The European tour is over! What a spectacular tour it was! In this tour the guys brought us new songs, new realities and their new individuality! I had the good fortune of seeing the concert in Athens and I can say it and all the European concerts were phenomenal!
Those of you who read my column know that when a tour is over, I rewrite the guy’s story because they have new fans who just want to know everything there is to know about them.
The source of my story is the guy’s first book, “Il Volo, Un’avventura straordinaria, La nostra. If you can read Italian I highly recommend you read it.
My story is their story as seen through my eyes. The guys are present in the Italics of my story. They come in and out of the story moving us along on their journey! Their early lives come alive in their stories and words.
Let me tell you how this book is written. The beginning of the book is three individual stories. In age order it is Piero, Ignazio, Gianluca and it continues this way until the three come together. A very unique idea. Episode by episode we will relive their lives and experience their very beginnings.
Those of you who have read my stories about the guys know, whenever I write a story about one of them there is usually something in that story that I can relate to. There are two things I relate to in this story. One thing is, I can relate to Piero’s family because he was raised as I was. Every word I read brings a smile to my face because it could be my family he is writing about. The second thing you’ll have to wait until the end of story for me to tell you about that.
Let me start by saying, Piero has a very sharp memory. I believe he is very detail oriented. When he does an interview or in stories I’ve read, he remembers every little detail. When an interview is over or he finishes his story, you know the event as it happened and there is nothing more for you to know. He’s told it all. He is very sensitive and very emotional when he speaks about his childhood and his family.
In the beginning of this story, we meet Pietro Ognibene, Piero’s grandfather. When we lost Mr. Ognibene I wrote a story, “The Man Behind the Man,” and I asked the question, “Who is Pietro Ognibene?” The answer is he was a great discoverer. No, he didn’t discover a new land or a cure for anything, he discovered something even better, he discovered Piero Barone!
This is the first time I am writing this story since he left us. I think Piero would agree with me, that the most wonderful thing about being part of a close Italian family is we speak often about our loved ones who have left us, and we keep them alive with our stories. So, without further ado, let me bring this story of Pietro Ognibene alive by telling you about the first time Piero sang Un Amore Così Grande.
In the garden of Piero’s grandparents’ house there is a Mulberry Tree and hanging on that tree is an old-fashioned swing.
As was his custom, Piero’s grandfather Pietro would come out on the terrace every morning and find a cool place to sit. Pietro always had a recorder with him. He had been blind for many years, and he used the recorder to record music, recite poetry and compose songs. Piero says…
When I think back to the first images I have of him, he is sitting on the terrace in the country, with a stereo in his hands.
On this morning, Piero is on the swing, and on the terrace, Pietro is preparing to record a song. It’s just a little song. The song is only two lines, and it is pure Sicilian. Pietro begins to sing. E lu suli talia, talia, talia. Sopra ‘sta petra luci ci duna, that is and, the sun, look, look, look, to this stone gives the light.
Piero recalls… I was swinging on the swing, I was about four or five years old, I was really, very, small. I listened to him a little and at a certain point, when he stopped singing, I started: E lu suli, talia, talia, talia. Sopra ‘sta pedra luci ci duna. What can I tell you? It just came out like that.
His grandfather turned off the recorder and called his wife. Rina, came out on the terrace and he asked her, “Unni è Piero?” (Where is Piero?)
She replied, “In Altalena” (He is on the swing)
Pietro asked, “Ma cu cantava? Iddru?” (But who was singing? He?)
She replied, “Eh, si.” (yes)
He told Rina to call him.
So, Piero got up and went to his grandfather. Pietro lifted him up and put him on the table next to the recorder and told him to “sing the song again.” Piero sang the song exactly as his grandfather sang it. He listened to Piero sing the song and then he made the decision to go to his friend Antonio’s house to record it.
Antonio was a friend of Pietro, and he shared a passion for music with him. Antonio had in his home what was called at that time a “recording studio”. It was not very big but it did have a bigger stereo and a microphone. So, that afternoon they recorded Piero singing his grandfathers’ song in Sicilian. But it didn’t stop there!
The next day they went to the countryside to the Riolo’s house. Piero’s grandparents had a country house and the Riolo’s were their neighbors. Pietro had a good relationship with Mr. Riolo, because he had worked for him in the past and they were family friends. So, Pietro and Piero went to visit Mimmo Riolo. They all sat together under a carob tree because the air was always fresh under that tree. While the men talked, Piero ate prickly pears. (Piero has such great memories in the Riolo gardens, but that’s a story for another day.)
