volo.
IGNAZIO = November 5th !!!
They were interviewed by Radio Italia(for now there is only the photo).
Before the evening!
GIANLUCA = Please, don’t miss the SEAT Music Awards tonight.
I’ll show you how beautiful the Arena is.
And here we are at the evening.
What thrills this song, what poignant memories it evokes. Always beautiful the execution by Gianluca, Piero and Ignazio.
The three of them, good, beautiful, dressed with informal elegance.
The response of the audience was very nice, slowly turning on the Arena with thousands of lights, a gesture that surprised even the boys.
Only one song, unfortunately, but what a song.
Here is the interview after the song.
GIANLUCA = Good evening everyone.
CARLO CONTI = Il Volo, to start these SEAT Music Awards in the best way.
VANESSA INCONTRADA = And what an atmosphere they (the audience) created for you, with all the mobile phones on, great emotion I saw in your faces.
GIANLUCA = We are happy to see you again.
VANESSA = Us too
CARLO = Us too, us too.
GIANLUCA = Finally in the Arena.
VANESSA = Finally, but it has now become your home.
CARLO = In short, I mean, you did an extraordinary event on RAI1 just dedicated as a tribute to Maestro Morricone.
PIERO = We had the honor of paying homage to Maestro Morricone here at the Arena di Verona, for us, the audience, for an artist, for a singer, it is oxygen.
It was an evening full of guests, but for us, the biggest guest was the audience.
After a year and a half, see them again, sing for them!
VANESSA = We understand these words well, but will you take this event to the world? I guess so.
IGNAZIO = Yes, we start in March 2022, we finally start with the world tour and we finish in September – October, from America, we end up in Japan and then New Zealand, so beautiful.
VANESSA = You have few things to do, let’s say. 😉
IGNAZIO = Yes, but it is wonderful, after almost two years, to start singing again.
I remember that a year ago, in this same program, we said …. let’s hope it starts again, the music can’t stop …. and meet again after a year and see that the music has never stopped, it’s beautiful! 😘❤
VANESSA = Seeing them (the audience), as you said, involved with you, is nice.
CONTI = A beautiful concert, a beautiful television event, but there is a tribute album to Ennio Morricone, when will this album be released?
GIANLUCA = Let’s say that it is a very ambitious project, that with great responsibility, right on tiptoe and a lot of humility, we decided to undertake this path which is a musical project that is a tribute to all the most beautiful soundtracks of the maestro Morricone.
PIERO = And tonight we announce the date.
GIANLUCA = Yes, because this record will be released on November 5th, from Cinema Paradiso, to Once Upon a Time in the West, to the Good, the Ugly, the Bad.
VANESSA = His greatest songs, let’s say. (of Morricone)
GIANLUCA = And we can’t wait to leave (to start the tour).
CARLO = Well a great album and therefore it will be released on November 5th.
The ARENA DI VERONA award, depicting a diva, a wonderful diva who has a crown on her head that has the shape of the Verona Arena, and was made by the sculptor Rudy Capatta, is delivered by two champions: Marco Giallini and Giorgio Panariello.
(after the greetings, Carlo Conti reads the inscription)
CARLO = I seriously read the inscription:
Arena di Verona Award at Il Volo, for the tribute project to Ennio Morricone, represented with great success right here at the Verona Arena, live on RAI1, and for the over 10 years of career, which led them to be known and appreciated representatives of Italian music in the world.
(final thanks)
Many beautiful photos:
Piero, Gianluca and Ignazio with the Arena award. ❤❤❤
But certainly and undoubtedly, this is the most beautiful photo. ❤
A gesture full of meaning, which we can all understand.
A direct line with those who are no longer there, a silent dedication.
The two friends who hold him close and a look up there.
Today is Ignazio’s turn. I found this video, shot immediately after the Sanremo victory. The entire city council and the whole city of Marsala gave a beautiful recognition to a very happy Ignazio and he does not lose his sense of humor.
Here is the translation:
(The crowd applauds and shouts IGNAZIO, IGNAZIO ……. Ignazio gets up and turns smiling, at that moment a girl’s voice shouts “Bravo my love!!”, everyone laughs.)
The city council expresses all the satisfaction of the city for the great goal achieved by the fellow citizen Ignazio Boschetto who, as a member of the trio IL VOLO, has won the 65th edition of the Sanremo Festival. (applause and again the girl’s voice “Bravo my love……..fantastic”).
