The article above was written to promote the February 2, 2014 – Amadé-Boschetto concert at the Teatro Empire, but it reveals exciting news about Il Volo’s 2014 Concert Tour. Thanks to MN (mlla) for bringing this to our attention!
Here is the news from the newspaper Marsalac’è: “Adesso lo attende un tour di promozione del loro ultimo disco in Giappone, Australia ed Europa; in Italia ci saranno solo 5 tappe del tour e probabilmente una di queste sara a Taormina.”
As translated by Bing: “Now awaits a tour promoting their latest album in Japan, Australia and Europe; in Italy there are only 5 stages of the tour and probably one of these will be in Taormina.”
Now I know online translators are not completely accurate, yet there is enough information for me to believe the rumors of a tour in Europe, Australia and Japan in 2014. To me, the most exciting news is that Il Volo may perform in as many as 5 concerts in Italy, with Sicily’s Taormina possibly being one of them. I have been to Taormina and like almost everywhere I went in Italy, I LOVED IT! Il Volo could be singing in the Greek Theatre, that would be heavenly! I checked the Taormina Events Calendar 2014 at the link below but do not see Il Volo listed — yet!
I hope everyone up in the frozen Tundra is staying warm!! I hope talking about Il Volo and seeing their pictures and videos are keeping you cozy on these cold winter nights. Here in Florida it will be 81 today. I’m not boasting too much, when summer comes and the weather here is like being blasted by a furnace and staying in air conditioning is all you can do, you can brag about your balmy summer breezes and I’m sure, usually cooler nights!
No real news about “The Boys” Gianluca is tweeting up a storm and Piero says he studying the “Ave Maria” Ignazio is not tweeting lately, maybe soon hopefully!
So we will do another round of Did you Know???
From The NY Times
Did you know when Il Volo was just starting the “Boys” and their families were very nervous about touring? It was a great sacrifice for the families, none of them are wealthy and except for Ignazio, had younger siblings. Ignazio’s mother owned a pizza restaurant and left Ignazio’s older sister to run it. Because all of “The Boys” were underage at the time they each had to have at least one parent accompany them. It’s nice to see that even including their last tour, they still had a parent accompany them, though they are now old enough to be on their own!
This time I thought we’d look back on one of America’s all time favorite singers, PerryComo. All of us of a certain age remember those days of TV when all the entertainment was family oriented. I remember our whole family watched The Perry Como Show every week! His Christmas specials were much anticipated every holiday season.
Pierino Ronald Como was born in Cannonsburg, PA in 1912, the seventh of 13 children, and the first one born in the United States. Although he could barely afford it, his father insisted all his children have music lessons. Perry played instruments, but did not sing until he was older.
When Perry was 14 years old he had his own barber shop which later became a venue of sorts for weddings and other functions, with Perry singing of course.
Perry Como met his wife Roselle when she was 17. They married in 1933 and had 3 children. They were married 65 years at the time of her death.
Perry Como’s weekly TV show was on from 1949-1963. His Kraft Music Theater monthly show was on until 1967. His Christmas Specials were on until 1994, the last one from Ireland.
Some of Perry’s best known songs were “Papa Loves Mambo”, “Hot Diggity dog”, “And I love You So”, “Catch A Falling Star” and “It’s Impossible”. His rendition of “Ave Maria” was always sung on his Christmas Special. He, by the way, did not perform this song in front of a live audience, he thought it not appropriate. It was his most requested song, he taped it without an audience to be shown on his special
He was affectionately known as “Mr C”. Bing Crosby said of him “He re-invented casual” Perry loved playing golf.
Perry Como died in 2001 at the age of 88 in Jupiter Inlet Colony, Florida. he was much loved and I’ll always remember him as a part of my life as I grew up.
Did you Know, that IL Volo’s management team headed by Michele Torpedine is based in Bologna, Italy? Here is a small history of this historical city.
Bologna (Italian pronunciation: [boˈloɲɲa] ( Emilian: Bulåggna pronounced [buˈləɲɲa]; Latin: Bononia) is the largest city (and the capital) of Emilia-Romagna Region in Italy. It is the seventh most populous city in Italy, located in the heart of a metropolitan area (officially recognized by the Italian government as a città metropolitana) of about one million.