Pietro said to his old friend, “You know, Mimmo, yesterday I discovered that my grandson has a nice voice.”
Mimmo thought about it for a moment and came up with an idea. “I want Piero to listen to one of my favorite singers”.
Piero recalls…. And this is how I listened for the first time to Un Amore Cosi’ Grande by Mario del Monaco. And I learned it right away, but right away. (Piero has a photographic memory when it comes to songs. He only has to hear a song once or twice and he has it.) My grandfather was very proud. And something told me the next day we would go to record Un Amore Così Grande at Antonio’s house.
The day after they visited Mr. Riolo, they went to Anotonio’s house to record Un Amore Così Grande.
My name is Piero Barone. I was born on June 24, 1993 in the Sicilian city of Naro.
What can I tell you about Naro? For me, it is the most beautiful city in the world! There are dozens of baroque churches and above the city the Chiaramonte castle. Below the castle is the beautiful Valle del Paradiso with its green pastures and the green sea that separates Naro from the real sea… and there’s the Spring Festival Narese!
Piero fondly remembers summers in the countryside. He recalls how in the winter the entire family gathered on a Sunday for wonderful dinners and everyone was presents from his great grandmother down to all the aunts, uncles and cousins, who were like sisters and brothers to him. And he says another beautiful thing that happened in the countryside was that in the summer the entire family met for dinner every evening. Piero has said about his time in the countryside…. I swear, they were perhaps the most beautiful days of my life, and I will never forget them.
On the evening, after recording Un Amore Così Grande, as always, everyone ate dinner together. After dinner all the kid’s played soccer while the adults went outside to chat and enjoy the cool of the evening on the terrace. But this evening would be a little different. This evening would be the beginning of Piero’s journey to stardom!
When they finished dinner, Pietro called to his wife. “Rina, get the recorder.” Rina brought in the recorder and placed it in front of Pietro. The recorder was already prepared with the cassette. Pietro turns to Piero’s dad and says, “Listen to this voice, Gaetano.” He pushes the play button and starts the recording of Un Amore Così Grande. Gaetano is amazed, like he has just heard a good thing, and he says, “It’s beautiful, who is it Daddy?” (Gaetano calls his father-in-law Daddy.) Pietro says, “Piero.” Silence! Gaetano has a questioning looking on his face. “How did Piero?” Pietro says, “So?”
On that night Piero’s life changed! His father did everything he could think of to start him on a musical journey. He wanted Piero to start the festivals, but he was too young.
He needed to “put in a base” because the voice alone was not enough. Gaetano asked himself, “What must Piero start to do?” And the answer was, “Piero must start playing the piano.”
His father wanted him to start taking piano lessons, but he didn’t start until he was eight or nine. In those four years between the time he first sang Un Amore Così Grande and the first time he sat at the keyboard of a piano, Piero says…. who took care of my musical education, my grandfather.
Piero’s grandfather had a great passion for music. He composed songs in dialect, and he was a singer of popular music in the country. In Naro there are many folk groups because it is the capital of the Almond Blossom Festival, the Primavera Narese. Keeping this traditional festival alive means keeping alive the musical tradition of the folk groups. Piero says…. so many guys are singing in these groups, and I was singing too. That’s how I started to learn the songs of Sicilian folklore.
Piero began to study piano at the age of eight but, economically, the family could not afford the costs of the lessons. So, Piero’s grandfather paid for everything, and not just from the material point of view. Stefano Tesè was Piero’s first piano teacher. The mother of Piero’s teacher lived on the floor below in his grandfather’s house and the master came to see his mother every Monday. Pietro made an agreement with Mr. Tesè to give Piero lessons every Monday at six o’clock.
Piero says…. the road was very short to my grandfather’s house, I could even go there alone, but here was a second problem, to get there I had to face a dog that was going around in that neighborhood, that dog would approach and bark furiously. And I have a fear of dogs. Squeezed under my grandfather’s arm, he, who being blind needed to be guided, I felt protected as behind a shield: when the dog approached, he shouted: “Passa arrassu!” (fast pass), go away, and the dog went away.
Piero confesses there is a third problem…. every Monday six in the afternoon was a nightmare for me, because I did not like going to the piano lesson, or rather, I liked it only when the lessons were good, when I could play, but at the beginning I was bored a lot with the hammers, solfeggios and all the things that you rightly have to learn to play the piano. Maestro Tesè was a tough guy, and I was always worried that he would scold me. After a while I started to understand how the piano worked and the lessons started to please me.
