So often I write about the journalists who have no respect for Il Volo and treat them very rudely. But today I want to write about a journalist who is a champion for our guys.
Marino Bartoletti has always been A True Defender of Il Volo.
Marino Bartoletti is a true friend to the guys, often standing up for them on television and defending them before the Sanremo jury. A distinguished Italian journalist and writer known for his integrity and refinement; Marino deeply admires Il Volo. In the realm of entertainment and communication, he emphasizes that “the value of affection, esteem, and sincerity is immense. Human relationships and friendship hold great significance.”
To give you a bit of background, Marino Bartoletti is a renowned journalist, a profound music connoisseur, and an expert on the Sanremo Festival. Above all, he is a man of great culture and humanity.
In a January 2024 interview with Paola Stranges of italiani.it, Marino discussed his illustrious career and his latest book, “The Supper of the Gods.”
Marino explained,The Great Old Man is a creation that gives me immense satisfaction, reflecting a lot of who I am. It’s a story about a provincial boy who, even before he grew a mustache, wondered about the fate of our entertainment, music, and sports champions. I’ve envisioned the Great Old Man, Enzo Ferrari, who has spent over forty years in his world, contemplating a celestial dinner with people he admires, including those he has known and others he wishes he had met.
He continued, Ferrari, as the Great Old Man, sets up this ideal dinner in Olympus, even if his strong personality sometimes clashes with the other Great Old Man up there. Despite this, the dinner turns out well, with carefully chosen characters sharing true stories.
Paola:Sanremo is upon us for the first time in a different guise. Will the magic of music reach the audience from home?
Marino: …. After thirty years it will be the first time that I don’t go there, I will watch it from my home. Sanremo has to do it, they have been doing it for 71 years or at least it is the seventy-first edition. It started in 1951, it’s almost my age, I think I’ve seen almost all of them since the age of reason, I’ve seen more than thirty professionally. I am wary of those who distrust Sanremo because it means that they have not understood its social as well as artistic value. It is right that it should be done, not for commercial reasons which also exist, but for this very reason artistic value and for this social value that must be preserved. We think that just sixty years ago, the organizer threw some singers into the fray so there was someone who tore his clothes saying: “But who is this Celentano, who is this Giorgio Gaber, who is this Gino Paoli with dark glasses, who is this Milva, who is this Little Tony, who is this Pino Donaggio, who is this Umberto Bindi, who is this Edoardo Vianello, they were the ones who made the fifty years of history of Italian pop music next one. We old people have to be careful, at this moment I am seized by a flash of irresistible youthfulness.
In November 2017, during a book promotion event in San Lazzaro di Savena near Bologna, Marino was pleasantly surprised when Piero and Ignazio along with their manager Michele Torpedine, showed up to support him. Marino noted, Although Gianluca Ginoble couldn’t attend due to prior commitments, he sent a heartfelt message. It was heartwarming to see these incredible artists, who were performing in Buenos Aires and soon traveling to Miami and Kiev, supporting me despite their busy schedule.
Marino expressed his appreciation for their presence, stating,Their talent and dedication to promoting Italian music worldwide is admirable. They are preparing to release a new album after a successful tour in Central and South America. I always feel a deep sense of joy seeing them, not just for their talent but for who they are as people. They are genuine and wonderful individuals.
In April 2018, Marino had dinner with Piero and Ignazio at a tavern. He humorously remarked about Ignazio’s habit of blasting their CD in his car, saying the volume was so high it could be heard from the Madonna di San Luca Church (high on the hill) in Bologna. Marino reflected on their time together, appreciating their simplicity and enjoying their stories. He found it amusing when people who had never met them labeled them as ‘pretentious’ or ‘arrogant.’
Marino described Piero as more serious with unexpected bursts of irony, while Ignazio was a sweet trickster who, by the end of the evening, shared a video of a model airplane he built with his dad, humorously lamenting how it used to fly better when they had less money.
Marino also gifted the group a beautiful sketch by Giorgio Serra, affectionately known as ‘Matitaccia.’ He proclaimed, We all shared smiles. Please, keep being ‘bad’ in the eyes of those who don’t yet appreciate you. But never change! If you continue to achieve success worldwide, it’s simply a sign of your exceptionalism. Those who doubt you will eventually come around because you truly are BRAVI.
Marino admitted, Initially, I had some reservations about them. However, after meeting them during my book presentation, I was struck by their authenticity and courtesy. They were generous with their time and open to chatting with everyone present—qualities that are rare these days. Their compassion and skill make their global success well-deserved. Well done.
So, where did this relationship begin?
In an August 2019 interview with Luca Maggitti, Marino Bartoletti discussed Il Volo. Maggitti reflected on Bartoletti’s initial visit to Roseto, noting how this place had become special for him, particularly because of his connection with Gianluca Ginoble.
Marino said:Everyone knows of my respect for him, but it’s more than that—it’s a deep friendship and affection.
Maggitti then asked,What makes Il Volo so special? They’ve completed eleven consecutive world tours and continue to fill theaters everywhere. As a music expert and journalist, why do you think they’re so beloved and famous globally?
Maggitti also questioned why some journalists still fail to fully grasp their success and talent. He acknowledged his own attachment to them as stemming from affection, friendship, and admiration, but also recognized their embodiment of great bel canto: skill, and the ability to showcase Italian genius abroad. He wondered why this same genius isn’t more appreciated in Italy and what more these young men need to prove.
Bartoletti:I could answer you by reversing the question, that is, by asking me how there are still people (even our journalist colleagues) who still do not understand, this success of theirs and their talent. I admit that I am attached to them by affection, friendship and admiration towards them, but they have everything that is asked of bel canto, skill, the ability to transmit the Italian genius abroad. But it’s the same Italian genius that should be better understood in Italy, and then I wonder, what else do these guys have to prove?
They are boys who have reached their tenth year, and sold out everywhere, even here in Italy. I can only say that I admire them very much, that I admire their “spirit of sacrifice” which is extraordinary, because they could “sit on their laurels”, instead they continue to improve, to improve. This year they were very good, even in Sanremo where they achieved third place, so very elegantly. I would like the Italian guys to look more like them, especially as the families of the Italian boys were more like the families of Gianluca, Piero and Ignazio, because I always say this publicly, that the strength of these guys is what they have behind them, family, culture, education, humility.
