Back in October 2020, the guys held a press conference with the Mayor of Rome and set the wheels in motion for a phenomenal project the Tribute to Ennio Morricone! As you know the event was supposed to take place in Piazza Pio XII in the shadow of St. Peter’s Basilica. Due to the pandemic the venue had to be changed and the one million people who might have attended the free concert, were disappointed but, as always, the guys came through and on June 5, 2021, they held the performance of a lifetime at the ancient Arena of Verona! Who will ever forget it!
So how did the year go by so fast? Let’s start at the beginning, the press conference!
This press conference was about a very ambitious project which included the genius of Il Volo and the music of Ennio Morricone. These four men have done extraordinary things in the music industry.
So, what did the guys have to say about this event?
Gianluca said:“The great maestro Morricone was a source of inspiration for us, we also got to know him and work with him, especially in the studio, when we were children of 14 and 15 years old and were recording our first album. It is a source of pride and, perhaps, I allow myself to say that he is the greatest composer of the twentieth century, so we know that this project, this tribute, requires a great responsibility.
We will work hard because this is also the way to bring our musical heritage around the world, but above all, our culture, because he has made millions of people dream all over the world with his soundtracks and of course our goal has always been to bring and be ambassadors of bel canto all over the world, but not with presumption, with great pride and with the desire to be able to make this music known even to the youngest.”
Piero said: “When we presented this project to other countries, North America, South America, Japan and many European countries, there was great enthusiasm on their part, because, as you well know, a couple of years ago we did a concert-event and the film was shown on American TV, and our goal is to convey Italian beauty with the music that surrounds us. In this event we are above all enthusiastic about the positive feedback from those who have collaborated, with Maestro Morricone, in recent years, such as the Sinfonietta Orchestra, which has always played with the Maestro, so we are talking to them. We are excited and delighted that there is this interest on their part.
Ignazio was asked “as your colleagues have already mentioned, in the past you have also had close relationships with the teacher.”
Ignazio said: Yes, they have already said everything but, I’ll put the icing on the cake… It was in 2011, when we had the luck, the pleasure and the honor of singing “E Piu Ti Penso” which is a song that was part of our first album. We sang in Piazza del Popolo, in Rome, and we have this beautiful memory… We were young and at our age we had the experience of sharing the stage with one of the greatest composers in history, with greater tranquility.
The Mayor of Rome, Virginia Raggi, welcomed the guys with these words:
“It is a special moment. Let me greet three guys who are internationally renowned, with extraordinary voices and who bring bel canto all over the world and allow traditions to be kept alive.
Today we present a great event that will take place on June 5th, 2021, a tribute to Ennio Morricone. It will be a free concert of the highest level, the beginning of a series of concerts, because we need fixed appointments that remind us of what we are able to do. This event is meant to be the beginning. It is a strong signal.
This is meant to be a tribute at a time when we need unity. Thanks to the guys and all those who are working on this great event.”
But it didn’t stop there, the guys let us know there was a great recording project in the works in conjunction with this event. Il Volo’s Tribute to Ennio Morricone.
And the guys had also let us know that as part of the event and the new album there would be a dedicated tour as soon as conditions allow it!
Bringing music back!
The guys worked endlessly to bring back the music industry. They started at the Seat Music Awards. It was the first time they were on stage since the beginning of the pandemic when they had to cancel their last three concerts and go home.
Let’s remember their message of hope that evening. Piero said: “Now, the world is getting ready to start again! Now the moment has arrived to raise the curtain! Now, we will turn on the music!”
This is the theme that reoccurred and, it will continue until music comes back to the arenas and stages around the world. The stages that are missing our guys and their wonderful concerts.
It says we may have to perform under these new world conditions, but we don’t have to change who we are or why we’re here. In the ancient Arena of Verona, they looked to the past while following the path to the future. From their first note the whole arena lit up. They were back! Music had returned to the Arena!
Since the guys left their homes after the quarantine, they have worked tirelessly to bring back the music industry. This was an enormous undertaking. The genius of these three young men has brought us to this place in history! It’s too bad that this great event never took place at Piazza Pio XII. Perhaps someday after the pandemic, the guys will think about another concert to take place at Piazza Pio XII with St. Peter’s Basilica as the backdrop for their event. A complete scenography will be created with this perfect background. It will certainly be an extraordinary event.
So, what happened next!
In a recent appearance on Verissimo, Sylvia Toffanin asked the guys about the quarantine and how it changed their lives. Their answers gave us a deep look into who they are, where they came from and their beautiful values. It showed us brothers who love each other and care for one another. It showed us a love that many real brothers don’t share! Let’s listen to a part of the interview….
Silvia: So, how are you guys doing? I see you are very well.
Piero: We are very well, we are very happy with this project, we have been stuck at home for almost two years, but our creativity has helped us a lot.
Silvia: It didn’t stop.
Piero: I must say that time has been our best friend, because we gave our best, we had more time to try to take care of every aspect of this project.
Silvia: And, also to spend a little time with your families, to live a little that second adolescence that you did not live, because you left home when you were little, right Gianluca.
Gianluca: Yes, then we tried not to live this period passively and to stimulate our creativity. We have been with our families more. Sometimes you also need to have a spirit of adaptation and accept reality when there is no alternative, so it was a very difficult time for everyone. I remember that you of Verissimo, you had the brilliant idea of producing “Imagine” by John Lennon in a video, with many singers playing and singing from home, and certainly this allowed us to be in close contact with the public and we wanted to thank you for it.
Silvia: Let’s go back, because you left for the United States before Covid, to celebrate your 10 years of career and you did a tour in the United States, a beautiful tour, where Placido Domingo also came, Gloria Estefan, in short, great artists. Ignazio, how did you experience that embrace of the American crowd?
Ignazio: Many ask us: But you have no fear, fear of the public, you know, the emotion, it’s all adrenaline, it’s really inexplicable and really, as I said before, we miss it, we love it so much and we can’t wait till next year because it finally starts again.
Silvia: But you were there then at a certain point, it happens that in Italy, Gianluca, then arrives Covid and you were in contact with your families, but in the United States everything was pretty quiet.
Gianluca: Yes, we interrupted the festivities somehow, because in the United States we were there until the first week of March and we returned on the 13th, we canceled the concerts in Las Vegas and San Francisco and we escaped on the last plane, we were more than 30 people traveling, with our crew, the musicians, and therefore we risked staying there for another 2-3 weeks, because then, when we returned we were in full lockdown for a week (in Italy).
Silvia: But what was it like to return home and experience that family dimension, after you have spent your life and adolescence around in concerts. How was it to go home with your mother, with the loved ones, to do nothing.
Ignazio: Above all, do nothing.
Silvia: Even that, do nothing, boredom.
Piero: It was a kind of “in search of lost time”, this immersion in memories, clearly the birthplace, the family, everyone. It’s nice to relive and remember where we come from, because maybe everyday life sometimes makes us forget this.
And that was the strength perhaps, to feel that inner balance that only your loved ones give you, the people close to you, and from there, we gave life to a new project, and the distance …, because we talked only by telephone with video calls, they could not stay in contact …
Ignazio: It was nice …
Silvia: Was it nice? What did you like?
Ignazio: To hear them by phone I say, we are always together ….
Silvia: … the fact that you didn’t see them for a while
Piero: I can say that the distance has strengthened our friendship.