And so it was that Piero started his classical musical education.
You know how I love including interviews in my stories. This interview is different.
A number of years ago, Enrico Lucci of Ilene did an interview with the boys and their families. During the interview, Lucci asked Pietro Ognibene a question something to the effect of “Can you believe all that’s happened to Piero?”
Pietro: When I’m alone and I close my eyes, I can believe it, if I could see, maybe it would not happen.
Lucci: Why?
Pietro: I could continue my work, my way, without stopping on him. (What he meant was if he had not become blind, he would have been at work, so he would have less time with his grandson. More clearly, he would not have been on the terrace that day.)
Lucci: Is it worth the loss of sight for such a giant success?
Pietro: This is a question too important because, if I tell you it is better not to see my grandson that would be a lie, and vice versa it would be a bigger lie. (He cannot answer because in either case he loses something important. To see his grandson but then Piero would not become famous, or not see his grandson but so Piero has become famous.)
It’s hard to step away from this wonderful story because there is so much more to tell, but this is all I can say for now! We will return the Episode Two of Piero’s story after we hear Ignazio and Gianluca’s story in Episode One.
One last thing, I promised you that at the end of Piero’s story I would tell you what the other thing is that I relate to in this story. Around the time of this event in the garden when Piero was swinging on the swing that hung from the Mulberry tree, I was busy in New York writing a screenplay, the name of that screenplay was The Mulberry Tree!
This is the first episode in Piero’s story. Before I move on, I would like to say that over this last year, I have written more about Piero than the other two guys. Why? Because I watched Piero come into his own. He was always a phenomenal tenor but during the pandemic, Piero had the opportunity to do something that he couldn’t do so easily while on tour; he really started studying Opera. Every afternoon, Piero would come on Instagram and would practice the opera Cavalleria Rusticana. Since his return to the stage after the pandemic, we’ve all noticed his phenomenal tenor voice has because a magnificent Operatic voice. So powerful, so engaging! And when the new individual Piero sings his operas, he does what every opera singer from the time of Caruso has done ~ he follows his opera with Neapolitan songs. When I heard Piero sing Marechiare I knew the task was done, he was ready! Piero you are so ready for an Opera. Whenever and wherever you sing your first opera rest assured I will be there, and I think many of the fans will be with me.
A Note to Piero’s American fans: On November 5, 2023, our Piero will run in the New York Marathan. Piero all of the American fans will be cheering you on! I will see you at the starting line in my hometown of Staten Island.
What I have written here are excerpts from the book the guys wrote about their lives. “Il Volo, Un’avventura Straordinario, La Nostra Storia.” (An Extraordinary Adventure, Our Story) This is just a small piece of each man’s story. The book is written in Italian. If you can read Italian, I would highly recommend that you read it. It’s wonderful! If not, I can only hope that someday it will be translated into English. Or you can use Google Translate to translate it.
I also recommend you read their second book “IL Volo: Quello Che Porto Nel Cuore” (What I Carry in My Heart).
And let’s not forget their album. Available on Spotify, Amazon, and other music media!
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure. Next week we take a look at Ignazio’s childhood.
If you would like to share a story with me, please email: susan.flightcrew@yahoo.com
To read more Il Volo stories visit us at www.ilvoloflightcrw.com
Little by little, Il Volo has reached the last 3 concerts of the European tour.
There were great satisfactions and everything on tour went well.
9 October, Hungary: BUDAPEST
A nice surprise from Gianluca during the soundcheck in Budapest, he sang and played SIGN OF THE TIMES, very good!! 😍
From the concert:
ECSTASY OF GOLD
HALLELUJAH
HERE’S TO YOU
There was a guest, the Hungarian singer, Gabi Tóth with whom they sang the beautiful song: CANZONE PER TE. Beautiful quartet, congratulations to all four. ❤️❤️❤️❤️
GABI published this video on her Facebook page, with this comment:
Il Volo had a fantastic concert last night and I am grateful to have been able to sing this wonderful song with them, with just one rehearsal and without speaking the same language, but we understood each other in the language of music! Thanks for the opportunity, Roland Horvat. (her manager)
This was published by KONCERTPROMO.HU
Il Volo hosted a fantastic evening in Budapest! 🎉
Budapest, October 10, 2023. It was a magical evening on October 9, when the trio of IL VOLO, Piero Barone, Ignazio Boschetto and Gianluca Ginoble performed at the Budapest Sportarena. The evening was opened by the energetic performance of the talented Vavra Bence, where the excitement and anticipation of the audience could be felt from the very beginning. The tension reached its peak when the long-awaited moment finally arrived and IL VOLO took the stage. The world-famous trio, which conquered the Hungarian audience for the first time in 2019, once again proved that it rightfully belongs among the greatest. As Piero Barone, a member of IL VOLO, said in his interview to Index: “We are very happy to have come to Hungary again, and we are sure that the audience will enjoy the evening.”