And now, the proposal to appoint the fellow citizen Ignazio Boschetto as ambassador of the city of Marsala in the world. (much applause and ritual photos, the mayor tries to bring back the order but there is too much noise of the crowd and then Ignazio takes the situation in hand raising his voice ……. too nice)
IGNAZIO = Gentlemen, as it is an official session ……. (everyone laughs)
Man = The President Enzo Sturiano delivers the resolution to Ignazio Boschetto. (kisses and applause)
Let’s read the official prize:
“The city of Marsala, the gold medal to the civil value to Ignazio Boschetto, member of IL VOLO, ambassador of the city of Marsala in the world. The president of the City Council, Enzo Sturiano, city of Marsala, 18 February 2015”. ( photo and then the anthem of Italy sung by the whole crowd).
IGNAZIO = There would be many things to say, because it’s really unexpected, starting from a small city like Marsala and starting to study a little for fun, and then after 11 years, you’re ambassador of your city, so it’s really something inexplicable, it is also difficult to explain the emotion, but what I can say and that in recent years, sometimes I was also criticized by Marsala, people thought I was a haughty guy, who had found the opportunity to go on air to Rai1 and has become who knows what!!
What I have learned, and I do not want to be a teacher, is that before judging a person, one must know him. (applause).
The problem we have today is that many people judge immediately, instead of doing the actions, we all judge and say only words.
In fact here today, I came with a friend of mine, he came to my house. I unfortunately was not there, but then at home we talked about it, it’s this boy here . . . get up.
What’s your name?
Antonio Maniscalco?
Well, this guy is Italian boxing champion right? Lately I’ve heard people say that Marsala has recently forgotten about her talents and is only interested in me.
Instead I hope that Marsala is aware, even of these small but great realities, that they are like him in boxing and many other people in all sectors, because Marsala is full of talents.
What I wanted to tell you, is that I am the first who would like to have a friend ambassador in fact, I’m the first one who would like to share the emotions with another person, but I think that many people speak only to talk, and to get out the air from their mouth.
I wanted to say thank you, because in recent years I felt supported by Marsala, and, apart from the politics there is, with Enzo there is a great friendship.
I have always pulled back with regards to politics because in my position it is always better to avoid, but with Enzo there is a friendship that goes beyond politics, it is a beautiful person.
And then there are all of you here, I think that in the end there is always something that unites us, in this case THE MUSIC unites us all.
We may be acquaintances or friends, but in the end we are all the same, we are all in the same place, so sometimes I think there is no need to make any difference.
So I wanted to say thank you to all the inhabitants of Marsala and the city council. (applause, people shout Mayor you, Mayor you and Ignazio respond to them)
I would not run a city ….. I must be mayor of my life, first of all.
Thank you very much for this nomination, I am truly honored and I hope I will never disown this nomination, because it is really nice to be ambassadors of your city and I hope to always bring prestige to this city.
Man = You have the keys to the city.
(follows a hug, and then several short questions)
IGNAZIO = I think that in Marsala we have many beauties, there is the Stagnone (a reserve with natural landscapes, there are also salt pans), but I think that first of all the inhabitants of Marsala have to take care of it, because if all the inhabitants of Marsala will take care of all the things we have here it will increase tourism, it will increase the number of people who will come only for a weekend. So I think we are an important part of a new economic and tourist recovery in Marsala.
Touring a lot, you realize many things, when you go to Vancouver in Canada, you realize that there is not a cigarette on the ground, if we had the same efficiency of other countries…….. when I arrive in Marsala I wonder, “but you imagine, if everyone had respect for the city. “
Interviewer = I spoke with Mr. Tony Renis, he complained that none of the boys contacted him to announce the victory of Sanremo.
IGNAZIO = Obviously there is controversy. Like any relationship, over time …. when the glass breaks, it breaks. Critical aside, I do not want to think about it, we won Sanremo and it’s a nice emotion, and I want to enjoy it at the limit of everything, so I let it slip away.
IGNAZIO = Marsala has a population of warm people, when you come back to Marsala, you never feel alone, there is always the person who makes the joke, that makes you laugh, maybe, if you go to Milan and it’s a little more difficult to find people like that. But as I said before, maybe we should have more respect for our city, because we know that we have a beautiful city and we think only to exploit it but not to preserve it.
(At this point, Ignazio was asked for an opinion on political matters)
It’s something that does not belong to me. I have always said that I do not like giving preferences, however, I have a person here next to me that is very valid. I say only this, and in friendship I can say that I hope that all of Marsala will understand what this man can do, politically speaking, I’m for nobody.
Follow the images of the crowd outside the Town Hall, all sing Grande Amore with Ignazio, a woman imparts to him the wrong words and Ignazio scolds her and everyone laughs.