Gianluca: We have had a really abnormal lifestyle for 12 years. You know it all started when we were children, so (in Covid time) we tried to be optimistic about it, without feeling sorry for ourselves, because this certainly doesn’t help, and we took all the positive things that unfortunately brought us this tragedy that it touched us all. It was a period that also helped us to discover ourselves a little.
Silvia: And your grandfather? How are you?
Gianluca: Well, I must say that I have a wonderful relationship with him, and he is the only grandfather I have, which is my grandfather Ernesto, whom I greet, naturally. He is very proud of me, one of the indelible memories that I will always carry with me, in 2012, when we were on tour with Barbra Streisand, grandfather came to New York and saw me sing with Barbra Streisand, so he was there.
Ignazio: A Broccolin (Italian dialect for Brooklyn)
Gianluca: Exactly, and this is therefore important, a message to be sent also to young people who often neglect their loved ones, because when you are young, you think you have all the time available, but time runs inexorably, so if at a youthful age you have this awareness, it allows us to live the moments more intensely, especially with the family, where everything started from there, and it is the people who will never betray you.
Silvia: And you know this well, Ignazio, that you have a lot of personal satisfaction, but despite your very young age, you have had to face the loss of your beloved father.
Ignazio: Absolutely. Look, I also talked to other people who have lost a parent early, or even late, because in the end, you can be any age, it can pass as long as you want, but it is always early, you are never ready to accept a loss. But I must say that the fact that we have traveled a lot, the fact that we were on the other side of the world, and I knew that my father was always somewhere, even today that he is not there, it seems to me that he is always somewhere, therefore, it is as if I have not lost him. Because I think that I have not lost my father, my father is always with me here, I like to think like this and that’s okay.
Silvia: He was very proud of you, I guess.
Ignazio: Absolutely, very proud. But he was the kind of person who couldn’t express emotions, so he was very proud but, he was always ….
Gianluca: But with a look he made us understand everything.
Ignazio: Yes, yes, he yes. Look it was my father, but it was as if he was the father of all three, as their parents are as if they were my parents, because in any case we have been sharing everything for many years.
Piero: When we first met. we were 14, so to leave Italy, we had to be accompanied by our parents, we were minors, so for 5-6 years and then even at the age of 18, they continued to travel with us, so we know his father very well, we know what he is talking about because we have lived a lot of time with them.
Silvia: And how was being next to him (Ignazio) on such a sad occasion, you who are a family, Piero on that occasion, as brothers, how did you feel too?
Piero: Ignazio proved to be a MAN, extremely strong, because three days after the loss of Vito, we were guests at the Sanremo festival and, we all expected him not to come. He arrived with a smile and, we were blown away by his way of dealing with this moment, unprecedented to us. You taught us so much Ignazio and in this I have to thank you, he is a strong man and, we love him so much.
Ignazio: I love you too.
Piero: It’s the truth……I always tell you!
Gianluca: Me too, I’m here too.
Ignazio: Sure! (he and Gian take hands)
Ignazio: There was not a single moment that I thought not to do it (refers to Sanremo), because in any case parents do anything for their children, sometimes it is not so, but we were lucky that our parents gave us everything and so I thought that, for all the sacrifices that he (Vito) and my mother have made to get me to where I am today, I thought he would never let me (not to do Sanremo), and so I did it for him too.
So, it seems the quarantine made the guys become closer. It made them feel a new feeling. Since they came together 12 years ago, they were never separated except for short periods of time between tours and commitments. They finally understood what it meant to pick up a phone and talk to one another. Something we take for granted they never had the opportunity to do. They spent precious time with their families, something they haven’t done since they were teenagers. This above all was very important to Ignazio because he got to spend precious time with his dad. And look at how proud the guys were of Ignazio and the way he made such an extraordinary decision to go to Sanremo because he knew his father would want him to be there. It was his way of thanking his parents for all the sacrifices they made for him. He certainly is a very strong man and a good example for all of us but especially for young people. These truly are exceptional young men.
And finally, they had the freedom of mind and body to explore new projects. And to devote major time to the project at hand, the Morricone project.
So, let’s get back to the present day!
Let me start by saying I read a fantastic article in La Voce di New York by Lisa Bernardini about Michele Torpedine. If you get a chance read it. Michele is such an interesting man. In the article they made many references to Michele’s autobiography “Ricominico Dai Tre” (I start again from the Three) which tells a true and since story about this man. If you can read Italian, I recommend you read this book. It is fantastic! I read it in two days. What Michele reveals is after 40 years in the business, he finally found what he was looking for all his life. A certain truth a fresh and sincere look at the industry which he had come to believe was very cruel and an ungrateful lot, but, as he reveals, every now and then, someone comes along and turns your whole world upside down and you realize you have finally found truth and sincerity. That someone was in fact three someone’s, Il Volo. Here are a few questions Michele was asked about the guys…
Lisa: Today the whole world loves Il Volo.
Michele: How can you not love them? They are pleasant for families, young people, the elderly… for everyone. They are physically beautiful, then they know how to dance, play and move perfectly on stage. With them the show is engaging. These three guys currently represent the best of “Made in Italy” the good one, “clean” in mold.
Lisa: Yet some critics accuse them of being a mere commercial operation studied at the table. What do you answer?
Michele: Initially, when they were boys, you could actually think of a “disposable” operation. What happened in their case was, as they grew up, they became really good. Today they are real artists of international caliber. You can’t find such a group anywhere else in the world.
Lisa: Where will Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca arrive, in your opinion?
Michele: If you think they’re only 25 years old and have contracts all over the world, I always tell them that the best is yet to come.
And how right you are Michele! That certainly sums up where our guys are today.
The Morricone project has become more than just a project it has become a new reality for the guys. It brought them to a new place in their careers. It’s like they are on the fast track and can’t slow down. Every day brings another event another addition to the project. It’s like 2009 all over again except this time the guys are in the driver’s seat.Their careers are exploding! This project has opened so many doors! With the release of the new album, “Il Volo Sings Morricone” and the World Tour, “Il Volo Sings Morricone and more,” at their doorstep it seems they will certainly be busy for the next two years but, where else is this leading them? I would like to think they will be spending more time in America. This direction certainly seems to be the one they are going in. Perhaps a Grammy or an Academy Award? These are the doors that I see opening for them. The American people truly love Il Volo and, they would love to see them more on American TV shows. But I can also envision them doing some of their own productions! Because of their collaboration over the last 12 years, the guys have come to a point where they can write and compose together in a way that other performers can’t. The Morricone project proved that! Their Bel canto is unique to them but, they have proven they can take the work of a genius like Morricone and put their mark, their genius on it to present a new feeling in music. Almost looking back while looking forward. This is the genius of Il Volo.
The future for our guys is very bright. They are standing “On the Threshold of Success” for the second time in their lives. It seems almost impossible to conceive but, they have a phenomenal career and they are starting a whole new career one which will present a whole new way of looking at music!
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure!
For the third time, Il Volo is once again interviewed on VERISSIMO on Canale 5, by the talented Silvia Toffanin.
A long and beautiful interview that I really enjoyed translating for you.☺
Click on photo below to watch the interview.
SILVIA = Welcome.
IGNAZIO = How are you?
SILVIA = Well and I see you really well, I see some wonderful images that are the images of your new video that we are previewing THE ECSTASY OF GOLD, right?
PIERO = Yes, soundtrack by the great maestro Ennio Morricone. We have dedicated the new IL VOLO SINGS MORRICONE project to Ennio Morricone.
SILVIA = It was released all over the world on Friday.