At the end of the evening, Roland Horváth, director of Koncert Promo, enthusiastically declared: “IL VOLO concerts are always special, but this evening was exceptional. Their music, their voice, their splendor is unique. We are sure that the audience had a unique experience during the concert.” The production, the organizers and the artists concluded the evening satisfied. Budapest will surely remember this special concert for a long time and we hope we won’t have to wait long for the trio’s return!
**IL VOLO’s concert was an evening that music lovers should not miss. Thank you for being with us and being a part of this unforgettable musical experience!**
October 10: Czech Republic: PRAGUE
Our young men always send photographs of the cities where they will have concerts, “tourists by day, singers by night”.
But sometimes, walking around the streets of the old part of the city of PRAGUE, you can have special encounters that make your heart happy, and this is how mum Eleonora and dad Ercole reached their son, to the joy of a happy Gianluca! 😍😍
The concert was held in the beautiful and modern O2 Arena.
O SOLE MIO
VOLARE
GRANDE AMORE
Also in Prague CANZONE PER TE was sung with a good singer from the Czech Republic: Tereza Maskova. ❤️❤️❤️❤️
Tereza posted this on her Facebook page.
I’m realizing this really happened. 🙈❤️ My childhood dream has come true. 🙏
I’ve been smiling from ear to ear since the morning and remember yesterday’s concert @ilvolomusic I’m watching videos and I still can’t believe it. 😍 I wonder, but was I really next to them? Did I really sing with them? Well, for sure yes. 😁❤️
Thank you so much for this experience it was an honor. ❤️
02 ARENA Prague, published this comment:
The musical group Il Volo presented its long-awaited debut in Prague! We will long remember this wonderful evening full of Italian passion and extraordinary musical experience!
How did you like the concert?✨
This instead was published by IREPORT.CZ Musica and Style Magazine, which I translated for you.
Il Volo created a magical atmosphere in the O2 arena, the trio was accompanied by Tereza Mašková.
Il Volo visited the Czech Republic for the first time. The trio, who represented Italy at Eurovision 2015, amazed Prague not only with their singing talent, but also with their spirit. The singers accompanied by the orchestra were not afraid to communicate regularly with the audience, both in English and in their native Italian. At each concert of the Il Volo tour, a selected song is accompanied by a local artist.
For the Prague show they chose Tereza Mašková, who has been a fan of theirs for a long time. Together they sang the song CANZONE PER TE. Celine Dion’s My Heart Will Go On, Leonard Cohen’s Hallelujah and Sinatra’s My Way were also performed. The fans rewarded the trio with a standing ovation and incessant applause for the beautiful evening.
Among many concerts and great successes with the public and affection, we are slowly moving towards the last scheduled concert, as the concert in Tel Aviv, as you know, has been postponed for now. 😞🙏
And so here we are at the last European concert.
October 12, LITHUANIA: Kaunas
IL MONDO
MY WAY
CARUSO
MISERERE
A nice summary of some songs.
Standing Ovation 👏🏻
In this photo you can see Gianluca, Piero and Ignazio with the journalist Ramunas Zilnys who published the photo with these words:
“It’s nice to meet the Il Volo guys in person after an 8-year break. Beautiful concert in Kaunas tonight / Nice to see Il Volo again (we met at Eurovision 8 years ago). Great concert in Kaunas.”
While Il Volo on its Facebook page thanks all the fans for the love they had during the European concerts, Barbara Vitali publishes this photo which highlights the flights carried out by Il Volo for this tour, remarkable!!
And we are right at the end of the European tour. I would say that Piero, Gianluca and Ignazio can be happy with how this tour went, because the affection of their fans has been reconfirmed.
And now??? What will they do??
Maybe they should rest a little……but no, there is already some news that will make us happy, on October 29th they will be in Mexico for the closing of the Festival Internacional Chihuahua.
And that’s all for now but, as you may have understood, we’ll talk to you soon:
In Romania this year there are three concerts. Here too, great welcome and lots of affection.