I believe that night all the citizens of Marsala felt proud of Ignazio. They filled the municipal hall and also the whole square in front of it.
How fun to hear the whole square that sang the verses of Grande Amore, which only a few days before had won Sanremo.
But the thing that struck me the most were the answers of Ignazio, clear and mature answers, of a serious, honest boy who does not want to obscure the success of other people.
This is simply Ignazio, one of the three jewels of IL VOLO.
On December 16th the Karkinos Prize was held in Agrigento, an award that is recognized to the excellence of the Agrigento area.
Piero is from Naro which is in the province of Agrigento. He is beingrecognized for the special prize for music.
Here is the translation of what was said:
“Special Award Karkinos 2017 for Music goes to Piero Barone”
(Piero is seated next to his mother, and a video clip shows Piero’s moments.)
The presenter says she is not used to all these people and all these flashes and thanks Piero for being there. Everyone knows the load of commitments that IL VOLO has and having Piero present is a greathonor.
She goes on to say that Piero was one of the first to arrive on that day and was present all the time. This makes it clear how much Piero is a correct person who is keeping this presence.
Piero is asked what effect this has to receive this award in his land.
Piero replies that he spent his childhood coming every Saturday afternoon from Naro with his dad to sing in the chorusof voices of S.Cecilia and that everything was born from there. Being recognized in his land is the most beautiful thing, gives him somuch satisfaction, and tonight sees so many faces he knows.
Yesterday evening he arrived from Mexico to attend this award.
Carmelo Cantone Carmelo is called to deliver the award. He says that Piero is an undisputed international star, and that it was for two months that it was uncertain because, ….. he comes, he does not come. The father of Piero helped by updating him on his travels. He was in Japan, then in Mexico when Carmelo asked Gaetano, “but when does he return?” Gaetano said “almost certainly” but this “almost” was not a certainty and then Gaetano sent him a message that yesterday he was at the airport to get Piero and Carmelo was finally reassured.
Piero continues by saying that he and Ignazio and Gianluca with Torpedine have founded a new record label to give space to youngtalents, and three of these are Sicilian.
Then talking about his land, Piero says that two weeks a year he has a summer rest. He passes this time in San Leone, in his land. He could go to the Maldives, but those who want to see him say to come to San Leone, in his Sicilia.
Another award is given to Piero, executed by a jeweler craftsman who makes jewelry dedicated to those who love Sicily and Piero as anambassador in the Sicilian world is an example. The jewel depicts a Trinacria (symbol of Sicily).
A floral tribute is then given to Piero and then the Karkinos prize with the following reasons:
“The Karkinos Prize Commission is pleased to award the special prize for music to Piero Barone for his planetary success in the field of music. Piero Barone, despite his very young age, with his important artistic achievements, has highlighted his land of origin all over the world with humility and pride. The love for his land and his passion for music have made it a masterly example to follow for the many talents of our territory. “
Piero receiving the award says that he is from Naro, was born in Naro, and always returns to Naro where there are many people who love him and these people with the mayor have dedicated a wing of the Castle ofNaro to him, as Piero Baron houseteca. At the beginning he thought “but I’m not dead, I do not want a museum” (everyone laughs) but the housetca has become a reference point for all the fans who follow him and there is a bulletin board dedicated to the prizes and this award will go there.
Piero then says that the success they achieved in Sanremo is not only due to them but to everyone’s affection and explains that he sees his work as that of any craftsman (shoemaker, coachbuilder), he explains that the fans are his clients and he could NEVER deny them an autograph or a photograph.
Then he says that Grande Amore was the song that consecrated themto the public and that he lives in Bologna because he undertook the study of opera for his personal satisfaction.
In the end Piero thanks the audience saying that he really loves everyone.
In what has to be the worst airing/tweeting of an event I’ve seen,
Il Volo took home the award for
“Duo o Grupo Favorito!!!”
While the category was not announced during the live broadcast, and Il Volo was not in attendance, it has been confirmed on the website.
I just have to say that it is a testament to their talent and who they are individually outside of the music business that they have won this award. It’s like I said during our Voting Blitz in the closing days of the voting period: We’re small, but mighty. We believe in them and support them wholeheartedly and showed that #ILVOLOVERSPOWER was enough. The devotion and dedication to our guys that has been on display has been amazing to see and even more so to be a part of. I hope they have felt completely loved over the past few weeks and especially tonight.
Ignazio, Piero and Gianluca, let me say it again:
Congratulations, and WE LOVE YOU!!!
~~Kelly
Come in and share the love of life, friends and Il Volo!