GIAN = It is a collection of the soundtracks of the maestro Ennio Morricone, from Nuovo Cinema Paradiso to Once Upon a Time in the West, to The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly with The Ecstasy of Gold that opens this album, with the first sung version, with a text in English written by the son, the maestro Andrea Morricone.
SILVIA = Well, congratulations, how beautiful, a bit of a western video.
IGNAZIO = It was great to shoot it, because it was shot on film, as it used to be.
SILVIA = Like in the old movies.
IGNAZIO = And it was interesting, while we were recording it, the director said “Missing a meter at the end” and we thought: “What does that mean?” Because in film, when you shoot in film, it does not qualify in seconds, but in meters.
SILVIA = Ah, you see, when there was a meter missing, it meant that the film was running out.
IGNAZIO = Of course meters or centimeters mean time, seconds.
SILVIA = So, how are you guys doing? I see you very well.
PIERO = We are very well, we are very happy with this project, we have been stuck at home for almost two years, but our creativity has helped us a lot.
SILVIA = It didn’t stop.
PIERO = I must say that time has been our best friend, because we gave our best, we had more time to try to take care of every aspect of this project.
SILVIA = And also to spend a little time with your families, to live a little that second adolescence that you did not live, because you left home when you were little, right Gianluca.
GIAN = Yes, then we tried not to live this period passively and to stimulate our creativity. We have been with our families more, is that sometimes you also need to have a spirit of adaptation and accept reality when there is no alternative, so it was a very difficult time for everyone. I remember that you of VERISSIMO, you had the brilliant idea of enclosing IMAGINE by John Lennon in a video, with many singers playing and singing from home, and certainly this allowed us to be in close contact with the public and we wanted you thank you for it.
SILVIA = Thanks to you that kindness, you played and sang.
And for this, and for all that you have given to the public, we have prepared this gift for you, look.
(starts a video with images of the various moments of the Il Volo tours)
GIAN’s voice in the video = It all happened so fast, we lived an anomalous life, we grew up fast, we discovered the world, traveling opens the mind.
IGNAZIO’s voice in the video = We try to give messages with our music. There have been difficult moments in our career, it hasn’t been all plain sailing.
PIERO’s voice in the video = Our success is due to the music we sing, the music that is part of the Italian tradition. Our genre is not ancient, but classic, and we try to take it around the world and make it known to everyone.
GIAN’s voice in the video = We have three different voices, three different personalities.Maybe going upstream can sometimes win. We do everything we can to try to reach people’s hearts.
IGNAZIO’s voice in the video = For us artists it is always nice to experience new emotions because they give you stimuli, concert after concert, day after day.
PIERO ‘s voice in the video = Every concert, every time is as if it were the first time. We promise we will never lose our simplicity and never change.
IGNAZIO = It’s nice you know. Missing, missing touring, singing, doing the tour routine, missing …
PIERO = It is as if the pandemic and Covid have stopped time.
SILVIA = Oh yes.
PIERO = Second half of 2019 and first two months of 2020, audiences, hugs, it seems like a lifetime ago.
SILVIA = Why you … let’s go back, because you left for the United States before Covid, to celebrate your 10 years of career and you did a tour in the United States, a beautiful tour, where Placido Domingo also came , Gloria Esteffan, in short, great artists. How did Ignatius experience that embrace of the American crowd?
IGNAZIO = Many ask us: “But you have no fear, fear of the public, you know, the emotion”, it’s all adrenaline, it’s really inexplicable and really, as I said before, we miss it, we love it so much and we can’t wait that it is next year because it finally starts again.
SILVIA = But you were there then at a certain point, it happens that in Italy, Gianluca, arrives Covid and you were in contact with your families, but in the United States everything was pretty quiet.
GIAN = Yes, we interrupted the festivities somehow, because in the United States we were there until the first week of March and we returned on the 13th, we canceled the concerts in Las Vegas and San Francisco and we escaped on the last plane, we were more than 30 people traveling, with our crew, the musicians, and therefore we risked staying there for another 2-3 weeks, because then, when we returned we were in full lockdown for a week now (in Italy).
SILVIA = But what was it like to return home and experience that family dimension, after you have spent your life and adolescence around in concerts. How it was to go home with your mother, with the loved ones, to do nothing.
IGNAZIO = Above all, do nothing.
SILVIA = Even that, do nothing, boredom.
PIERO = It was a kind of “in search of lost time”, this immersion in memories, clearly the birthplace, the family, everyone. It’s nice to relive and remember where we come from, because maybe everyday life sometimes makes us forget this.
And that was the strength perhaps, to feel that inner balance that only your loved ones give you, the people close to you, and from there, we gave life to a new project, and the distance …, because we felt only by telephone with video calls, they could not stay in contact …
IGNAZIO = It was nice …
SILVIA = Was it nice? What did you like?
IGNAZIO = To hear them by phone I say, we are always together ….😁
SILVIA = … the fact that you didn’t see them for a while
PIERO = I can say that the distance has strengthened our friendship.😘
GIAN = We have had a really abnormal lifestyle for 12 years. You know it all started when we were children, so (in Covid time) we tried to be optimistic about it, without feeling sorry for ourselves, because this certainly doesn’t help, and we took all the positive things that unfortunately brought us this tragedy that it touched us all.
It was a period that also helped us to discover ourselves a little.
SILVIA = And your grandfather? How are you?
GIAN = Well I must say that I have a wonderful relationship with him, and he is the only grandfather I have, which is my grandfather Ernesto, whom I greet, naturally. He is very proud of me, one of the indelible memories that I will always carry with me, in 2012, when we were on tour with Barbra Streisand, grandfather came to New York and saw me sing with Barbra Streisand, so he was there.
IGNAZIO = A Broccolin (Italian dialect for Brooklyn)
GIAN = Exactly, and this is therefore important, a message to be sent also to young people who often neglect their loved ones, because when you are young, you think you have all the time available, but time runs inexorably, so if at a youthful age you have this awareness, it allows us to live the moments more intensely, especially with the family, where everything started from there, and it is the people who will never betray you. (applause)😘
SILVIA = And you know this well, Ignazio, that you have a lot of personal satisfaction, but despite your very young age, you have had to face the loss of your beloved father.
IGNAZIO = Absolutely. Look, I also talked to other people who have lost a parent early, or even late, because in the end, you can be any age, it can pass as long as you want, but it is always early, you are never ready to accept a loss. But I must say that the fact that we have traveled a lot, the fact that we were on the other side of the world, and I knew that my father was always somewhere, even today that he is not there, it seems to me that he is always somewhere, therefore, it is as if I have not lost him. Because I think that I have not lost my father, my father is always with me here, I like to think like this and that’s okay.❤😘
SILVIA = He was very proud of you, I guess.
IGNAZIO = Absolutely, very proud. But he was the kind of person who couldn’t express emotions, so he was very proud but he was always …..
GIAN = But with a look he made us understand everything.😘
IGNAZIO = Yes, yes, he yes. Look it was my father, but it was as if he was the father of all three, as their parents are as if they were my parents, because in any case we have been sharing everything for many years.❤
PIERO = When we first met we were 14, so to shoot outside Italy, we had to be accompanied by our parents, we were minors, so for 5-6 years and then even at the age of 18, they continued to travel with us, so we know his father very well, we know what he is talking about because we have lived a lot of time with them.
SILVIA = And how was he next to him (Ignazio) on such a sad occasion, you who are a family, Piero on that occasion, as brothers, how did you feel too?