September 30: CLUJ-NAPOCA
SE
MY WAY
MAMMA QUEL VINO GENEROSO – Piero
LIBIAM DE LIETI CALICI
And now a nice summary of the songs in Cluj-Napoca, as you will notice the boys vary the setlist and also the way of performing the songs, for example My Way is sung by Gianluca and Piero and not by all three. They also included songs like LA DONNA È MOBILE and others. In short, they try to give different interpretations and not always propose the same concert.
HERE’S TO YOU and SURRENDER
October 2 ORADEA
Even here in Oradea, a great and warm welcome from the public.
Soundcheck.
CARUSO
ANGEL – Gianluca
MY HEART WILL GO ON – Ignazio
HALLELUJAH
ALL BY MYSELF – Ignazio
IL MONDO
VOLARE
GRANDE AMORE
4 October Bucharest,
in the beautiful Sala Palatului (Palace Hall), which is located behind the Royal Palace.
Bucharest had been sold out for some time, much to the delight of our three men.
ECSTASY OF GOLD
A moment of dialogue during the concert and the usual Ignazio making mischief!! 😁😁😁
O SOLE MIO
MISERERE Piero and Ignazio
DELILAH
FUNICULÌ FUNICULÀ
NESSUN DORMA
SE TELEFONANDO
UN AMORE COSÌ GRANDE
GRANADA
NO PUEDE SER
HERE’S TO YOU
NELLA FANTASIA
And here are some photos of the Bucharest concert!
Let’s not forget that October 4th was also Ignazio’s birthday and all the fans competed to give many gifts to Ignazio, but also flowers and little gifts to Piero and Gianluca too.
Ignazio celebrated by the whole crew.
The big hearts of the fans started already in the afternoon at the soundcheck….
…..and during the concert from Gianluca and Piero 😍😍
Still beautiful songs, still lots of love and happiness.
Ignazio’s face is priceless with joy for the affection and gifts received. 😍
That’s right, their concerts are popular for their undeniable skill, but also for their way of being. As we have always said, if you see and hear them you will fall in love!!❤️❤️❤️
Our Facebook fanpage was blocked for a few days, and some of you may have thought “but where has Flight Crew gone?” They told us that we don’t respect Facebook’s “standards” and for this reason they had blocked us, but now it’s Everything is OK.
So we are late with the articles on the various concerts, but we will try to catch up.
21 September PLOVDIV, Bulgaria, in the beautiful Ancient Theatre.
Lots of enthusiastic people. I will attach only one video for Plovdiv, but on YouTube I found the entire video of the whole concert, it is shot from the side and sometimes it makes you feel seasick watching it 😁, but the video does not have a moment’s pause, and the dialogue is in English, so you will be able to listen to an entire concert and understand what is being said, enjoy the audience’s reactions and I hope you will appreciate my choice even if the images make you a little nauseous. 😁😉.
And how wonderful it is to witness moments like this! ❤
What a great and emotional evening it was. Such a blessing. We, and especially Vaya, we’re so excited and happy for the opportunity to listen to these great and touching voices once again Thank you @ilvolomusic, @giampierograni , @gianginoble11 , @barone_piero and @ignazioboschetto – you are simply amazing and the best Thank you! ( from Vaya’s mom)
Soundcheck Plovdiv
But now the time has finally come for concerts in Greece. After such a long wait, Greek fans will finally be able to have two concerts:
September 23 Thessaloniki
Greece has waited a long time for this moment and the Greek fans have savored every moment of Il Volo’s presence.
MY WAY
IL MONDO
SE
I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU
GRANDE AMORE
Torpedine and Barbara to the right ☺
On the sign: Gianluca, Ignazio, Piero, you are my great loves. ❤
September 25, ATHENS
The magnificent ODEON HERODES ATTICUS will host the concert.
The public has a lot of love to give to Piero, Gianluca and Ignazio and the three of them are thrilled by this warm welcome from the Greek audience.
Our dear friend RoseMarie Paliobes was present, both in Thessaloniki and in Athens, she was in the front row there, she sent me this comment:
Ok, it happened! I was in Thessaloniki and Athens with some of my family and other Greek relatives from Larissa. My daughter, granddaughter and I had front row seats in Thessaloniki. They were not assigned seats so it was first come first seated. We were very fortunate to have gone to the sound check and get the best seats. The guys were talking to us except Gianluca who was on the phone, he seemed tired or maybe wasn’t feeling well. Between sound check and show Ignazio and Piero were walking around the theater. Ignazio as usual being followed by young girls. Piero stopped to talk to me, my daughter and granddaughter. I asked him when they would come back to the USA and he said 2025 (😥), but he will be in New York this November because he is training to run the NYC marathon. I told him my daughter and granddaughter both run and the conversation went on about running. He is very serious about that. Then we went and waited for the concert to begin.