Marino has always been there for the guys, and they truly appreciate his friendship and his love and affection for them. He is by far A True Defender of Il Volo. We need more journalists like him.
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure!
For your listening pleasure, Il Volo in Moscow their Concert 2019.
Before I begin, let me say the cover picture on this story is my all-time favorite picture of the guys and believe me over the last four years I’ve gone through thousands upon thousands of pictures. Why this picture? Because this picture tells a story about Fifteen Years of a Lifetime! This picture is worth not a thousand words but ten thousand words.
Look at how proud they are! The smiles, the joy of sharing the stage with one another. When you’ve come this far you have to look to one another and ask how did we get here? How did we, just kids, succeed, and how do we continue the journey? This is a story that has it’s roots in Naro, Bologna and Montepagano. Three young boys came into this world with totally amazing, totally unique voices. They each were one of a kind.
Let’s take a look back a minute to their beginnings….
How did they find their way to the Ariston stage at the same moment in time. La Forza del Destino or the hand of God? It’s all the same, it’s the hand of God. I think God had a plan and He set it in motion, and it all came together one night on the stage of the Ariston theater during the 2009 season of Ti Lascio Una Canzone.
I’ve written about this many times and what I am saying is something that the guys have said many times. Faith, divine intervention brought them together.
For me, I see the day they sang together for the first time as the day their destiny was fulfilled. La Forza del destino (the force of destiny). I call it as I see it! This was God’s plan! His hand was always guiding each of these boys. How else could you explain how they happened to be in the same place at the same time? We’re not just talking about three teenage boys with nice voices, we’re talking about three teenage boys with phenomenal voices. Very unique voices! Truly one-of-a-kind voices! Their voices are like no other voices in the world. Am I saying they are the greatest singers in the world? Yes! They are touched by the hand of God!
It wasn’t just that the voices were extraordinary, no, it was that they complemented one another. It was natural and it was apparent from the very first note that these voices worked well together and that their voices are in tune with one another. The first time they walked out on the stage, their fate was sealed.
So how is this possible? For me there is only one way to explain it! Before the Lord sent these three amazing men to earth, He said what this world needs are three voices that can bring joy to my people. So, He chose three loving couples and sent each one a son who would bring joy to the world through his voice!
Alone each voice is phenomenal. Together they are a symphony! Listen to their voices when they sing. Their voices come from every direction like a symphony orchestra that is forming the music around you!
I talked about their individual voices and discoveries many times. Usually when you talk about someone being discovered it goes something like, “I was standing on a street corner singing when….” No that isn’t what happened here. The reason they are so unique is because they were discovered as children. Very small children! Three, four years old. They really had those intense unmistakable voices very early on. A voice that makes you stop in your tracks and say, “Am I really hearing that voice coming from that child?” They were born with those voices.
Who could imagine that these three young boys who stepped on the stage of Ti Lascio Una Canzone would travel around the world, join renowned singers and immediately become a part of an industry which, in reality, is so hard to break into? Yes, it was La Forza del Destino that led them to America.
After singing with Piero and Ignazio Gianluca said, “I thought there were three hundred thousand boys singing like me, and instead that night I discovered that there are only two: Ignazio and Piero.” Of course, Gianluca was referring to the night they sang together for the first time on Ti Lascio Una Canzone.
What Gianluca realized in that moment was the uniqueness of their voices. So, let’s begin where it all began….
It is the fourth episode of Ti Lascio Una Canzone and the boys are given the music for O Sole Mio but in three parts. They thought it was strange because until then they were singing alone or doing duets.
They walked out on the stage, sang O Sole Mio and it was like they had been performing together for years. Absolutely flawless! Truly the hand of God. And so, it begins! And there is no turning back!
After that performance, things began to happen. Michele Torpedine would come into the picture and every big name including Universal would want to be a part of this great discovery!
Truly amazing things happened….
This video of them recording Tous le visages de l’amour brings us to the early days in the studio. So young but so talented! Listen to those amazing voices! Notes that take your breath away.
Ignazio recalls….
It was the beginning of 2010, our first time overseas. Destination Miami! What charm America! Everything was so different from Italy: the cars were different, the streets, the houses. I felt like I was in another world.
Immediately after Miami we went to Los Angeles. My first word? ‘Wow!’ Which was also what I said when I entered my room in one of the best hotels in the city, the InterContinental of Century City.
We were only three kids accompanied by our parents. We still did not know each other well. At the beginning I immediately started to connect with Piero. Perhaps because he is Sicilian like me and maybe because we always found the opportunity to make jokes and have fun. We especially enjoyed ourselves when we tried to make ourselves understood by people, since we spoke few words of English.
This was the first Photoshoot in LA. A Behind the Scenes treat!
But what were we doing in Los Angeles? We stayed there a week during which we were lucky enough to be part of the We Are the World 25 for Haiti with eighty of the most famous music stars in the world including Celine Dion, Lionel Richie, Santana and many others. After 25 years we all gathered together for We Are the World 25 for Haiti to collect funds for the earthquake victims of January 12th, 2010.
Can you even begin to imagine what it was like for these three teenagers to find themselves in the mist of some of the greatest entertainers in the music industry! I don’t think they even realized how amazing this event was and here they are a part of it! Remarkable, just like them.
In the beginning the idea of being one in three was something that the guys needed to learn about. They had to learn how to sing together. It was no longer this is your song, learn it and sing it. No, now it was, this is your part, your take, your phrase, learn it and sing it. They begin to understand how music and recording actually work. They were starting to learn about being three in the form of one. Sharing! And, if that wasn’t enough, they had to learn something even harder, how to get along with one another.
I’ve told you, in some of my stories, about the problems, the disagreements. This may seem unusual but in reality, it was not. You show me three teenage boys who can be thrown together and immediately like one another and totally agree with one another. No, that would never happen.
Soon things would change, America opened her arms and her heart to Il Volo….
PBS introduced Il Volo to America. You can say Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca grew up on PBS.
From their first concert on October 27, 2011, at the Detroit Opera House, they won the admiration of the American people and stole their hearts. PBS has been with the guys for every important event in their lives.
When they began, they introduced America to a new style of music. Operatic pop! A very different kind of music for teenagers. Their aim was to show young people how good this music is. They won over the children, parents and grandparents. They were an immediate sensation. America fell in love with them.
There’s no question that PBS played a major role in the career of Il Volo in America.