Kelly asked that I remind you that the deadline for the Gianluca birthday post is this coming Friday 1/31. Please, if you can, send something for the video presentation.
On a personal note, this past Saturday I had the pleasure of having dinner with LeeLee and Joan from “The Crew” I had met LeeLee before, but this was the first time the 3 of us had a chance to meet. What did we talk about? What do YOU think?
Update: Placido Domingo appeared on RAI’s L’Arena with Massimo Giletti January 5, 2014, click the link below for the full show. Maestro Domingo’s interview is in the middle of the recorded program.
Maria – We can’t thank you enough for filling us in on RAI’s interview with Placido Domingo! Il Volo certainly has made a great impression on maestro Domingo! Michele
Just in from Maria P. from Rome, Italy:
“I’m beside myself with joy and I want to try right away to share it with you and with the other IL VOLO’s fans.
Well, this afternoon the most important Sunday’s RAI broadcast interviewed at length Placido Domingo and he said that after that he, Carrera and Pavarotti had formed the “THREE TENORS” many imitators were born as “THE THREE BARITONES” the “THREE BASSO” etc. but almost all have been unsuccessful.
Instead there are currently three guys who deserve to collect their inheritance. These three guys are “IL VOLO”. He said they’are fantastic and that he was very happy to have recorded a song with them.
He also said that all his grandchildren adore IL VOLO, go to their concerts and have made friends with them. IL VOLO has a new and important Ambassador.
Maria P’s explanation of the videos of Il Volo with the Rosario Fiorello, see below!
On our “Il Volo with Rosario Fiorello – December 17, 2013” post at the very bottom of the page, I wrote, “mlla posted these videos … anyone who would like to translate them for us can send the translation to me…” We are so fortunate that today an angel from Rome answered our call, below is Maria P’s explanation of the videos of Il Volo with the Rosario Fiorello.
Thank you so much! Buon Natale to you Maria P!
Kisses from Il Volo Flight Crew – we come from all over the world!
Maria P, “Following up your request I hereby try to explain the funny and cheerful atmosphere sensed during the show.
OK I start: Piero, Ignazio & Gianluca are introduced by Fiorello ( one of the most famous showman here in Italy) and after various hilarious gags which I think is useless to translate, since they concern typical italian personalities and, therefore, cannot be understood outside Italy, Fiorello, Piero and Ignazio (all the three Sicilians) sing a typical Sicilian pop song called TIRAME A CIOLLA (namely BLOW ME A KISS).
This song is about a guy who tells a girl that he’s very sick and for this he cannot eat, drink and sleep. But if she blows him a kiss (ciolla) he’d recover at once. Of course this is a song that is not easily rendered in English, but is extremely funny.
At last Fiorello asks IL VOLO to sing LA CIOLLA as opening song of all they concerts all over the world (of course he was joking).
I hope I’ve been of help and seize the opportunity to wish everybody a MERRY MERRY ‘XMAS & A WONDERFUL 2014.
During Christmas time the tradition sees bagpipes (zampogne or ciaramedda) players dressed like shepherds, especially common in Abruzzo and Sicily but not only, going around cities and villages playing old Christmas tunes with their other original instruments like the flute (Friscaletto in Sicily).
So may are the popular Christmas songs that we are going to mention just a few of the most well known: “Tu scendi dalle stelle” here by Zampogne D’Abruzzo composed by S. Alfonso De’ Liguori (1696-1787)
Of course, there then the classical cantata, so many that we would need lot of space to list them here, therefore we give only one as reference “the Christmas Cantata” composed by A. Scarlatti (Palermo 1660-Naples 1725) should anyone have the curiosity to listen to it search on You tube.
We conclude now with a very famous Italian saying reinforcing the family aspect of the Christmas Holiday. “Natale con i tuoi e Pasqua con chi vuoi” which can roughly be translated into: Christmas with your family and Easter with everyone else you like to be with. The end.
Bits and Pieces on Christmas Traditions in Italy by mn – Part III
Pictures by mn
Videos: All credit to respective owners
Come in and share the love of life, friends and Il Volo!