PIERO = Ignazio proved to be a MAN, extremely strong, because three days after the loss of Vito, we were guests at the Sanremo festival and we all expected him not to come. He arrived with a smile and we were blown away by his way of dealing with this moment, unprecedented to us. You taught us so much Ignatius, and in this I have to thank him, he is a strong man and we love him so much.❤
IGNAZIO = I love you too.❤
PIERO = It’s the truth……I always tell you!
GIAN = Me too, I’m here too. ❤
IGNAZIO = Sure! (he and Gian take hands) ❤(appaluse)
IGNAZIO = There was not a single moment that I thought not to do it (refers to Sanremo), because in any case all parents do anything for their children, sometimes it is not so, but we were lucky that our parents gave us everything and they give us everything, and so I thought that, for all the sacrifices that he (Vito) and my mother have made to get me to where I am today, I thought he would never let me (not to do Sanremo), and so I did it for him too. ❤😘
SILVIA = The fact is that you three are an Italian pride, you have truly brought bel canto, the classic song that you define as eternal, and I like this definition, in the world. And you have conquered the world, look at this gift for yourself here. (starts a collage of videos taken from all over the world)
SILVIA = Wow !!
PIERO = You are committed. (Applause)
GIAN = They (Channel 5) are also special in this, in the RVMs, in the montages.
SILVIA = We did a whole research.
IGNAZIO = But it’s nice to remember.
SILVIA = Japan, Brazil, Spain, Mexico ……..
GIAN = But this is the strength of bel canto, because in any case we are proud to be the only young people who bring this style of music, because it all started with the great Luciano Pavarotti, the three tenors, Andrea Bocelli, so we try to follow the their steps.
IGNAZIO = Do you want water? 😁
GIAN = Let’s say it’s not easy, humbly. Of course we need time and to maintain, the most difficult thing is to consolidate success, but we do our best. Then we have fun, we also do it because it makes us feel good.
SILVIA = Are you enjoying yourself, Ignazio?
IGNAZIO = A lot, and it shows too.
SILVIA = You speak very well English, practically all languages are spoken by you.
PIERO = Yes, at the age of 14 we moved to the United States, because we signed this contract with the American record company and we didn’t speak English, I had 5 ( as a rating-insufficient), in English at school.
IGNAZIO = We went to school.
GIAN = Do you know where? In the University of Los Angeles. We lived the first years for 4-5 months ….
IGNAZIO = Beautiful, they (Piero and Gian) did their homework and I never … I was really distracted …
PIERO = Because in America, you can’t go as a guest if you don’t speak English.
SILVIA = Ah, see!
PIERO = So for 5 months we learned English quickly, then Spanish, Portuguese ….
GIAN = Ignazio speaks Portuguese very well …😉
IGNAZIO = Very well no, I chew it a little.😁
PIERO = He chews it very well 😁… (He refers to Ignazio’s girlfriend)
SILVIA = You chew it very well, right? Lately then !!😁😁
IGNAZIO = Yes Morricone is an album to which we are very attached.😁 (He tries to change the subject)
PIERO = And there is also a piece in Portuguese.
SILVIA = In Portuguese. But you also got to meet Maestro Morricone, what do you remember?
GIAN = Look, there is an anecdote that I always like to tell, because it all started when we were little, but since we were children we had the honor of having the support …. as you can see (behind them is the photo of Il Volo with Morricone) of the greatest master of the twentieth century.
IGNAZIO = A few pizzas ago, that photo there.😁
GIAN = You for sure. 😉 During the recordings of the disc, we were 15-16 years old, Maestro Morricone was in studio A of the Forum Village and we in studio B. Every now and then he would pass by to say hello and then this idea of performing together in Piazza del Popolo in Rome was born, in a song called E PIÙ TI PENSO, which is a medley of: Once upon a time in America and Malena.
During the rehearsals, there were 100 orchestra members, in a room in the studios in Rome, the three of us arrive, smurfs, clumsy, a little small, we arrive and there was the master who was conducting. During the rehearsals, he had to give me the attack, I don’t start, total panic, the violinist (Gian widen his eyes) at a certain point he stops, everyone stops and I tell the teacher: “Ah, but you give me the attack?”, So, I speak to the master, giving him the You. (In Italian, out of respect, you must speak in the third person and not in the second). Everyone bleaches (Silvia has her hands in her hair) and do you know how Maestro Morricone answers me ?: “Don’t worry guys, I’ll take care of it, you think about singing” (the phrase is said in the dialect of Rome) (applause)
SILVIA = Ah see, he was the most human of all.
PIERO = Morricone is immense, like his work ….
SILVIA = But you were a little in awe, because he perhaps put a little in awe.
PIERO = He was a man of few words, but he did a lot. He taught us what dedication, sacrifice is, nothing comes by chance. This repertoire requires a lot of discipline, we were lucky enough to contact Morricone’s family who gave us great support, immense confidence in this project ….
IGNAZIO = We thank them so much.
PIERO = …. and to whom we thank very much, especially his son Andrea Morricone who gave us the text of The Ecstasy of Gold and an unpublished piece ….
SILVIA = Wow
PIERO = ….. and then Morricone acted as a glue with others in the cinema, such as the maestro Vittorio Storaro, three Nobel prizes, that is, three Oscars, and we shot a video with Vittorio Storaro in the wonderful Frasassi Caves. So we started this Morricone project and a world opened up for us…..
SILVIA = The caves are beautiful scenery.
PIERO = The Frasassi Caves are incredible.
SILVIA = Congratulations indeed.
Ignazio, what do foreigners like about Il Volo? The song they like best.
PIERO = Varies from country to country in South America ….
IGNAZIO = In South America, IL MONDO, we made a Spanish version …
GIAN = Il Mondo of Jimmy Fontana (the singer who sang it first)
IGNAZIO = …. Il Mondo of Jimmi Fontana, for them (South America) is a novelty.
PIERO = “Gira el mundo gira” (He pronounced it in Spanish).
GIAN = The first version in Spanish was sung by us, they did not know it, especially the young people, while in Italy it is very well known.
SILVIA = So “Il Mondo”, not “O sole mio” …..
GIAN = But also Grande Amore ..
PIERO = Il Mondo and Grande Amore
GIAN = ….. in the Spanish version it was also very popular in Latin countries (Grande Amore)
PIERO = Let’s say that every tour we try to change the lineup …
SILVIA = According to the tastes of the country …
PIERO = In Japan, we only go with voice and orchestra, we don’t go with rhythm.
IGNAZIO = How much I like Japan, also because you are singing, you do the exhibition and you see a Japanese in the third row with his eyes closed, then you see another in the fifth row with his eyes closed, and you think they are bored, they are falling asleep. The performance ends, and they stand up and applaud.
SILVIA = See, they were listening.
GIAN = They are very calm.
PIERO = It’s nice to tell it now, but you imagine, on the first day of the concert, his (Ignazio’s) gaze meant “what’s going on?”
SILVIA = Were you scared? (appaluse)
IGNAZIO = Do you know how we entered the Japanese market? Because an Olympic skater, he won the gold medal with one of our songs, A STARRY NIGHT, and it was a great success and from there we entered Japan.
SILVIA = Think, but it’s incredible.
PIERO = And now let’s go back to Japan for a 15 concert tour.
SILVIA = And can you speak a little Japanese too? (Ignazio and Piero start singing a song for children in Japanese, very funny)☺
GIAN = It’s a little song. But all, do you remember it?
SILVIA = What do you mean, translate?
PIERO = If you are happy you know it clap your hands …. (it’s a famous little song also in Italian)
SILVIA = What a fool I am (because she didn’t recognize the little song)
GIAN = You have a wonderful dress.