In 2013 the guys chatted with “Spotlight” producer Paul Larson just minutes before going on stage at Place des Arts in Montreal, Quebec. These were the early years. Larsen would come back seven years later to catch up with the guys!
In the beginning it wasn’t always easy for the guys but when they had a goal, they went for it! I keep going back to Ignazio’s words in the video, “This is Radio City! We hope, I hope, everyone hopes to go there to do a big concert for the American people.”
Back Then
What a dream! Who could possibly have thought that three Italian teenagers could have achieved this dream and stepped on to the stage at Radio City Music Hall and brought us all to absolute ecstasy with their voices!
And now!
Most entertainers want to perform at Radio City once in their lifetime! It’s a dream, it’s every entertainer’s dream! Our guys have done it year after year to sold out audiences! And every time is better than the last.
Five years had passed, and it was time to make a big courageous move….
Sanremo!
I’ll let the guys tell you what happened at Sanremo….
Ignazio….
The sixty-fifth edition of the Festival begins Tuesday, February 10th. We sing the second night, Wednesday the 11th. The strange thing is that normally my legs tremble before the performance, but mine trembled even after the performance! Perhaps too much adrenaline, it never happened before.
Piero….
Or maybe it was because we came back to the Ariston stage after going around the world. It was like coming home, because we experienced the beginning of our career here with Ti Lascio UnaCanzone. One thing that cannot be described: in Sanremo, in Italy, to sing and receive the applause of the Italian public. It cannot be explained.
Gianluca….
Can you imagine for me, this was also my birthday: I turned twenty on Ariston’s stage? Of course, I was moved in the end, and it was too much emotion to my sensibility to play bad jokes at times.
And then, we felt the pressure in the air. Even though I was optimistic, the tension was there.
Although we had taken care of the smallest details of the song, we had tried and tried again, and we had taken care of even the smallest details of the clothing. The first evening look more rock: total black with leather jacket.
Because when we do our work, too, the image matters.
Piero….
Count, of course that counts.
At this point the guys get off track reminiscing and Ignazio pulls them back to the story….
Ignazio….
Yes, but what does that have to do with it, Pie? We’re talking about Sanremo.
Ignazio continues….
Sanremo 2015, from 10th to 14th of February, we sang on the second evening, legs shaking, Gianluca’s birthday.
Piero….
And the criticisms we felt in those days? People at home voted for us, appreciated us, and journalists gave us votes that we thought were postponed until September, I also said this at the press conference after the victory. Five that flew (Bad votes given by critics). But we see that the criticisms have done us good.
Ignazio….
Can I do too, a criticism of you?
Piero…
Ah, tell me…
Ignazio
You interrupted me. I was about to tell the final. Can I continue?
In short, the final evening arrives, February 14th. I realize from the shirt that in a week we have eaten more than sung.
Unfortunately, or fortunately, I’m a boy who does not say cat if I do not have it in the bag, then until Carlo Conti said….
Piero….
And indeed, whoever wins does not know it until the end! Sorry, Igna Speak you!!!
Ignazio….
Until Carlo Conti said: ‘The winner of the Sanremo Festival 2015 is … Il Volo!,’ I said to the boys: ‘No, guys, we do not win, it’s difficult.’ And on the one hand I had Piero with shining eyes and on the other Gianluca with a smug smile as if to say: ‘Do not worry.’
Gianluca….
The truth is that I was right from the beginning, and no one has ever listened to me, ever. I believed it so much that, if you notice, maybe I’m the one with the least surprised look when Carlo Conti announces the winner. Then, of those moments, one remembers little, there is great confusion, emotion. It was a dream to be able to shout, ‘Thank you, Italy!’ from that stage. I looked at Sanremo as a child when there was Pippo Baudo, and I was there and won because people were on our side and it was a dream, I repeat even if I have already said.
The emotion was only when my grandfather told me almost in tears: ‘Who would have told me that in life I saw Modugno win at the Festival and then I saw you win.’
In short, Sanremo was just a dream that brought us many different emotions.
These three men proved you have to go after your dreams. This dream was different because it was not a dream that in the end would make them superstars; they already were superstars! Their dream was to follow their hearts and win the hearts of the people of Italy. That was the dream! It was the dream that would make absolutely no difference in their lives except for being close to the people they loved. So, they ran with it and started chasing the Lion until they caught him on February 14, 2015! That night they brought the Lion home along with the hearts of the Italian people.
In 2019 the guys decided to return to Sanremo. Their song Musica che resta ranked third at the Festival!
After ten years….
Just like the rest of the world, the guys had to postpone their concerts, go back to home and wait until there was some control over COVID-19. Their concerts were rescheduled.
As the guys go soaring into their second decade, they meet up again with Paul Larsen.
In the interview the guys said, “Larson invites us back to a simpler time, when “social distancing” was not a common term.”
Larsen’s second interview with Il Volo happened on January 30, 2020, backstage at Place Bell in Laval, Quebec. No one was talking about postponing shows back then. No one was wearing a mask. Larson sat less than six feet apart from the guys and chatted about their 10-year career, and their sixth PBS special, shot in beautiful Matera Italy.
Let’s move forward five years. So much happened over those years but most importantly these teenagers grew into amazing young men and the time came to expand their horizons.
In their first Raiuno live for TV concert in Verona, we noticed that the guys had matured in body and mind and their voices have gone to another level of magnificence!
We watched them grow but this is different. There’s a beautiful presence about them now. A certain elegance! After fifteen years they haven’t waned, they’ve increased in strength and intensity! There is a certain power in their voices that grabs you from the first note of the concert to the last.
Each guy has grown into his voice and is showing a maturity and style the likes of which men who are approaching the end of their careers can only have imagined!
Fifteen years of a lifetime! I use that expression a lot because each year was like a lifetime with them. They never seem to stop. Like in their last Latin American Tour. Not only were there concerts but there were also late-night recording sessions. Thanks to the genius of Ignazio who turned his hotel rooms into a recording studio. And when the tour was over, it still wasn’t over. It’s called bringing your work home. There were still the recordings to deal with. Yes, it’s a lifetime full of wonders. One can hardly imagine what goes on. The tour takes on a life of its own. It’s an experience which most entertainers will never know. Or should I say, “have the honor of knowing.” For our guys, work is honor!
