Tag Archives: Dubai
DUBAI and COLOGNE by Daniela
On 11 December, as we all know, Il Volo was in Dubai during EXPO 2020, postponed to this year due to Covid.
Il Volo was a guest in the Italian pavilion, and performed a free concert, was invited to worthily represent Italy and Italian bel canto. Really a great honor.
In the afternoon there was a short press conference of which I will translate the part relating to Il Volo.
At the beginning, at the microphone is the Undersecretary of the Italian Culture Ministry, Lucia Bergonzoni.
LB = I want to leave the word to the guys of IL Volo, who tonight will be the great guests I really cared about, because I think they bring the Italian spirit to the world, and are truly the example of Italy and of the young people that we want.
P + I + G = Good evening everyone.
MAN = As announced by Undersecretary Lucia Bergonzoni, tonight we have a very important concert and we have the three protagonists here.
All together they are called Il Volo, but they are Gianluca Ginoble, Piero Barone and Ignazio Boschetto.
I leave the floor to them, so they can also tell us how much beauty they brought here tonight, and what you will go around presenting to the world with your tour that you are preparing.
The word to you.
IGNAZIO = Thanks!
Over time, this Italian spirit has grown in us, we have learned to love our flag, to love our culture and traditions and what we have always done is to sing the melodies of our traditions, starting from the opera, which was born in Italy and we, as young boys, try to bring it to the younger generations, to make known to the whole world, to the whole new generation, our culture, our Italian tradition.
PIERO = Tonight we are honored to sing and attend this event.
We will sing the songs that are part of our culture, of bel canto, from O Sole Mio, to Nessun Dorma, our song Grande Amore.
Soon after we will continue with a world tour, clearly we are coming out of a very difficult period, it is still a slow road, but we are proactive and therefore we are really happy to be back on stage.
We will be touring the songs from our new album which is a tribute to maestro Morricone, who is also an Italian patrimony, so we are truly honored. Thanks to Undersecretary Lucia Bergonzoni for thinking of us, and we are really happy to be here.
GIANLUCA = Yes, because at our age, we feel even more privileged to represent our country with our voices, in such an important event, the most awaited of the year, unfortunately it has been postponed due to Covid, (in fact it is Expo 2020). It is a difficult moment but this unites us, as music unites, so we hope with our voices to bring to life a moment of positivity but at the same time of liberation, a moment of joy for everyone, singing, as Ignazio and Piero said, the melodies of our culture.
We follow in the footsteps of the greats, like Luciano Pavarotti, who really brought this music, bel canto, out of theaters, breaking all barriers. So we too, humbly, try to bring this music to the new generations, it has always been our goal and always will be.
So thank you!
PIERO = Tonight there will be many young people on stage, congratulations for the idea of giving space to these two young talents, this is a great showcase for these two young talents, the guitarist and the violinist, therefore, when there is space for new talents, for art, we are always happy.
Thanks and see you later. (applause)
GIANLUCA = I just wanted to add that we are remembering, with a new repertoire, with a new recording project, the greatest composer in the history of Italian music, the great maestro Ennio Morricone. One year after his death, we celebrate him with a new project and we will also sing some songs from the repertoire of the most famous soundtracks. This tribute is called Il Volo sings Morricone.
MAN = In fact, I was approaching the microphones just to ask you this question.
We started this celebratory day that the ministry had it organized in Cinecittà (Cinecittà is the set of Italian studios where the best Italian films were shot), so we started talking about cinema, we close with bel canto, but the bel canto that returns to the cinema.
So my questions are:
“How did you come up with the idea of paying this tribute to Morricone?
Where will you take your project, and how will this tour take place?
What will this tribute be like, with which songs and in what way?”
PIERO = The idea to pay a tribute to maestro Ennio Morricone was born during one of the many meetings during the lockdown.
We used the time available, because during all these years, 13 years of career, time is our worst enemy, because we never have time to work well on the details of new projects.
We have dedicated two years to Ennio Morricone, in the recording studio, it is the first time that we pay him a tribute, with the support and trust of the whole Morricone family, starting with his wife Maria, whom we thank and his son Andrea Morricone, he too is a composer, his is the music of Nuovo Cinema Paradiso.