When the guys came out on stage I thought my heart would burst. ❤❤❤
Greece has been waiting a very, very long time for this evening to happen. The guys knew it but were still a little surprised by the outpouring of love from the sold out. At the end of the concert the guys promised to come back to Greece soon. 😘😘😘
It was the same in Athens, we had 2nd row seats, first row for some Greek VIPs. The Herodus Atticus theater at the base of the Parthenon is heart stoppingly beautiful. With the guys on stage even more so. Gianluca seemed to be his old self, sweet, sexy and in a romantic mood. Ignazio, what can I say about him, funny, serious, in great form. Piero, my goodness what a voice, I’m waiting for him to sing at the Met or LaScala, I think he is ready. Only negative thing was, they cancelled the sound check and Meet and Greet. We were told “technical difficulties”. Very disappointing. So, now, here is the best for last. Piero knew from the Meet and Greet OMGVIP guy John that we did not have the Meet and Greet in Thessaloniki, so after that concert, John came out and said we were invited to come as Piero’s personal guests. I thought I died and went to heaven. It was one of the best evenings of my life. ❤
Wow, wow, Beautiful experience RoseMarie, and what about Piero? Truly a beautiful person, who knows how many would have liked to be in your place.
THE TWO EVENINGS WITH IL VOLO TO THESSALONIKI AND ATHENS WERE MAGICAL
Finally, the Italian trio Il Volo has many more friends in Greece than we imagined. On Saturday evening the Gis Theater in Thessaloniki was packed, sold out since the first days of ticket sales at the Herodion, where we met last night.
The ‘boys with the golden throat’ Piero Barone, Ignazio Boschetto and Gianluca Ginoble showed themselves moved by the warm welcome from the world, but also by the grandeur of the Ancient Theater of Herodes Atticus. With great vocal form, they took us on a journey to our favorite songs in the best possible way. And what was missing from their program, from bel canto, to classical arias, Ennio Morricone, Elvis Presley, Frank Sinatra, Celine Dion, but also Leonard Cohen and Robbie Williams.
The moments we didn’t expect were the fun playing with the audience between one very challenging performance and another. The development of three very different personalities with quite different musical preferences. Ignazio has at least five mentions of how much he likes feta (Loreen, you’re not the only one). The…going up to the stands of the Herodion for hugs and selfies with the fans while at the same time singing ‘Here’s to you’ by Ennio Morricone.
Piero’s admission of how lucky we should all feel (putting himself first) to be where we are now. Gianluca’s confession that through Eurovision they realized how much the Greek fans love them.
The moment we were all waiting for – but once again its magic is indescribable – arrived at the end, with their only song of the setlist, ‘Grande amore’. Shortly before, they made us all stand up to sing and dance together to a rousing rendition of “Volare”.
The extraordinary ERT Contemporary Music Orchestra under the direction of George Aradis certainly added to the magic. In Thessaloniki, the Thessaloniki Municipality Symphony Orchestra, conducted by Anastasios Symeonidis, is equally enchanting.
Too many Il Volo fans who couldn’t find tickets were on the pavement right outside the Herodion last night. Many had their stools with them. As we learned, they enjoyed the sound part of the concert (the acoustics were fantastic even outside) and were just as moved as those “inside”.
The concert ended with a promise from the “boys”. They will definitely come back to us. We await them with the same anticipation.
A beautiful article was published by SOUNDART.GR, a music review website. (You may or may not need to view the link below by using a VPN -virtual private network – like Nord VPN.)
Reportage: ILVOLO triumphed in their sold-out concert at the Herodion.
Il Volo’s appearance in Athens made history with the packed Herodion trembling with music and applause!
After hearing the best things about Il Volo’s appearance in Thessaloniki, the anticipation of all of us to enjoy the Italian stars of the opera-pop scene has become stronger and stronger until we can enjoy them at Herodion on September 25th. Our expectations for one of the best shows of 2023 were far exceeded and Il Volo has written its own history at the historic Athens venue.