For Il Volo, 2023 was about new beginnings! So now let’s go to where these new beginnings began. The best place to start is the televised concerts at Verona in May. The beautiful Frederica Panicucci who was the presenter of the Il Volo concert had this to say about what would happen that evening. “During the evening Il Volo will show unpublished moments with solos and duets they never performed before. It will be their way of showing their different personalities.”
Yes, Federica was right, that night was different because we’ve heard these voices before but not in the way we heard them that night. The guys introduced us to their personal feelings about their music.
A great example of this is in Ignazio’s words before both concerts:
In the first concert Ignazio said, “I’ve always loved great female voices….”
And in the second concert he said, “I will try to take a trip to the most beautiful female songs in the world tonight.
So, it seems Ignazio still enjoys singing these (female) songs. And why wouldn’t he? He is the only one of the three that can sing that kind of song because they are songs that require a strong voice that is very clear, crisp and very lyrical and a lot of passion must be put into each song! I think I just described Ignazio’s voice! Let me add and, “very soulful!”
Next we met the real Gianluca in his rock mode and he introduced us to his feelings for Elvis, Sinatra, Dylan and the Beatles.
Piero brought us his perfect operatic voice. Whimsical and joyful. He has a great love and sincerity for this music. Opera is in his soul. He opens up that soul to us in these concerts with arias we have never heard him sing before.
During their solos, the other two guys sat on the side stage and listened. In these moments, we see the admiration these men have for one another. Truly amazing!
This was a nice way of presenting each of them.
I remember Piero saying, in his story, that when he did a solo he couldn’t wait for it to end when Ignazio and Gianluca would return. He has to love this new arrangement.
These concerts were different. They showed a beautiful evolution from where the guys were to where they are now. Their new direction! Their future!
This new arrangement is thrilling because there is a lot of feeling in the music. The songs they have sung from the beginning have always had feeling but in a different way.
Here we feel each man’s thoughts, ideas and mindset. In the soul of each man there is a longing to bring you their music unlike you’ve ever heard it before. It is the movement within their souls when they sing. They were restless to release these feelings and make you feel what they feel. They bring a feeling of sheer bliss to each note in each song. Think about expressing your feelings for someone you love. Put that to music and you have each guy’s mindset.
Amid a thousand points of light that sparkled like stars in the night sky, our guys were the brightest stars on the stage. They showed not just their love for one another’s music but their love and appreciation for the music of the other performers.
So where did this go? Individuality!!!
Their new concerts are giving us the opportunity to look into the heart of our guys through their music. It allows us to see them in a deeper and more personal way.
Their idea of “individuality” was not to dissuade you from one or the other. No, in fact, they want you to take a closer look at the other guy. Not to compare but to understand their individuality!
You may have found that some of the music they are singing now you like more than what they were singing or vis versa! It’s called taking a closer look!
Il Volo is magic, and that magic is on the stage, in the concert halls, in Arenas and Amphitheaters, on TV, in videos and CD’s but the true magic of Il Volo is in our hearts!
So it only made sense that in 2024, they would return to Sanremo in a new light in a new direction!
Their video won best video at Sanremo 2024! Their song should have won Sanremo! The song is spectacular! The voices are spectacular! They outperformed every entertainer at Sanremo 2024!
I know they went there with no great expectations. I know they wanted to celebrate fifteen years together on the Ariston stage, but they deserved to win! Some things never change. I know they were happy regardless of the results, as well they should be because they are the ultimate performers. When they are on the stage they give their all. And they have shared Fifteen Years of a Lifetime with all of us and from the bottom of our hearts we thank them!
And let’s not forget, Capolavoro went Gold!
Congratulations guys!
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure!
The guys new Album Ad Astra is out. It’s available on Spotify, Amazon etc.
Among the many interviews they gave themselves to, Il Volo was also interviewed by Don Walter Insero, a wonderful interview for the program “ON THE ROAD awaiting the 2025 Jubilee”.
Piero, Ignazio and Gianluca are expected by Don Water in front of the basilica of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere. A very informal meeting where Ignazio, Gianluca and Piero opened their hearts without any problem, talking about life, faith, and religion.
I translate for you..
DWI= Welcome back to ON THE ROAD. We are in Trastevere (Rome area) in front of the basilica of S. Cecilia, patron saint of music and musicians.
This young Roman woman, from a noble family, learned the message of Jesus, became a Christian and, in order not to betray her faith in Jesus Christ, she was martyred in the third century.
Since then this has become a place of silence, prayer, which has welcomed millions of pilgrims who have come to pray at the tomb of St. Cecilia, and this place will welcome the pilgrims of the next jubilee, who will find here an oasis of contemplation and peace.
PIERO= Don Walter good morning.
DWI= Hey hello!
Hi Piero, hello Ignazio, hello Gianluca.
IGNAZIO= A magnificent place.
DWI= How nice to meet you here..
GIANLUCA= It’s a great pleasure!
DWI= …in front of the Basilica of Santa Cecilia, we are on our way ON THE ROAD towards the 2025 jubilee.
I welcome you to this which is your home, because it is the home of Cecilia, who is the patroness of music, of musicians, of singers, of singers, (at this moment Barbara and Torpedine can be seen behind them) so I have the pleasure to accompany you on this journey.
GIANLUCA= It’s an honor!
IGNAZIO= Thank you, thank you very much.
DWI= It’s music that brought you together, right?
GIANLUCA= Yes, let’s say that music is what gives meaning to our lives, let’s say that everyone uses different tools to discover their own mystery, so we used this great tool that allowed us to dig inside ourselves and make sense to life. We are what we are through the voice and certainly together the strength is greater to convey emotions to the public and excite everyone here.
DWI= When you were very young, true, you discovered this artistic vocation.
PIERO= I believe that recognizing one’s vocation when young is a great privilege. We immediately recognized it thanks also to the support and support of our families, it was they who introduced this musical genre, which is Bel Canto, the genre that we sing, and therefore we owe everything to music.
DWI= And did the families support you in this?
IGNAZIO= Absolutely, I think that especially at the beginning, they were a fundamental part of our growth and, to put it simply (he means simply), I like to say “to keep our feet on the ground”, and they continue to do so today , so we really have to say thank you to our families because they taught us the true value of being a family, what it means to be a family.
DWI= Well, let’s go in then. Look how wonderful. (he points to the painting of the vault)
They prayed and asked Cecilia to pray for us.