So it is an album with all the melodies of Ennio Morricone sung, and we will take it on tour, around the world, we will start in March, we will do RCMH and we will continue with another 100 concerts.
MAN = Congratulations on a nice idea, another example of Italy that goes around the world and makes itself proud, of Italian cinema that promotes all the beauty of Italy, the Italian industry, the made in Italy.
It is really a pleasure and an honor to have you here today (to Il Volo), I won’t let you talk too much because later you will have to use your voice for something a little more interesting.
IGNAZIO = I don’t want to add anything, I was listening.
(Lucia Bergonzoni returns)
LB = I want to thank all the people who worked to make today’s day work, even the commissioner of the pavilion and the many people who no one imagines, but who have to work for an event like this to work.
Now I call on the stage also Gibboni and Dalia (they are the violinist and the guitarist who won the competition with the highest marks), so we take a picture together.
IGNAZIO = Of course!
Final thanks.
And here is Il Volo with Lucia Bergonzoni.
And now, some photos during the concert:
Relaxing moment
Unfortunately, even if there was a link for the streaming connection to follow the concert, this did not work and there are only a few clips from the concert, grouped here in this video.
But also on 11 December, Il Volo was also a guest in a very nice and hilarious broadcast in Colonia (German), on the television channel ORF1.
It is a television quiz, by title “Quiz Ohne Grenzen”.
Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca, after singing The Ecstasy of Gold, had to perform live and without a backing track, some very famous songs in certain films (avoiding to sing the refrain) and the two competitors had to guess the title of the film.
Really fun and our boys have lent themselves with skill and sympathy to this beautiful game.
You can try to guess the titles too, I did it!!
Of course this quiz was previously recorded, because, as we all know very well, Il Volo was present live in Dubai!!
Click on photo below to view the quiz show video.
Therefore, on the same day, I felt proud to be represented in such an important event as EXPO 2020 by Il Volo and at the same time I admired them and laughed in the TV Quiz in Cologne (Germany).
Of course, the name Il Volo is very apt, in a moment Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca “flew” from Germany to the Arab Emirates, what spinning tops, what men!!
Daniela
Credit to owners of all photos and videos.
PROMOTION AND GUESTS by Daniela
Gianluca, Ignazio and Piero are doing a lot of promotion to their latest CD and therefore, there are many appointments and many interviews, unfortunately I cannot keep up with these rhythms, but, as you may well know, many things are repeated and therefore, of each new event, I try to give you a brief summary, translating the interesting parts instead.
The last event where they were guests, which I translated for you, was Radio Italia live, but, again on Radio Italia, they also had another interview entitled “A tu per tu” (Face to Face). Some questions are the same, but they also said some interesting things that I translate for you:
It begins with greetings to the listeners of Radio Italia.
(In the video, from time to time you will see glimpses of Il Volo singing, they are clippings of others hosted at Radio Italia.)
Piero talks about the Morricone project.
Gianluca talks about the tour and says they will sing, in addition to Morricone’s new songs, also the songs of their success over the years.
He says it’s wonderful to travel the world and have the affection of the audience every night, he says they are privileged.
Piero says they are preparing themselves with singing lessons, healthy eating, and body workouts.
Ignazio says that it is not easy to prepare the suitcase for a world tour because in some countries it is hot, in others it is cold, so they will have big suitcases, if it were possible to bring a walk-in closet it would be better.
Gianluca confirmed that they have an archive of unreleased songs and are waiting for the right moment to publish them.
The project of the Three Tenors and this of Morricone, serve to consolidate their career, then, later on, he lets it be understood that they will release an album of their own of unreleased tracks. They are working hard for it.
Piero talks about the collaboration with the various artists on Morricone’s record.
Gianluca says that Piero is single and that he and Ignazio are engaged.
Ignazio admits that it’s good to be in love.
The day after Il Volo was a guest on two other radio stations.
Let’s start with Radio 2 Social Club.
(Click on the photo below to view the video.)
It’s a very nice interview, the two radio hosts are Luca Barbarossa (with the blue shirt) and Andrea Perroni, they both are very good friends of our boys.