SILVIA = Thank you!! And love ????
GIAN = It moves (remembering the title L’amore si muove)
IGNAZIO = Morricone …. (He tries to change the subject)
SILVIA = Love, love, then wait, obviously I did some investigations Ignazio.
IGNAZIO = Good
SILVIA = You were engaged Gianluca, the last time, two years ago.
GIAN = At that time yes, two years ago when we met, and then it ended, as happens sometimes.
SILVIA = It’s over. You didn’t have anyone, did you Piero? Or am I wrong? Oh well look there and then let’s talk, do not anticipate.
(Begins a very nice video of detective Silvia Bond 007 where she repeats the answers of the boys during the two previous interviews with Verissimo, on the question: Love. Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca regard laughing their words, over time, on the subject )
IGNAZIO = (He laughs) Ouch Ouch Ouch
SILVIA = Isn’t there to laugh Gianluca looking at your face, or is there to laugh?
IGNAZIO = There is a lot of crying. 😁
GIAN = No, there is to be happy.
SILVIA = Why are you single?
GIAN = Me? I’m not single, no, no, no.
IGNAZIO = He is engaged intermittently, you have to understand. 😁😁
GIAN = But what does it mean, over the years many things happen, over time things change.
SILVIA = Indeed.
GIAN = Yes, I am engaged today, yes yes.
IGNAZIO = He gets engaged on leasing, every two years …😁😁
GIAN = He makes fun of me, but I’m engaged and really in love, I can say it publicly, I’m happy, yes yes.
SILVIA = Since when?
GIAN = From some time.
PIERO = Since yesterday. 😁
GIAN = Also, she is called after my mother, you know?
SILVIA = Eleonora!
GIAN = Then you know.
SILVIA = No, I knew your mom’s name! No, I did not know about this news.
IGNAZIO = (Behind them there is a photo of Gian on horseback)
Look at that stallion, Gianluca (He says it in a double sense: stallion for the horse, but also for Gianluca).😊
SILVIA = Gianluca on the white horse ….. Ignazio, then !!!
IGNAZIO = Yes, Piero ??? (He passes the subject to Piero). ☺
SILVIA = So, first Piero, word of mouth to Piero.
PIERO = I want to say that love is a particular theme, regardless of everything.
SILVIA = It is a universal theme.
GIAN = Sorry, look (behind them is the photo of Piero), how can you resist a smile like that !! ☺
IGNAZIO = This is the photo she took 10 minutes before the wedding in Las Vegas !!! (what a joker) 😁
PIERO = It’s a particular theme, many are lucky enough to find a soul mate, I still don’t, but I know it’s out there somewhere.
GIAN = Well definitely, she is not inside the house.😁
IGNAZIO = There’s Silvia Bond, just in case!
PIERO = She is out there, but love is such a strong feeling that it must be protected.
SILVIA = But have you had a girlfriend recently, have you fallen in love in the last few years or has it never happened to you?
PIERO = It is a strong feeling, it must be protected.
SILVIA = We have to protect him,……….so he doesn’t want to tell, so I talk to you Ignazio.
IGNAZIO = Yes?
SILVIA = You are happy and radiant.
IGNAZIO = I am in a moment of my life where I feel great.
SILVIA = Piero is serious on this topic, he doses the words.
IGNAZIO = Yes, Piero is serious, but sometimes he asks himself too many questions, I always tell him. I think that love is very complicated, but sometimes love has to be lived, it has to be left to live, also because sometimes you don’t know what it can be.
PIERO = Okay, but you have met her, you have found your soul mate ….
IGNAZIO = I found her far away ….
GIAN = Piero on the one hand is right, it’s not that you have to be satisfied, because many confuse company, habit, affection, so …..
PIERO = There is one fundamental thing to say: feeling good and happiness are not the same thing. So, for now I’m fine and I’m happy with this.
GIAN = Look, paradoxically, if you are okay with yourself ……
IGNAZIO = …. however we were talking about my girlfriend …. (applause)I’m kidding!
SILVIA = Exactly sorry, 9000 km. they separate you from her.
IGNAZIO = During the pandemic I met a girl, a little far away, on the other side of the world. It was strange because we spent 8 months exchanging messages, hearing, video calling, then at the first opportunity I went to Brazil to meet her and from there it was nice, because we met slowly, we don’t know each other 100% but I can tell you that we are very much in love, and it’s nice to live things like this.
SILVIA = Wow, she’s beautiful !!
IGNAZIO = Yes, she is beautiful, but she is very beautiful inside, the boys (Piero and Gian) have known her and she is really a beautiful person.
SILVIA = How did the meeting go Piero, were you so serious when you met her?
PIERO = But I’m not serious. She is a beautiful girl, very good, I didn’t understand anything of what she told me, because I don’t speak Portuguese though …..
GIAN = But we trust Ignazio.😉
PIERO = We trust Ignazio.😉
GIAN = Tell me who you go with and I’ll tell you who you are (proverb).To be with Ignazio, you have to be a really good girl.
PIERO = The incredible thing about Ignazio is that maybe, the day before you call him and tell him: ”What are you doing?” “I’m at home I’m playing with the playstation.” The day after: ”Where are you?” “In Brazil!!” “Okay, are you coming back to go to Silvia’s?”
SILVIA = But would you like to become a dad one day? Since I’m on the subject now, would you like it someday? You are not yet 30 years old or have you already done so?
IGNAZIO = No, 27 last month.
PIERO = 28
SILVIA = Exactly.
IGNAZIO = Wait, 27 just a month ago.
SILVIA = 27 a month ago, then 28 (Piero) and 26 (Gian), so it’s still too early.
GIAN = We are approaching, more than 30 years, we are no longer 20 years old.
PIERO = It is clear that I see a future with a family, all three of us have very similar values, extremely similar realities, so I see a future, beautiful with children, it is clear. In my opinion that is the reason for living.
IGNAZIO = I’ve always liked the idea of being a young father, here, I met the person now, who knows in the next few years, you never know.
GIAN = Well I have to tell you …..
PIERO = If I were you I would wait for the next episode of Verissimo. (Because Gian at each episode had a different girlfriend).
Three times three different names … (laughter and applause)
GIAN = I can assure you that this time I will not change, in two years it will always be the same name, the same person.
SILVIA = It’s a promise !!
IGNAZIO = We renew the lease. 😁
GIAN = I can’t get close otherwise I would give you my hand (to confirm the promise)
SILVIA = Now we have to say goodbye. You Promise .
GIAN = I promise that in two years it will be the same person.
PIERO = I can’t wait to see this video again in two years, look (laughter and applause)
IGNAZIO = Can I say something? Not that those from before (Gian’s girls) weren’t good girls, because they were, but Eleonora is really a good girl and we are very happy that she is part of this family, because in the end we are part of a big family.
SILVIA = We all love her already.
GIAN = There is also a photo (with her) and you didn’t show it, you showed Ignazio’s photo and you didn’t show mine.
SILVIA = Would you like to show your girlfriend?
IGNAZIO = No,
GIAN = Next time.
IGNAZIO = I had the exclusive !! 😊
SILVIA = He gave me the exclusive (laughs, applause)
You are myths, we remember your latest film which is called IL VOLO SINGS MORRICONE.
PIERO = Album, we are not actors yet !! Yes, IL VOLO SINGS MORRICONE, we hope we have done a good job, that you like it.
SILVIA = Definitely.