GIANLUCA= With singing, which is the best prayer.
DWI= Yes, Bach says that music is a privileged path because it brings the soul closer to God. Is this true for you too?
GIANLUCA= It is the soundtrack of one’s emotions, like the poets who in their madness, like Leopardi (Italian poet) spoke to the moon waiting for him to respond. And it’s a bit like touching the sky with your emotions I think.
PIERO= Whoever sings prays twice, right?
DWI= Saint Augustine says so.
PIERO= And we do it often, singing on stage, almost every day and I think I recognize that we are three hyper-privileged people because what we feel on stage I think is an emotion that cannot be described. It’s not really easy to describe and make concrete, so I think three of us share the same sensations, an advantage for the three of us.
DWI= But can we say that music has brought you closer to God in your journey?
IGNAZIO= In a certain sense yes, also because we started from three small towns, where perhaps we know in small towns there are many more people inclined to believe, to find a foothold in what could be help from a saint, especially in music, like Saint Cecilia, so for us, our parents always prayed to God that their children could one day find their own path with their own talent, so absolutely yes.
PIERO= Personally my first approach to music was thanks to the church.
DWI= Oh yes?
PIERO= Because as a child I always went to church, so I sang in the choir, without inhibitions…
IGNAZIO= I was also part of the choir.
PIERO= I was an altar boy, I sang, so I know all the sacred songs. For us it would also be a great desire to be able to contribute during the jubilee with this magnificent art: music.
WOMAN’S VOICE = Rome, Trastevere district, it is in its beating heart, among its narrow streets, that a jewel full of charm and mystery stands: the basilica of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere. It is here that almost 1800 years ago the young Cecilia, considered the patron saint of musicians, was martyred.
DWI= You sang in the presence of the Holy Father, of Pope Francis, in a meeting with young people and a global family meeting, with your families. What did it represent for you?
IGNAZIO= Look, the first time was in Panama.
DWI= Yes!
PIERO= World Day..
IGNAZIO= World Youth Day and having a million young people in front of us……I remember that after singing we commented on this, that there was an energy, that it was an altar, it wasn’t a stage….
DWI= Sure, sure.
IGNAZIO= A gigantic altar and you could feel this energy, I don’t know, it seemed magnetic…
PIERO= A deafening silence…
IGNAZIO= It was a deafening silence, it’s one of those experiences that really happen a few times in your life and that is given by energy, because in the end I think that people are energy, life is energy, and seeing a million people , in the same place, for the same reason, an energy was created that is truly unforgettable for us.
PIERO= And then, on 22 June (2022), being witnesses during the World Family Day, I think it was one of the great objectives of these 15 years together, because from the first day we have always tried to reach those who listen to us and also to those who don’t listen to us, this message of unity but above all this strength that are values, families, because sometimes, perhaps due to the frenzy that we experience during daily life, we forget about certain values, that is, a call with mother, maybe hear the grandparents….
DWI= Sure, sure.
PIERO= And in the end you realize that this important value that is family has arrived.
DWI= What do you remember about the meeting with Pope Francis, Gianluca?
GIANLUCA= Obviously the greatness of a person is demonstrated by his humility, I think, right? And therefore his humility is an example for all of us, many young people who are still experiencing a difficult moment in our era, seeing themselves in a person who can truly be like a family member, asking for advice, admiring him from afar in all parts of the world , I believe that this, however, is the main thing for us artists too, because then music is like a eulogy to madness, if you think about it, because there is no rationality, nothing is created from rationality. All this (looks at the basilica), artists who have been inspired by a spiritual journey, because only through spirituality can something wonderful be created and that’s a bit what we are doing with our music, our creativity takes hold from our madness, from our almost childish madness, if you think about it.
DWI= This masterpiece by Stefano Maderno (Italian sculptor) which describes what he saw when the body was observed and surprisingly, when they opened Cecilia’s tomb, they found her body in exactly that shape you see.
PIERO= Which year are you talking about?
DWI= So, the survey was done in 1599 and Stefano Maderno sculpted the marble in 1600.
PIERO= And she was found like this, in this position.
DWI= Yes, in this position, because a first attempt was made to suffocate her, in what was the “calidarium” (spa), it was a noble house because they had heating and they had the spa in the house and they tried to suffocate her there and instead she was beheaded, three shots were planned, can you see? It excites me, because look at his delicate neck, it has the signs of this cut that his body has maintained, so when Maderno commissioned this work, he knew that the intact body had this sign. Then she bled to death, a terrible death, but tradition says that while she was in agony, she had expressed the desire that this, which was her home, become a place of prayer and the Christians came to pray, the faithful then came and there are also Benedictine nuns who pray night and day, so the prayer is constant.
What does this work inspire in you?
GIANLUCA= It’s a manifestation of pain if we think about it, which is the basis of everything, only through pain does a certain growth in life certainly occur. She is a woman who then based her life on art, certainly, such a young woman and therefore an example for all of us, because even from suffering, as I was saying, important growth can be drawn.
PIERO= I really believe in coincidences. During the Sanremo Festival, the last one we did, we were given a holy picture of Santa Cecilia…
DWI= Oh…
PIERO= ….and we put it behind the cover of our cell phone and during that day we talked a lot about Santa Cecilia and today we find ourselves here in the basilica of Santa Cecilia…
DWI= Who guards her body, so it’s there, she’s buried here…
PIERO= What coincidences…
DWI= Yes, they are those gifts of providence.
And for you Ignazio?
IGNAZIO= I think that there are many miracles in life, for example I live in Bologna and there is a church where Saint Catherine is and even there the body remained intact. These are things that I don’t know… returning to the topic of energy, I am always amazed by these things, maybe there are those who believe more, those who believe less, but one cannot help but believe what life tells us. offers: miracles, energies….
GIANLUCA= That the most religious attitude is to cultivate doubt and dig deeper and deeper into oneself.
DWI= Sure.
GIANLUCA= Not just outside, a constant, spiritual search that leads you, at a certain point in life, to have enlightenment from different points of view, which can be a life dedicated to God, why not!
DWI= It’s true, doubts, questions, are part of the journey of life. The Pope wanted this motto for this upcoming jubilee: “Pilgrims of hope”.
Do you feel like pilgrims? Do you feel like you are searching, on your way or have you already arrived? You are very successful, do you feel like you have arrived?