At the beginning, in the “off the air” Gianluca and Ignazio arrive and say that Piero is in the bathroom!! 😁
Luca then marks Gianluca behind him saying he is engaged! Then they make fun of Ignazio because he has a coat and it is hot in the studio, but Ignazio says that he is an elegant person and always dresses like this!! 😁
Piero says they just got back from Madrid where they promoted the CD.
On stage, they talk about the Morricone project and then sing Se Telefonando.
Luca makes a lot of compliments for the voices of the boys, then says that they are promoting the CD all over the world and therefore they will ask them some technical questions and the first is: “Which one of you is engaged?” 😁😁😁
Then Luca asks how they will do with their distant girlfriends while they are on tour and Gianluca replies that sometimes they will take them with them every now and then. Then Luca says “They are not hand luggage !!” 😁😁
Gianluca apologizes, he could have expressed himself better.
Luca confirms that Gianluca’s girlfriend is Eleonora Storaro and asks Gianluca if he is happy to talk about her and he replies that she is and then tells Luca: “But you like to gossip” 😁
So they talk a little about tennis with Ignazio and Piero and also about football with Gianluca.
Luca asks where they will sing in the US and they also reply RCMH, so Luca remembers that an Italian journalist had said that Il Volo performed in the world but only in pizzerias.😑
Piero replies that they laugh at these criticisms.
PIERO: “A criticism made with intelligence is constructive and important. In these 13 years, those who have written badly about us, those who have offended us, then got to know us and changed their minds, in the end we cannot like everyone.”
Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca perform SE from Nuovo Cinema Paradiso.
Luca asks about their success in Japan and Piero explains that luck would have it that a very famous ice skater performed his exercise on one of their songs: Starry Night and from here many emails of requests from Japan arrived.
Gianluca also explains the collaboration with Vittorio Storaro and Luca, reiterates that Il Volo worked with many famous people, such as Placido Domingo, with whom they recorded a beautiful song: Il Canto which was written by Luca Barbarossa!!! 😁😁
Thanks and final greetings.
On the same day, Il Volo was also on Radio 1.
They are housed in a studio adjacent to that of the two presenters.
They begin by remembering the 13-year career.
They thank Torpedine and talk a lot about the new Morricone project. (They all repeat things that have been said several times).
Ecstasy of Gold is broadcast (while in the video there is silence).
They continue to talk about Morricone and his music, how they chose the songs, how they thought of interpreting them and the responsibility they feel when they start such an important project.
They talk about Bel Canto and the pride they feel carrying this type of music around the world, especially now after the obligatory stop.
Final greetings.
So Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca participated in an online interview, with Marco Montemagno in connection from Brighton, Ignazio from Bologna, Gianluca from Rome and Piero does not say it but I believe from Naro.
Piero says he had to put five books under the PC otherwise the shot was not good and then Ignazio teases him because he says he looks like he is in the office.
They talk about the 100 concerts and Marco says it is a very heavy commitment and asks if they will also go to Brighton.
Gianluca recalls that in this period of Covid, Il Volo was also present at conferences, to give voice to those categories of the show that have had such a long stop.
Marco asks if they will go to England and Gianluca replies that they have tried to enter the English market, have promoted and have also sung at the Palladium and also at the Royal Music All, but then they have given priority to other places and admits that they should return to England.
Piero asks Marco how many years he has lived in Brighton and he replies 9 years old, he married an Englishwoman, so they chose to live in England, but he is very happy.
When asked which are the markets of Il Volo, Ignazio replies that they are America, South America, Eastern Europe, Russia, Japan, it is a musical genre that manages to take more different cultures, fortunately.
Piero explains about their first meeting and the fact that they just didn’t think they had this great success.
At the beginning it was quite easy, even if they were not known in Italy, in 2015 they participate in Sanremo and since then they have also been known in Italy and for them, meeting people on the street who recognize you and smile at you, is the most satisfying thing.
Gianluca confirms that each audience has a different treatment. Each country has a kind of audience, warmer, more attentive, more exaggerated and it is nice to discover different traditions and different attitudes.
Piero says that Europe is complicated, because each state has very different cultures and every night, during the first 3/4 songs, they have to understand what kind of audience they have.
Ignazio confirms that for their type of musical genre, England has always been a little more difficult market than other countries.