PIERO = We are satisfied and honored to bring this tribute to Maestro Morricone, now we will start on tour, therefore a year full of commitments.
GIAN = And we hope to be the soundtrack of many people with this album. (applause)
SILVIA = Beautiful! Congratulations guys.
Really because you know how to move, you know how to laugh and you know how to make very deep reflections, you three are just beautiful for this, as well as singing divinely.
A hug to Il Volo, we say goodbye, thank you. Il Volo, congratulations.
When Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca are interviewed by Silvia, I always have the impression that they are extremely comfortable.
We understand that Silvia asks the questions very delicately and gets genuine answers from them. It is clear that Silvia admires them a lot, as artists but also as children of full values to be taken as an example, and her closing words show this very well.
I was moved by the memory of Vito, the admission of cross-affection for all their parents is wonderful. Yes, Ignazio, Vito will always be with you.
They also revealed their side about love, they got “naked” and we got confirmations too.
I laughed a lot translating the part in which Piero and Ignazio teased Gianluca about his emotional relationships.
We have heard news about the new tour and gladly reviewed clips from old tours.
We understood how important this project is in which they believe a lot.
It lasted half an hour, but it could easily last hours and we certainly wouldn’t be bored.
I’m happy we were able to get back online in time for the release of the Il Volo Sings Morricone album.
We have been watching the guys, with great anticipation, prepare for this moment! From our first introduction to “Your Love” on the stage of the Ariston Theater which was beautifully presented in a bittersweet moment, to the stage of the ancient Arena of Verona where we witnessed the dawn of Il Volo’s new adventure! We witnessed our guys shaping a new beginning and sharing this amazing moment in time with us.
In my story “Phenomenal,” about the Concert in Verona I said: “If I wrote what I felt, saw, experienced in this concert, I would have to write a book!” That is just the tip of the iceberg to where we are today!
Speaking about the opening of the concert and our introduction to “The Ecstasy of Gold,” I said, “Listen to the intensity of their voices! What force! Watch their motions. Look at Gianluca! Watch his body react to the music! The fist that comes at you saying this is the punch, just the beginning. Listen to Ignazio ride the note that guides us into the story! Now we’re sailing on the wind! Piero intensifies the moment with his powerful voice that says the journey has begun! Follow us in this new adventure!
And, so we did, all the way to the Frassasi Caves where we experienced a project of great importance to our guys, Vittorio Storaro and Italy!
We witnessed the events of the Venice Film Festival and cheered for our guys when they won aFilm Italy Movie Award.
And we arrived at the Seat Music Awards where they won a DIVA Award for the tribute project to Ennio Morricone.
The major video for the album needed to be produced so we followed the guys to Sardinia for the videoing of “The Ecstasy of Gold” which brought back memories of American cinema in 60’s, 1966 to be exact, the year The Good, The Bad and The Ugly was released! Some of the early American Western Films were made in San Salvatore.
The Morricone project in conjunction with the Storaro film has opened up so many new avenues for our guys!
All of this is a part of our guys lives since the Morricone project began! And now they have found their place in the Golden Age of Cinema.
And let’s not forget while this project was moving forward the guys entertained us on Facebook and Instagram everyday with their music and conversations with their friends. They continued to be close to their fans around the world who have been following them for 12 years.
The guys recently received an award from the Italian Red Cross in recognition of their commitment and awareness carried out and addressed to the public and to the new generation to whom they have dedicated positive messages and hope during the hardest period of their country.
Looking at the picture of Ignazio holding the Red Cross Award, I was struck by something very funny. I remembered the story in their book about Ignazio and his friend Nicholas. It seemed Nicholas was the mischievous one and Ignazio followed him doing a good share of his own mischief. Let me let Ignazio tell you this story.…
In the official classification of the class, I was the second most mischievous. Nicolas was in the first place. But ours was an open challenge, a race to the last red cross. Now the question arises, what are the red crosses? The teachers invented this billboard on which they had written all the names of the students in alphabetical order and, they marked each student, according to their behavior in the classroom and their academic performance. There were two types of crosses: If you got good marks in the task in class or if you behaved well, if you did not run, did not shout, did not disturb during lessons and a whole series of “NOT” you got a blue cross. However, if you got a bad grade or if you behaved badly, then you got a red cross. And evil was everywhere. Nicolas and I were the most popular! Our billboard line was a red fire specimen.
Ignazio did you ever think the day would come when you would want a Red Cross?
Congratulations guys on this and all the wonderful awards you’ve won just in this past year!
All this and, the album hasn’t been released yet!
This album is the genius of Il Volo combined with the genius of Morricone. It’s a leap forward and a throwback to the 50’s and 60’s. A time when musical theme songs and scores from movies where produced. When life was simple and, you put the kids to bed on a Saturday night and had a romantic dinner with your honey while listening to beautiful music on the record player. It was date night for parents! Such a romantic time in our American history! Today so much has changed but not romance. These very romantic songs will be shared between lovers but in a very different way, in a very different world.
These are melodies that are familiar to everyone but with a new energy. When I listen to these songs, I remember that night in Verona when they stepped out on that stage to present the first song of the evening, “The Ecstasy of Gold.” This song will go before them on their world tour leading the way to an exciting new experience for us. It will resonate around the world! Their presentation was the best presentation by far of any song of cinema, EVER! It vibrated and resonated throughout the world! And it will be talked about for many years to come!
This reawakening of Morricone’s music is truly amazing. What was missing from Morricone’s music was beautiful voices! Each song brings to life the genius of the composer, writer and singer. Unlike any other album made today this album will stand out because it presents a new and different idea! The songs are phenomenal. They’re romantic! And exciting! This truly is a leap in a new direction for our guys. Not a movement away from their music but a movement forward, combining all that makes Il Volo superstars!
Going forward, the name Il Volo will always be attached to Ennio Morricone. They will take their place next to one of the greatest composers of our times! They have taken their place in the Musical History of Cinema and will share their music with a music legend!
All that said, the music and the words are nothing without the voices! This milestone in the life of our guys was realized at an important time in our history! Being forced indoors for so many months provided the opportunity to look to the future and see where their careers were going. There have been so many stages in their lives. We’ve watched teenagers become young men and now we see men who have taken a hold of their careers and catapulted it in a new and interesting direction.
With the release of Il Volo Sings Morricone, all paths are open to their 15th Anniversary together. I’m sure the guys are already talking about an album and a magnificent grand tour to mark the milestone. Perhaps another Notte Magica Tour? What ever it is I’m sure it will be magnificent!
The events of the last 18 months, called for men to reinvent themselves! In the case of our guys, they searched for a way to continue their music in a world that wanted the industry shut down!
When they returned to the stage last year at the Seat Music Awards, they “Turned on the Lights! And Hit the Restart Button.” Making way for the industry to reopen and entertainers to go back on stage.
Their decision to sing “Nessun Dorma” that evening sent a strong message. It said we may have to perform under these new world conditions, but we don’t have to change who we are or why we’re here. In this ancient Arena they looked to the past while following the path to the future.
Our guys did anything and everything to try to keep the industry alive. Their concern for their crew was foremost in their minds. Their people needed to work and through their persistence, the crew was back on stage in June at the Tribute to Ennio Morricone.
This is The Magic of Il Volo. Every song they sing they sing with love! They have a passion for music which drives them to create and recreate themselves time and again. We never know what project is waiting around the corner and what surprises they have in store! Every song they sing they sing for our pleasure. Not a note will advance unless they feel it will please us! And they will continue to work their magic for years to come!