IGNAZIO= We are constantly on the move.
PIERO= It’s a continuous journey with ourselves, in search of ourselves, always trying to show the best side of ourselves and I believe that faith, like great things, is a commitment, a constant, daily commitment. For our part, this commitment has always been there and perhaps in some difficult moments, because perhaps faith is only remembered in difficult moments, whereas we should also remember it in good moments. We try to do it every day, so yes, we consider ourselves pilgrims.
DWI= Sure. Ignazio, you?
IGNAZIO= I agree, perhaps as I said before, there are those who are more attached, he (Piero) is very attached to the church, to religion, I am a little less…
GIANLUCA= You are still looking for the point of this journey…that’s right, we are still young…
IGNAZIO=…..precisely I define it as my path, because I am a person who always tries to be amazed by things, so for me the path is to always remain amazed and hope to find answers in what I experience.
PIERO= Also because each of us has a different experience, a different past, we are three strangers who met 15 years ago, but each of us has experienced moments in our lives that have also marked us.
DWI= Sure and that you agree.
GIANLUCA= In life we have always been empty containers, because we almost had no home, always maintaining our roots and values, but from the age of 14, travelling, learning about different cultures, made us feel, as I was saying, empty containers. Having a personal spiritual journey, not children of our culture, of our society, therefore reading, really reading what is written in the Bible, not believing in a belief, what is there, why do I have to believe, I have to inform myself, I have to understand what really happened and what are the ideals of this great religion that for millennia has guided millions of people of all generations of antiquity. So get informed, read, understand well what the great content of this great story is.
DWI= (they meet the Benedictine mother) How is mother? Nice to meet you, you are the mother Abbess MariaGiovanna: Piero, Gianluca and Ignazio. This year they were in Sanremo and they gave him an image of Saint Cecilia which they kept on their cell phone and so today they were happy to be here praying to their patron saint.
MOTHER= Best wishes, best wishes, may God bless you and guide your path.
I+P+G= Thank you, thank you very much, goodbye.
DWI= How beautiful your cloister is.
MOTHER= Yes.
DWI= The jubilee is in a few months, how are you preparing, how do you want to experience this jubilee?
IGNAZIO= We are 29/30 years old, and this will be our first jubilee that we will actually experience, because the last time we were only 4/5 years old, we didn’t even know what it was, so we will live it with curiosity, hope because in these years we have been cultivating this word – is very much hope, hope for something better, hope that something can really change and there are many people who, in any field, in music, in politics, in religion in their own way are trying to change. Look at Pope Francis, who I have so much admiration for, such a humble person who plays such an important role and it’s not always simple, right?
DWI= Sure.
PIERO= In some way our greatest desire is to be able to contribute with our art, with music, also because in the past we have had the opportunity to live these unique experiences.
I believe that the year of the Jubilee, the opening of the Jubilee is a very important moment for everyone.
IGNAZIO= It was a wonderful experience and we want to thank you.
DWI= Thank you, I thank you, thank you Piero, thank you Ignazio, thank you Gianluca. Thank you because with your art you sow hope in this time that is in some ways so difficult and dark and music is this universal message that reaches all hearts.
Can I ask you to take a selfie so I can immortalize this moment!
IGNAZIO= Sure
PIERO= Wait, like this.
GIANLUCA= Higher, higher..perfect!!
What can I say, I don’t know about you, but I was very touched by the mature and absolutely relevant answers to the topic that our three young men gave.
Messages of hope and love, faith, energy and life.
I am deeply happy to be able to once again see the versatility of Piero, Gianluca and Ignazio who, just as in singing, can move from interviews with “light” topics to interviews with “deep” topics, without any problem.
I also really liked the lowered tone of our kids’ voices as a sign of respect for the place where they were.
Congratulations once again guys!! ❤️
The INFORM newspaper published this page on the event, in four languages, which I attach.
In the interview we talked about two events that occurred with Il Volo in the presence of the Pope and therefore I thought I would attach them and review them together.
Il Volo at the world meeting of families 22 June 2022
Il Volo a Panama, World Youth Day 2019
And after hearing and reading the beautiful words of Gianluca, Ignazio and Piero and listening to their beautiful voices, what better time in view of Easter to wish you all the best wishes from all the Flight Crew staff.
HAPPY EASTER
from the bottom of our hearts and may it bring peace to this troubled world.
On March 19, Il Volo was a guest on RAI1 in the television program STASERA C’È CATTELAN.
Alessandro Cattelan is a young presenter, friend of Gianluca, Ignazio and Piero.
The intervention was nice, the kids were relaxed, dressed casually and even adapted to a nice musical game.
Here’s the translation!
CATTELAN= Let’s start with our first three guests this evening, it’s quite clear who will be…..Ilenia, have you understood? Who will be? I said three, who will they be…
ILENIA= Il Volo!
CATTELAN= Il Volo!!!! However, they deserve a triumphal announcement: 15 years of career, 13 albums, the next one coming out on March 29th will be called AD ASTRA and will be their first album of unreleased songs. They are ready to leave for yet another world tour, they will tell us about it shortly, give a big round of applause to Il Volo!!
(Capolavoro begins and Gianluca Piero and Ignazio enter from outside the studio to the notes of the song.)
CATTELAN= What a masterpiece! Ladies and gentlemen: IL Volo!! Come guys come, take a seat. Il Volo a Stasera is Cattelan, welcome back. (the guys sit but the chairs are high) 😁
GIANLUCA= But you can’t make us do these figures (he doesn’t reach the ground with his feet) 😂🤣
CATTELAN= Too tall?? 😁
PIERO= Could you have put the sofa lower? (he also doesn’t touch the ground with his feet) 🤣😂
CATTELAN= Look how comfortable Ignazio is!! 😂💪
PIERO= Can we take a close-up of our feet??
IGNAZIO= Sorry, I’m too comfortable…
CATTELAN= It’s like when you’re sitting on a plane…
GIANLUCA= How is Ale? (Cattelan’s name is Alessandro)
CATTELAN= Everything is fine and you?
PIERO= Do you know what it looks like? You know that New York photo of the workers (the famous photo eating the sandwich suspended in the air) on the crane, we’re missing the sandwich, the sandwich in our hands.
GIANLUCA= Okay cuts, enough come on.