Then they talk about the physical preparation for such a long tour and Piero explains that they have to take singing lessons to make sure that the voice is always at the same level throughout the tour and Ignazio explains that the vocal cords are like rubber bands and must always be held trained to avoid breakage.
Marco asks, in addition to the most obvious figures in the tour (management), what is the key figure that is needed for a tour like theirs and the boys answer that he is definitely the person who arrives first in the morning on the stage and who leaves for last in the evening, he is the backliner, he takes care of following all the details, even the water in the backstage, and the bread they need to clear their throat. His name is Alessio Guerrieri and he is in great demand in his field.
Marco says he is a ping pong enthusiast and Ignazio approaches his face, to show a small scar on his left eye and tells that while they were playing ping pong in Turkey where they had gone for a private event, Gianluca with whom he was playing as a couple gave him the ping pong paddle over his eye.
Gianluca is sorry about what happened, he says it looked like a crime scene, with a lot of blood.
Ignazio says that a medical guard comes and says that there is a need to go to the hospital to put stitches but Ignazio refuses, because it was during the Covid period and therefore they made a very noticeable bandage around his head and it is returned to Italy like this. (Remember, Ignazio wore a patch over his eye and we didn’t know why, now we know.) 😘
Gianluca is very sorry, but he says that Ignazio has improved since he received the blow, and therefore perhaps he will give him another one.😁
Then they talk at length about the Morricone project.
Marco asks how they manage personal relationships between them.
Piero says they didn’t know each other, at first there were also tantrums and tensions, then they learned to have tolerance, they don’t argue, they always look for a meeting point. They have three different roles in the management of Il Volo, they have a lot of understanding and they get along very well.
They are aware that when they make mistakes they apologize, and for Piero, apologizing is a noble way of being a man.❤
Ignazio adds that they have also learned to have gratitude, to be aware of being grateful, to something, to someone.❤
Marco asks if their popularity has been strong from the start or if they have had strange moments.
Gianluca admits that it was a slow process, at the first copy-signing there were four people in Rome, immediately after their participation in the Ti Lascio Una Canzone program.😁
Piero laughs, remembering that the people of their team went to them saying: “Excuse me, will you sign the CD?”😁 Gianluca says they made fun of them!!😁
But things change with time, and there was also the risk of being meteors.
For this reason we have always remained humble and our families have been very important to us.
Piero asks Marco what he thought when they asked him to do an interview at Il Volo (which he obviously didn’t know) and he replies that he was happy, because he never followed them directly for their type of music, but he has always admired their great success, in particular he greatly admires those who are successful outside Italy and he has always had admiration for them, because they have shown that they are not a meteor.
Ignazio confirms that what they do is extremely difficult, it is not an immediate musical genre, it does not go on the radio, streaming or in commercials, where you have more chances to make it known. It takes a lot of perseverance, dedication, work and it is very demanding. There have been times where they’ve had to swallow and work hard, but it’s nice when you don’t go the easy way of what others do and keep your personality, and they’ve always been consistent with who they are. They are this and who follows them, follows them for what they do.❤
Gianluca admits that they have a loyal audience. Their fans are very fond of them, because they have seen them grow.
It is like a big family.😘
So they talk about Il Divo which is a musical group similar to Il Volo, they are not Italian but they sing in Italian. In Italy everyone wants to sing in English, while abroad Italian singing is very welcome.
They confirm that The Three Tenors took the opera out of the theaters.
Marco asks how, after the fiftieth concert, they manage to maintain the freshness of the first one and Piero replies that you must love what you do, then you must always be aware that the people in front of you have come for you, and even if they were 10 people they deserve the best from you.
They then confirm that their audience is transversal, from children to grandparents.
Marco asks if they had any unforeseen events during the concerts and Piero says that in Budapest, after the twelfth song (usually 25 songs) his voice went away. They suspended the concert for 20 minutes. Total panic, they called his voice teacher on video and after 20 minutes the voice came back and they finished the concert.
Ignazio also tells a similar story and says that they sing completely live, while they know that other singers also have pre-recorded songs.