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure!
At the talkshoplive Monday night the guys made an announcement that the tour will be called Il Volo Sings Morricone and more….
November 5th is almost here! Time to get your copy of Il Volo Sings Morricone!
The news was confirmed by several parties, in less than a month, the new Il Volo CD:
IL VOLO SINGS MORRICONE, will be released.
The date is on November 5th, but it is already possible to pre-order it.
The album will be available in the following formats: standard CD, Deluxe Version CD, double colored vinyl and double black vinyl.
“Your Love”, taken from Once Upon a Time in the West, a song that Il Volo presented for the first time at the Sanremo 2021 Festival, is available on streaming platforms.
The album Il Volo sings Morricone comes after the concert-event, Il Volo – Tribute to Ennio Morricone, which aired live on Rai 1 last June and which was held at the Verona Arena.
I can’t wait to have this CD.
But I will not order it, because I hope that Il Volo, like every time, will make an instore in Milan, where it will be possible to buy it and also meet our three treasures, and take a picture with them.
Of course, then I’ll tell you everything !!❤
But now, we observe well the new CD.
First, let’s take a look at the cover.
I have to congratulate those who have thought of presenting the new CD taking a cue from the movie posters.
I really like this idea, in fact the photo of Il Volo is very reminiscent of the poster of “The Good, the Bad and the Ugly”, as you can see.
And now, let’s take a look at the song list:
Tracklist of Il Volo Sings Morricone
1. The Ecstasy of Gold (from “Il Buono, Il Brutto, Il Cattivo”) 2. Your Love (from “C’era una volta il West”) 3. Nella fantasia feat. Andrea Griminelli (from “Mission”) 4. Metti una sera a cena (from “Metti una sera a cena”) 5. Se feat. HAUSER (from “Cinema Paradiso”) 6. La Califfa feat. David Garrett (from “La Califfa”) 7. Conradiana (from “Nostromo”) 8. E più ti penso (from “C’era una volta in America/ Malèna”) 9. Se telefonando 10. Come Sail Away feat. Chris Botti 11. Would He Even No Me Know? (from “Cinema Paradiso”) 12. Amalia por amor 13. Here’s To You (from “Sacco & Vanzetti”) 14. I colori dell’amore
They are all beautiful songs, but let’s take a step by step look.
First of all I see that there are several very good musicians who will perform some music that our kids will sing.
Here in fact:
ANDREA GRIMINELLI , the good Italian flutist, whom we already met during the concert, he will perform the piece n.3
STJEPAN HAUSER, the good Croatian cellist, (he is part of the 2 cellos), who will perform the piece n.5.
DAVID GARRET, the good German violinist, will perform the piece n.6.
CHRIS BOTTI, the good American trumpeter, will perform the piece n.10.
…… I would say 4 stars of musicians, who come from different places and countries.
I like this.😉
And now let’s read all the titles of the songs, and immediately we discover that:
LA CALIFFA (6)
COME SAIL AWAY (10)
WOULD HE EVEN NO ME KNOW? (11)
AMALIA POR AMOR (12)
were not heard in the concert, so they’re new songs for us.
What can I say, the other songs I heard in concert and they were magnificent.
Who knows what will be the pieces that Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca will perform as soloists, as they usually do.
Furthermore, rumors say that soon, before the release of the CD, the new video will be online !!
I cannot wait to see the new video, and to hear the new CD.☺❤
And now a little news of the last moment, today Saturday 9 October, at 14:00 (Italian time), Il Volo was interviewed by a journalist.
Here’s the news:
“Piero Barone, Ignazio Boschetto and Gianluca Ginoble, members of Il Volo, will tell Andrea Spinelli, music critic of QN Quotidiano Nazionale, the emotion of having been the protagonists of the first great post-pandemic live event, the concert dedicated to Maestro Ennio Morricone audience champion also on Rai1.”
There are happy stories, good stories, amazing stories and phenomenal stories but when there is a story that encompasses it all there are no words for it, you are left speechless!
This week our guys made history! They became part of the history of the town of Genga, Italy and have been immortalized in a permanent exhibition at the Museo Arte Storia Territorio of the Castle of Genga! How’s that for a moment in time?
In order to tell this story, we need to go back in time 50 years to a discovery that was made by a group of boys from Ancona and Falconara, some of them were still high school students at the time. So, let’s go back to that day….
September 25, 1971
*Exactlyhalf a century ago a group of boys discovered an opening in a rock near the Abbey of San Vittore alle Chiuse, near Genga. It looked like an insignificant hole, like so many others but it was from here that the discovery of one of the greatest masterpieces of nature came to pass. The authentic wonder that is the Frasassi Caves.
It was September 25, 1971,Fabio Sturba, who came to be known as the Buzz Aldrin (the second man to step on the moon) of the group became the second boy to step foot into the caves. How was it decided who would be first, they had no coin so, they drew straws or in this case match sticks and it fell to Maurizio Bolognini (the Neil Armstrong of the group) to be the first to descend into the Grotta Grande del Vento. Both boys were budding speleologist (the study or exploration of caves). Why the reference to Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin, because only two years earlier in July 1969 the greatest event of our time came to pass, man took his first steps on the moon? For the people of Genga, this was their moon landing. Their first steps into the history books of Italy and the world!
This is how Fabio Sturba describes the moment:
We played lots. Neither of us had a coin, so we used a box of matches.
He continues with the events that followed those first steps. The descent into the cave.
Our ladders were two steel tubes with aluminum steps. It did not allow us to go down, so we postponed the descent for the following week. On October 2nd we were above the Throne Room. The next day was the one of the stone throwing. To understand how deep the cave was. The light from our acetylene lamps reached a maximum of five meters (approx.16 ½ feet). Everything else was dark.
October 10th was the first real descent. On the bottom there was a huge landslide. We reached the Hall of the Giants, but we were forced to go back. The week after we went down again, reaching the current tourist route. But then it took two or three hours. At the end of October articles began to appear in local newspapers. The discovery went public.
One reporter asked, “Is it true that you slept in the caves?”
Yes, in January, when we organized a six-day base camp. We slept inside the Ancona Abyss. One of the problems was the cold. We couldn’t bring sleeping bags because they were bulky. In the cave it was 14 degrees. As long as you moved there were no problems, but when you stood still your teeth chattered. We didn’t tell our parents everything!
The reporters also mentioned the fact that they did not get the right ‘gratitude’ for their discovery.
Maybe we deserved something more, but I’m not talking about money. For the first 25 years from the discovery, the Municipality had given us a certificate of merit. But only a few years ago a plaque with our names was placed at the entrance to the caves. They also gave us a card to get in for free. And to think that the caves represent 12% of the tourist GDP of the Marche region, and that Genga has one of the highest average incomes in the region.
On Friday, September 24th, 2021, the guys took part in a ribbon cutting for the 50th Anniversary of the finding of the caves and the Inauguration of the Photographic Exhibition of Maestro Vittorio Storaro and the multimedia laboratory at the Museum of Art, History and Territory of the Municipality of Genga. Sealing their fate and forever putting them in the history books of Genga and Italy! This historical moment was just the beginning of an event which would take place over two days and culminate with the presentation of the film.
As some of you know, Gianluca was hung up in traffic on the way to the ribbon cutting, so Piero and Ignazio decided to relax until his arrival! I should look that good when I relax!