CATTELAN= Actually he gave me an excellent connection with New York, because the last time we saw each other, it was actually only Piero (the two of them exchanged a clap).
PIERO= Only you and I know (refers to the fact that Piero and Cattelan met at the New York marathon)
IGNAZIO= You don’t know that he invited me…
CATTELAN = That day in New York?
IGNAZIO= Yes, but to do it (the marathon)
PIERO= Look at the wallpaper on my cell phone?
CATTELAN= What are we talking about, oh my, New York, can we show it? What bridge is this?
IGNAZIO= Look at this one (marks a dot on the screen) it’s Piero!
PIERO= Verrazzano Bridge.
CATTELAN= Verrazzano Bridge which is the starting point of the New York marathon, where Piero and I met.
These are the images of Piero at the New York marathon, I must say impeccable style, how far have you come?
PIERO= I did it in 4 hours and 15 minutes instead of 19 thousand, we have a bet…..
CATTELAN= 19 thousand? one step away from the podium 😁, oh well there were a lot of you!
PIERO= 55 thousand participants. We have a bet, one and two gentlemen here (Gianluca and Ignazio) we were in Athens and we made a bet and Ignazio said: “How many participants are there?” and I replied “more than 50 thousand”.
Ignazio said: “If you get under 25 thousand we will offer you dinner.”
Have you ever seen this dinner??🙄😁
CATTELAN= Not us!!
GIANLUCA= But look (Piero) is wasted, he’s dying of hunger..😂
IGNAZIO= You didn’t understand, we were in Athens, when we return to Athens we’ll offer you dinner. 🤣
CATTELAN= Ah, it was only valid there. So, at a certain point I saw a crazy missile go by (Piero), I didn’t have time to understand if it was you, because I was in the audience cheering that day, I was there watching this thing for the first time in my life , I had never seen it, but it is an incredible party, a wonderful atmosphere. .
PIERO= The audience was 2 million people because there are 42 km full of people.
CATTELAN= But when you are there, what emotion do they give you? They help you when… there was a moment when you had visions, you no longer understood anything…
PIERO= No, the greatest emotion was seeing a girl with a poster and it said…..
CATTELAN= The lights came on, but were we in the dark until now? You can see us from home, we’re here! 😁 Tell me…. (to Piero)
PIERO= …a girl with a poster and it said “Jack I’m pregnant”….in my opinion Jack is still running!! 😂
CATTELAN= He crossed the finish line straight ahead! You run (to Ignazio and Gianluca) No?
IGNAZIO= With the ….. I can’t say (he means the motorbike)
GIANLUCA= Like Forrest Gump we run. 😁
CATTELAN= Like Forrest Gump, he was more I’ll reach you later.
IGNAZIO= He invited me and I said that if they let me come on a motorbike, I’ll come. I do it on my motorbike.
CATTELAN= Yes, is it valid?
PIERO= No, it’s not valid.
CATTELAN= You can’t, you can’t! Listen, how did Sanremo go? We are a bit running out of the long queue at Sanremo, all those who came told us about their Sanremo trauma, spontaneously.
IGNAZIO= But this year or in general?
PIERO= We are among the last (to come to his show)
CATTELAN= Yes, maybe someone will still come…
IGNAZIO= The last one missing is Bugo who is still looking for him. 😁 (a Sanremo singer who left the festival a couple of years ago)
CATTELAN= But it was from a few years ago…
GIANLUCA= He stayed a little behind…
CATTELAN= How did it go for you this year?
GIANLUCA= It went well, we are very satisfied. We presented a slightly different piece, let’s say. Always coherent, but we wanted to show our three personalities, so the group is a single entity but with different voices and different personalities and we are satisfied..
PIERO= In fact the title is self-referential (he’s joking) obviously: Capolavoro (Masterpiece) !
GIANLUCA= Obviously.
CATTELAN= Certainly a masterpiece.
IGNAZIO= Talk about us, yes! Talk about Gianluca’s beauty……😂
CATTELAN= …of Ignazio’s friendliness and Piero’s physical prowess.🤣🤣
IGNAZIO= In what sense? 😳
CATTELAN= In the sense that everyone has their own peculiarity: beauty, friendliness and athleticism.
You are among the Italians most accustomed to the big stages around the world, there is still something that excites you, perhaps when you return here to Italy, paradoxically even things that are a little smaller, but that give you an emotion.
IGNAZIO= Good pasta! 😁
CATTELAN= Ah, eat well!!
PIERO= We received the greatest emotion a few days ago, we announced three concerts at the Verona Arena that we will now do in May and now we have opened the fourth date because they were sold out. This is not a compliment we pay ourselves, this is a way to thank the public who allow us to hold concerts, to fill magical places, we have many in Italy, but above all who have allowed us to celebrate 15 years of our careers , because without them, seriously, we couldn’t have done anything.
GIANLUCA= There is a topic that is close to my heart, because it is often known that when you expose yourself and do our job, including you, there was also an episode with Ale (He mean that this thing Cattelan also suffered), like us who said we were separating…
CATTELAN= Ah, yes…
GIANLUCA= Now we know that people need gossip, everyone wants to know but…..
IGNAZIO= But it wasn’t fake that we were together, that we have to continue…
CATTELAN= The only request is if by any chance you really have to split up, can you do it here now, so you can give us a bit of…🤣🤣
GIANLUCA= A shot in popularity.
CATTELAN= Of course, the important thing is that you don’t do it tomorrow by someone else. If you want to do it, it’s now or never! 😂
PIERO= Unfortunately we announce that Il Volo will be together for many years. 🥰🥰🥰
CATTELAN= Okay, you still gave some news!! I must say that it made an impression on me when I was preparing the interview, but even now, when you think about 15 years of career, that’s a long time.
GIANLUCA= There are many, eh!!
CATTELAN= Also because you are young anyway, 15 years is a long time.
You also participated in a charity operation in 2010 where there were some incredible names and you were obviously 14 years younger than you are now.
PIERO= Wait…
GIANLUCA= There are some photos that testify to the embarrassing period of our career but, it was the beginning...(he means embarrassing because they were kids)
PIERO= But we have to tell it…
GIANLUCA= Yes, I was telling…
PIERO= Do you know that now on Netflix, can we say Netflix on Rai2?
CATTELAN= Yes, yes of course, there is also “Salutava Sempre” if you want to see it, a wonderful show. (Cattelan’s program on Netflix). 😁
PIERO= Very beautiful.