Piero confirms that fortunately there are three of them and a glance is enough for them to understand if something is wrong and therefore one of the three plays the part of someone who is not well, there is a great mutual help.❤
Then, laughing, they remember singing the refrain of “Tous le visages de l’ amour” over and over in Switzerland, because they couldn’t remember the words.😁
Piero also remembers when in Taormina during a concert, he teased Ignazio because his favorite football team was losing the game for 4 goal at that moment and Ignazio was angry😁
Then they say that on stage they move with awareness that they must occupy the whole scene.
Piero explains that before a tour there is a long work of patience, to plan all the trips, everything must be accurate and before, when they were younger, there were people who did it, now even the three of them take part in this.
Marco asks which are the strangest characters they have met and Piero explains that the strangest moments they had in 2010, when their little ones, were invited to Jimmy Iovine’s parties in America where there were so many famous people, an incredible time.
So they talk for a long time about the various television series.
In the end, Gianluca hints that they are thinking of making a documentary, perhaps about their life? Who knows!
Good luck from Marco and final greetings.
Furthermore, on Saturday 4 December Il Volo was a guest on Canale 5 in a new program: UA, conducted by Claudio Baglioni (He presented Sanremo in 2019).
Here is the video of their moment.
(Click on the photo below to view the video.)
I have tried to give you an overview of some of the events in which Il Volo attended, but there are many others.
Some things that I have translated to you are really interesting and some very nice, these young men never cease to amaze us.❤
As I write to you, I am waiting for a television interview with them.
The event that was supposed to take place in Austria has been canceled due to Covid, but on 11 December there will be a short Il Volo concert in Dubai and it will be possible to follow it in streaming at this link:
https://virtualexpodubai.com/
Here’s the announcement:
By popular demand, IL VOLO will give its first concert at the Millennium Amphitheater in Dubai 5 years after their first performance at the 2016 Globe Soccer Awards. “Il Volo Live in Concert” will be a once in a lifetime event where Piero Barone, Gianluca Ginoble and Ignazio Boschetto will rebuild their careers bringing the best of their repertoire to the stage: from the traditional Italian “bel canto” like the iconic song “‘O Sole Mio”, to evergreen American songs like “My Way”, from the single “Grande Amore” with which they won the 2015 edition of the Sanremo Song Festival at the famous Turandot aria “Nessun dorma”. The repertoire will include pieces from their latest album “Il Volo sings Morricone”, a passionate journey into the art of one of the greatest composers of the 20th century. A playlist structured as a “best of” contains the careers of three unique voices who have crossed national borders, selling millions of records and making their way onto the international top hits lists.
(Ministry of Culture Special Project, produced by Cinecittà, supporting partner D&G)
But there is still a little final pearl, what about these beautiful photos of our boys in Times Square in NY?
What can I say: incredible!!!!
But that’s not all, see you next update!
Daniela
Credit to owners of all photos and videos.
Dubai Globe Soccer Awards ~ Lydka’s Links
Drum roll please…Introducing ...LYDKA! OK, everyone already knows Lydka, and the videos she entertains us with mostly in comments, but what you don’t know is that she is starting her very own regular column . Her new column will include the videos she normally provides us plus photos and more news of the fellows who brought us all together in the first place. So here’s her first. If you have to ask who the three angels are, (which will be her logo) you have arrived at the wrong website.~ Marie
Lydka’s Links
On December 27, 2016 the guys were performing during the “Dubai Globe Soccer Awards”. The 7th Edition of the Globe Soccer Awards was in the magnificent Madinat Jumeirah resort ,in which were rewarded players, coaches, referees and soccer teams. Il Volo sang Nessun dorma and Grande Amore.
Here is official website: https://www.globesoccer.com/
Italian article “Al via a Dubai il Globe Soccer con Infantino e Maradona”
Monday, December 26, 2016 – 24:15
Kicks off in Dubai with the Globe Soccer Infantino and Maradona
http://www.lapresse.it/al-via-a-dubai-il-globe-soccer-con-infantino-e-maradona.html
Grande Amore
Nessun Dorma
Photos
For more photos go to: https://www.facebook.com/pg/voloorgoglioitaliano/photos/?tab=album&album_id=1560904790593251
Thank You, Lydka, we welcome your new column!