From the start the fans of Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca lined up and everything went smoothly until they were placed in their seats. With the clock ticking just a few minutes past 8pm, the scheduled time for the trio and orchestra to appear on stage, loud applause was enough to welcome the energetic and cheerful troubadours. A warm greeting with the three performers who told us “Good morning”, “Good evening” and “Good night” showing us what they learned in Greece, was the beginning to appreciate the melodic “The ecstasy of gold” by Ennio Morricone and “Nessun dorma” by Giacomo Puccini.
“Il Mondo” by Jimmy Fontana, “Granada” by Agustín Lara, but also “Io che non vive (senza te)” by Pino Donaggio created the right atmosphere to enjoy the impressive solos of the three band members. Ignazio Boschetto performed Celine Dion’s “All By Myself” wonderfully and Gianluca impressed us with Elvis Presley’s “I can’t help fall in love”. The irresistible Piero, receiving continuous applause from the audience, “invited” his two friends and colleagues to share the stage again for “Un amore così grande” by Guido Maria, after having first given us a unique interpretation of his “E lucevan le stelle” by Giacomo Puccini.
“Love Theme” from “Cinema Paradiso” made the atmosphere more romantic and they handed over the baton to “Nella fantasia”. Songs like “Se Telefonando” (Mina), “My Way” (Claude François), but also a cover by an artist who had a great influence on the course of Il Volo, Luciano Pavarotti, in the song “Miserere”, brought us listening to the enchanting “Alleluia”, during the performance of which no one stopped singing.
With the atmosphere becoming more “warm” and a little “playful”, Herodion played “Delilah” (Les Reed), “Funiculì, funiculà” (Luigi Danza), but also “Here’s To You” (Ennio Morricone). Among the other iconic and classic songs that have left their mark over time, we appreciated “My Heart Will Go On” by Celine Dion with the voice of Ignazio, “No puede ser” by Pablo Sorozábal by Piero, but also the more modern “Angels” by Robbie Williams by Gianluca.
An impressive finale could not be missing without the most timeless hits of Italian music, so “Caruso” by Lucio Dalla is followed by “Libiamo, ne’ lieti calici” from the opera “La Traviata” by Giuseppe Verdi, but also the unmistakable “ ‘O sole mio” by Eduardo Di Capua. After the “uplifting” “Nel blu,painted blue”, for which Il Volo invited us to get up from our seats, the moment we were all waiting for has arrived. “Grande amore” resounded loudly under the Acropolis with the audience present in a pleasant delirium.
And if any of this will remain unforgettable, it is the energy of Il Volo, who, despite their young age, have made people of all ages adore them for their talent, their impeccable stage presence and their essential communication with the public. Il Volo did not hesitate to climb the stairs to reach the highest level of the stands to reach the highest levels of the Herodion and sing among their beloved fans, while Ignazio will make us think of him for the adoration he showed towards our … “feta cheese”.
With a warm “Goodnight” in broken Greek with an Italian accent, Il Volo promised us that they would be back to visit us soon and we will wait for them! We will see each other!
Ηλέκτρα Λήμνιου Reportage, Slider-home
In this photo, however, you see my three beautiful Greek friends, present at both concerts, RoseMarie, (wearing glasses) you know her well, then there is Katerina Tsaousi and Fofi Soratsioli, I met all three personally a few years ago in Verona .
Here’s what Katerina wrote:
One of the first and one of the last photos of the concert in Odeon Herodes Atticus in Athens.
Between the two photos there is a big difference . The mood of the boys changed. The warmth of the Greek people welcoming every song with long applauses and screams of excitement and pleasure made our idols become at first surprised and then more “open” and the chemistry between the spectators and the artists took fire. The audience didn’t stop singing with the boys and dancing to the last songs.
After the closing song “Grande Amore” the boys gave us a promise that they will return to Greece not only for one more time but for a series of concerts (something that made us very happy).
Gianluca remembered that Greece at the Eurovision song contest of 2015 gave to Italy the biggest award, the 12 points (because Il Volo was the best ). And ,even though there wasn’t any advertisement for Il Volo in the media in Greece, the Greeks made the concert in Athens to be sold out in only ten days and the concert of Thessaloniki to be sold out in the last few days. 5,000 people in Athens and 5,000 people in Thessaloniki enjoyed Il Volo for the first time in Greece . We are happy to have the boys here in our country, we love their music, their talent, their voices and their energy.