On the exciting notes of Ennio Morricone, Il Volo celebrated the 50th Anniversary of the discovery of the Frasassi Caves. Saturday, September 25th, 2021, was the presentation of the short film “C’era Una Volta” (Once Upon a Time) directed by Maestro Vittorio Storaro starring our guys among the favolose calcareous forms of the Caves.
The film premiered at the Venice Film Festival at the Filming Italy Best Movie Awards.
Maestro Vittorio Storaro described the event almost as a rebirth…
In the caves of Frasassi the trio of Il Volo symbolically descended into the womb of Mother Earth as did the speleologists who discovered those caves fifty years ago. Through their art, which represents a new root, their song is reproduced, trio after trio. Il Volo fills every place that welcomes them: theaters, arenas, squares and archaeological sites all over the world: the energy of art so regenerates all forms of life.
I certainly couldn’t describe them better!
September 25, 2021
On this day, the film “C’era Una Volta” (Once Upon a Time) was presented by its director, Maestro VittorioStoraro and Il Volo and thereby came full circle.
**Duilio Giammaria, journalist and director of Rai documentaries, led the journey in images and back in time to retrace the steps of the speleologists who 50 years ago, on September 25, 1971, descended for the first time into the bowels of the earth bringing to light the wonderful underground universe of the Frasassi Caves.
In the belly of the earth, among the large stalactites and stalagmites of the wonderful scenery of the Frasassi Caves, Piero, Gianluca and Ignazio of IlVolo with the guests present, celebrated the anniversary of the discovery of the extraordinary Italian hypogeum complex located in the mountain range of the Marche Apennines.
The discovery was celebrated with the repetition of the acrobatic descent of over 110 meters (360 feet) from the edge of the well to the bottom of the cave. The Marche Speleological Group once again made the underground journey and the endless descent into the majestic spaces, admired over time by hundreds of thousands of people.
After the presentation of the awards to the speleologists who participated in the discovery of the caves 50 years ago, the guys spoke with the Presenter.
The following is part of the translation of the video. For the full translation. Go to www.ilvoloflightcrw.com to read Daniela’s article, Frasassi 50.
Presenter: Of course, there are many questions we want to ask you, but first of all I want to ask you what you felt when you staged this video clip, that is, what was the atmosphere, the attitude with which you lived this fact.
Gianluca: First of all, it is a great pleasure to be here, and we greet everyone with great affection, thanks for the welcome.
It is a magical place, then, to be able to interpret the notes of the great master Morricone, flanked by a great filmmaker, one of the greatest, the master Vittorio Storaro. At our age to be able to say that we have had these experiences that have enriched us artistically, but also personally.
Presenter: You have now entered the history of cinema.
Gianluca: Of cinema not, maybe one day, who knows.
Presenter: Of humanity.
Gianluca: But being the soundtrack of this wonderful place, 50 years after its discovery, is a great pride for us, a great privilege. Thanks again.
Presenter: Then I want you to continue immediately, (to Ignazio) go, go…
Ignazio: No, if there is a question I speak, otherwise I shut up.
Presenter: There are many questions, but I also want to welcome those who represent perhaps more than all of us, the teacher, that is Storaro’s daughter, Francesca where are you?
Presenter: Here you are Francesca. Welcome Francesca. Why is Francesca here? Because she is a great light-designer who has worked on many things, of which I want to show you some photos.
(To Gianluca) New lights, new caves to discover, perhaps new films to make.
Gianluca: I don’t know, it would be better to ask Vittorio Storaro, we sing…
Presenter: As you know, there was an experiment here of people who have been in the cave for six months, maybe you could be the first tenors ……
Piero: I’m not here for six months!
Ignazio: It’s a little cold, maybe, if you bring me a small stove to warm up, I’ll think about it, however we wanted to …… can we say a few words?
Presenter: Please.
Ignazio: We take this opportunity to thank Maurizio Tosoroni and the mayor, who made all this possible and also the Marche region….
Presenter: A round of applause to Tosoroni.
Ignazio: …… because in any case we are three guys with many very ambitious desires, when we were approached by the master Storaro with this idea, we were immediately amazed and wanted to start working immediately, so without them and our manager Michele Torpedine, who watches us from the steps, from up there.
Is there anyone? (Ignazio raises his hand to his mouth to repeat the words that the first speleologist said when he lowered himself into the cave).
Presenter: Torpedine is not a nickname, he is fast, but that’s what his name is! He is also a little electric, he looks at us from above, he is there (Michele is laughing and making a gesture as if he is getting off the rope), sooner or later he will come down, we do not know when, but sooner or later he will come down.
Ignazio: Thanks, because life is made up of thanks, and it is right to give thanks to those who have allowed us to do all this.
Presenter: Sure, thank you, thank you very much.
Piero: A little while ago we talked to the ex-boys (the speleologists) who discovered this incredible place, they are beautiful, I had a lot of fun, they’re super cool, but where are these men? (Piero looks for them)
Presenter: They are there.
Here they are, a round of applause to the speleologists.
Piero: You are number one!
They are fantastic, one of them has been living in Sicily for 40 years, we chatted, and they told us about when they went down (in the caves), how long it took….
Gianluca: (to the speleologists) You have made history.
Piero: Believe me, I am honored and thrilled to have talked to them and to have made us part of this incredible experience and adventure. Thanks!!
Presenter: Well, great, you were right to point this out. You have seen with the light how much can be done and how much more will probably be done, but there is one thing I have to ask you. I want to ask you something…. I want to ask you: in your opinion, what can be done here with the voice?
Now, right now! (The guys seem surprised)
Ignazio: You can talk to be heard up there, but there is a microphone, or you can….
Piero: Let’s do an experiment.
Presenter: Come on.
Piero: Since this is a magical place and there is acoustics, I would remove the microphone, can we remove the microphone?
Gianluca: We will sing without a microphone.
Presenter: Without microphone come on.
Piero: A little piece.
Presenter: Yes, the usual two and a quarter hours concert!
While you sing, the speleologist will come down. It will give him strength and courage. (He refers to the fact that a speleologist is on top of the mountain descending into the hole from which they descended 50 years earlier.)
The guys sang a splendid piece of “Your Love” a cappella.
Ignazio: We hope and wish that, over time…. many voices from the world will be heard here. There are so many voices this place deserves to hear.
Presenter: This is a great idea, you know.
Piero: This project, the tribute to Ennio Morricone, was born from our ideas, a little exaggerated at times, so during the lockdown we thought and worked intensely on the melodies of maestro Ennio Morricone, with a lot of respect. Then the idea of collaboration with the great maestro Storaro was born and now we are starting again, with optimism, we are sure that we will succeed, we will start with a world tour, carrying around, singing the melodies of Maestro Morricone, and we started from the belly of the earth, as the master Storaro says, so there is no better start.
Gianluca: Above all, it is also the way to bring the beauty of these places, the Frasassi Caves, around the world. It is a way to bring, not only what is our tradition through our voices, Italian music, but also the beauties of our country. This is a UNIQUE place in the world.
Presenter: It’s true, it’s really true. Thank you thank you.
Ignazio: Thank you very much. (the presenter motions him to continue). I don’t say anything more.
Ignazio: …. I wanted to say that with Maurizio Tosoroni, we will try to ensure that our colleagues (other singers) will come here, even with the mayor, to enjoy this magnificent place.
Presenter: Well, thank you, really thank you, I don’t know whether to call you “boys,” you are boys but also something more, now you belong to the history of humanity.
So, where do we go from here! Now that Our Guys Stepped into the History Books, it will be necessary to continue to bring this project around the world!
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure!
As always we thank Daniela for her translations for these stories!
