Disclaimer…I am not choosing favorites here (just doing Ignazio first) as I will be doing a Growing Up on each of the three guys. This is more of a pictorial essay than a written one. Just thought I’d make Marie do her happy dance by doing her dreamboat first. Are ya happy Marie??
IT TAKES COURAGE TO GROW UP AND BECOME WHO YOU REALLY ARE.
E. E. Cummings
IF YOU DON’T DO WILD THINGS WHEN YOU ARE YOUNG,
YOU’LL HAVE NOTHING TO SMILE ABOUT WHEN YOU’RE OLD.
DO NOT GO WHERE THE PATH MAY LEAD,
GO INSTEAD WHERE THERE IS NO PATH AND LEAVE A TRAIL.
We have watched you grow up right before our very eyes. We have seenyou go where there was no path. You, along with your IL Volo brothers, have forged a new trail where no other singers your age were bringing their bel canto to the world. You have given us your all and we are so very grateful.
THE BEST AND MOST BEAUTIFUL THINGS IN THE WORLD CANNOT BE SEEN OR EVEN TOUCHED…THEY MUST BE FELT WITH THE HEART. Helen Keller
Michele Torpedine is a familiar face to us all as he is the manager, producer and a very important mentor for our guys.
He began his career as a drummer of Orietta Berti, Mortal Coil and Gino Paoli. He moved on to become aworld famous producer and manager for many singers such as Zucchero, Giorgia and Andrea Bocelli.
In a 2014 interview in Roseto degli Abruzzi, Michele states, “Gianluca,Pieroand Ignazio were a breath of fresh air, that regenerated me.” The guys share a very closefriendship and camaraderie with Michele. Mr. Torpedine says the success of Il Volois from America, due to the love the public has for the Italian bel canto.You have to have talent and preparation, otherwise it will not last. Many hundreds of names have come out as Il Volo did from television broadcasting in recent years, but do not last. Gianluca, Pieroand Ignazio last and actually grow, because they are good. I think that is enough to explain their strength. He adds, luck, intuition and expertise are the three things you must have for doing his job. There is no recipe, he says, sometimes great success can occur completely unexpected and unpredictable. Michele recalls that through getting to know and be together with the guys, he appreciated their full potential and knew they were a real phenomena, destined to last.
You will see him with the group at certain times when on tour, at professional gatherings and events, during their “relax” times when they are out enjoying themselves and at private family gatherings as well. He has been with them from the very beginning. Along with their parents, Michele is one more intelligent and caring individual leading the guys down the right roads everywhere they go. He is an integral part of the ILVOLO family. You can see he has a wonderful sense of humor just like the guys, but the love and respect is mutual between them all.
<> at Rose Bar at Gramercy Park Hotel on March 2, 2011 in New York City.
A gracious thank you to Michele for taking such good care of Gianluca, Piero and Ignazio…for being someone they can look up to, trust, and rely on during these important years as they are establishing their careers and future.
Gianluca’s stunning photo taken on their flight to Santiago, Chile, captured my eye. This beautiful image of the pink clouds reminds me how IL VOLO’S musicsends us ALL soaring to the heavens. They chose the name of their group based on how they feel when they sing…THE FLIGHT. Their music elevates not only them, but the listener as well, to magnificentheights.
I know their music means different things to different people. As I thought about exactly where their music takes me, I realize ittakes me to acountry I have never been to before. Through their music and passion for their homeland I find myself wanting tolearn and absorb all I canabout theirbeautiful Italy. It is now on my bucket list to get there someday! Their music also lifted me and provided beauty and serenity to enter my world once again following the loss of my son. I have never in my life played music from only one group like I have with Il Volo. When I listen to my CD’s their music takes me right back to one of various concerts I attended and I relive the moment when I saw them singing it in person. Their music has been one of the most powerful sources of energy to me in my life.
So now I will give you the chance to tell us…where does their music takeYOU?
The guys must be studying up onhow to perfect the Blue Steel pose taken from the infamous modeling move of Ben Stiller in the movie Zoolander.
According to wikiHow to do anything…here are the steps to practice to be the coolest, have charmand be simply irresistible!
Strike a pose. Pop your collar and grab a handful of attitude. Spike your hair if you have time to plan ahead.
Tilt one of your shoulders towards the camera. If there’s no camera, aim for the person who’s the target of your killer pose.
Face the camera. Look head on at the camera or your target. Don’t even THINK of blinking.
Pucker your lips. You want an insouciant blend of boo-boo lips, lemon sucking and kiss.
Suck in your cheeks. Suck hard so your cheeks cave in.
I think it is safe to say the guys areALREADYthe coolest, charming, simplyirresistible young men on the planet even WITHOUT the Blue Steel pose!
To have your photo taken a bazillion times since being a youngster and ALWAYS have it turn out good is simplyremarkable. I would guess there must be a so-so picture of them floating around somewhere, but you sure don’t see them very often. No matter what the guys are doing they always seem to look great in their photos, many of which are impromptu or a paparazzi style picture. Everywhere they turn there seems to be a camera waiting for a glimpse of them. Even doing their Meet and Greets you rarely see a photo where they are not ready and smiling at the camera right on cue.
It is fun to look back at their first Detroit PBS special and see the serious, reserved nature of their performance and compare it to their performances of today. Wow! What a change. As they have grown and matured they have become good friends of thecamera and it shows in their every move.
The Blue Steel look is all fine and dandy, but I much prefer the MESMERIZING ITALIAN LOOK! How about YOU?