I’M TRYING TO FIND ONE WORD TO DESCRIBE WHAT I LIVED LAST NIGHT IN HERODION ANCIENT THEATRE BUT I CAN’T…I’M ALSO TRYING TO DEFINE THE THOUSANDS OF EMOTIONS I WAS OVERFLOWING WITH BUT I FIND IT IMPOSSIBLE!!! WORDS JUST FAIL ME…MAYBE JUST ONE COULD GIVE YOU A SLIGHT IDEA: MAGIC…FOR OUR INCREDIBLE IL VOLO THERE IS NOTHING I COULD SAY THAT YOU DON’T ALREADY KNOW…THEIR PHOTOS SHOULD BE NEXT TO THE WORD “PERFECTION”…DIVINE VOICES, UNIQUE TALENT, AMAZING PERSONALITIES…AFTER NOT MORE THAN TWO MINUTES WATCHING THEM PERFORM, YOU FALL IN ETERNAL LOVE WITH THEM…PIERO, A REAL GENTLEMAN, MORE MATURE THAN EVER…IGNAZIO, A PERFECT SHOWMAN, HE INSTANTLY TAKES YOUR HEART…GIANLUCA, A TENDER SOUL, ROMANTIC AND SENSITIVE…IT WAS A DREAM COME TRUE…A DREAM THAT WE, THE GREEK FANS, HAVE WAITED FOR ALMOST FIFTEEN YEARS TO SEE IT HAPPENING…I’VE ALWAYS PICTURED THE BOYS SINGING IN THIS BEAUTIFUL THEATRE, UNDER THE ACROPOLIS…NO OTHER PLACE COULD BE MORE PERFECT FOR THEM…AND IT WAS MAGIC…A NIGHT WE WILL NEVER FORGET!!! A “THANK YOU” TO THEM WOULD NOT BE ENOUGH FOR WHAT THEY ACTUALLY GAVE US…WE JUST HOPE THAT THEY FELT OUR LOVE, OUR ADMIRATION AND OUR GRATITUDE FOR THAT EXTRAORDINARY EXPERIENCE THEY OFFERED US!!! BOTH PIERO AND IGNAZIO ENDED THE SHOW BY TELLING US THAT THEY DIDN’T EXPECT SUCH A WELCOME, THEY SINCERELY THANKED US FOR ALL OUR LOVE AND PROMISED THEY WILL COME AGAIN SOON…
WE JUST CAN’T WAIT…IT WAS A TWO-HOUR EXCHANGE OF FEELINGS…MUTUAL EMOTIONS THAT LEFT THEIR MARK ON OUR HEARTS AND MINDS IN A PLACE WHICH WAS THE ABSOLUTE MATCH FOR THEM…I’LL CLOSE WITH PIERO’S WORDS LAST NIGHT…AT SOME MOMENT BETWEEN TWO SONGS HE SAID : “ I WAS AT THE BACK LOOKING AROUND THIS PLACE AND THIS BEAUTIFUL MOON ABOVE AND I JUST THOUGHT HOW LUCKY WE ARE TO LIVE IN THIS BEAUTY “…I WOULD ADD “AND TO EXPERIENCE THESE WONDERFUL FEELINGS WE GET THROUGH MUSIC, LOVE AND RESPECT”…PIERO, IGNAZIO, GIANLUCA…FROM THE BOTTOM OF OUR HEARTS: THANK YOU!!!
My goodness, so many beautiful words from everyone and very deserved. Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca must have been truly moved by so much love.
In short, as usual I am speechless for everything I have seen, heard and read.
I am so proud of Piero, Gianluca and Ignazio and I am also so happy that the European fans are appreciating them with so much affection.
Ignazio: MY HEART WILL GO ON (Ignazio’s presentation is very funny)
(at first he addresses someone in the audience) I didn’t understand what you said, but that’s fine anyway. So there’s one scene in particular from this movie (Titanic), when they’re in the car and leave all their fingerprints everywhere……I was 6 years old when I saw it for the first time and so it really stuck with me (laughter ) and I said: “One day I’ll sing it.”
But they put this song as the soundtrack to when Rose gets like this (he opens his arms wide) and says: “Jack I’ll throw myself”…….no, no I’ll throw you!! (laughs) 😁😁😁 MY HEART WILL GO ON.
I would say that the European tour got off to a great start, not only because there was a wonderful response from the public, but also because, despite the numerous commitments before the tour, I see Piero, Gianluca and Ignazio really relaxed and happy. It’s true that they love this “job” but it’s also true that having an enthusiastic audience that loves you…is priceless!!
Daniela 🤗😁
Credit to owners of all photos and videos.
Come in and share the love of life, friends and Il Volo!