CATTELAN= Did you see it?
PIERO= Since February 26th, can you see that I am informed? It came out on February 26th, right?
CATTELAN= March 15th, okay it doesn’t matter, the important thing is that you saw it and that you liked it.
PIERO= However, you know there is the documentary on Netflix.
CATTELAN= On We Are The Word? Yes.
PIERO= About We Are The WorLd, I watched it a few days ago, while I was at home on the sofa, I was moved because those studies, Quincy Jones, Lionel Richie, we lived them, we were there and somehow I had a blast from the past why in 2011????
CATTELAN= 2010
GIANLUCA= When there was the earthquake in Haiti, the second one was organized after the first 25 years of We Are The World, with all the artists, there was Justin Bieber, there was Beyoncé…
CATTELAN= Miley Cyrus??
GIANLUCA= Miley Cyrus was there..
CATTELAN = Celine Dion…
GIANLUCA= Yes, the problem was that we were at the beginning of our career, we were children…
PIERO= ….with scarves bought at the flea market I don’t know where???
CATTELAN= In fact I ask you: “Can I show you the photos?”
PIERO= Nooooo.
GIANLUCA= YES
CATTELAN= Oh well, you were little, guys!
IGNAZIO= They were the embarrassing ones (Piero and Gianluca)
CATTELAN= This route, we have one with Myles Cyrus, who is also very young anyway.
PIERO= But look at the scarf? 😂
CATTELAN= Here they are, Miley Cyrus and Il Volo! Approximately how old were you?
PIERO= 15/16 years (he goes towards the photo) I don’t understand, but these two scarves here….(his and Ignazio’s)
CATTELAN= You can see there was some air..
PIERO= (indicating Gianluca) Look at him with the French scarf….he was already ahead. 🤣
IGNAZIO= You too were in transition between whipped cream and Myles Cyrus, understand?
CATTELAN= Yes, whipped cream.
GIANLUCA= In fact we had to call ourselves “The Miracle” then we thought Il Volo. 😂
CATTELAN= Il Volo is fine. There is also a photo with Celion Dion I saw, really incredible names. Here it is wow!
PIERO= We never left our scarves behind.😁
GIANLUCA= Guys, Celine also wore a scarf.
CATTELAN= Of course because you had launched a trend, no one was immune now!
PIERO= But do you have another one?
CATTELAN= Maybe, wait there’s Will I Am..
PIERO= Ah, the one from the Black Eyed Peas
CATTELAN= Will I Am, oh, there are always scarves.
GIANLUCA= But these were the elegant white scarves in the evening. 😂
IGNAZIO= Guys, I don’t know if you remember where we were here?
PIERO= At Jimmy Iovine’s house
CATTELAN= Jimmy Iovine of course, my goodness!
PIERO= The founder of the beats.
IGNAZIO= It was a crazy party and everyone was there: Cindy Crawford, Lady Gaga, Puff Daddy…everyone!
CATTELAN= As 15-year-old kids, how do you react to an evening like that? That is, were you the ones who stayed in the corner, did you try to interact with the others?
GIANLUCA= In reality we didn’t recognize many of them, we said: “but who is this?” – It’s Puff Daddy….
CATTELAN= You were too young.
GIANLUCA= Yes, too young.
IGNAZIO= At that time Gianluca had a habit (he touches his ear) he looked at everyone like that.😂
CATTELAN= Were you scratching your ears?
GIANLUCA= It was nervousness, I was there watching…. sorry but, forgive me, from school to that one, in five months…
CATTELAN= Madness, it’s madness!
GIANLUCA= …it’s normal for you to stay there, biting your nails….
IGNAZIO= Did you see Gianluca like this. (he scratches his hand with wide eyes) 😂
GIANLUCA= Yes, completely!
CATTELAN= It’s okay, it’s okay.
IGNAZIO= The callus came after some time.
PIERO= Jimmy Iovine organized these parties to introduce Il Volo, who was a new artist who was part of Interscope Records..
CATTELAN= Yes…
PIERO= …..to all these artists..
CATTELAN= Sure.
PIERO= So in some way we were the protagonists of the evening, but we didn’t know anyone, and that nobody is all the artists: Beyoncé etc.
GIANLUCA= Imagine, the first performance of the first album, then the first songs and we also sang IL MONDO, think about you…. and there is a gentleman in his forties, who goes on stage, pats us on the shoulder: “Welcome to our family”….and who was he??? Did you ask Piero who is he? And he told me it was Puff Daddy!
CATTELAN= In short, it went well for you!
GIANLUCA= There is this scene here, which are things that remain indelible, it’s clear.
IGNAZIO= Well, that was the period of fireplaces, wasn’t it? At first we did all the showcases, which was this five song intro show and coincidentally they were all in front of the fireplace.
CATTELAN= Ah, why was it cold?
IGNAZIO= In the fireplaces at home…incredible.
CATTELAN= Beautiful, intimate… you were very young there, but over the years you have taken on a bit of a star attitude, I always read about crazy requests from artists in the dressing rooms. When I presented Eurovision, there was a legend that I asked for strawberries in the dressing room.
PIERO= Who, us?
CATTELAN= No, no me.
PIERO= Oh you?
CATTELAN= I don’t even know if I like strawberries!
PIERO= So, there is a truth that Il Volo in the quick change, which is that cubicle behind the stage….but you have never asked yourself: “But will someone who sings for two hours pee or not?”😂😂😂
CATTELAN= I’ve actually never asked myself that.
PIERO= One day a promoter friend of ours comes to us and asks: “Guys, I’m curious, but why are you asking for cat sand? Who has a cat?” None of the three have cats! 😂🐈⬛
GIANLUCA= We are the cats! I swear. 🤣🤣🤣
CATTELAN= I don’t want to know!
PIERO= It’s us, because this thing is intelligent, this request was made by Alessio Guerrieri, our back linear, hello Alessio Guerrieri…
IGNAZIO= Besides being a masterpiece, you are also intelligent….
PIERO= Alessio requested cat sand, because we behind the stage, while Ignazio or Gianluca sings, I go behind and pee in the cat sand. 😂
CATTELAN= On the sand for cats! 😳
PIERO= Of course, sorry! 😂
CATTELAN= Then, you don’t do it directly but there will be someone who arrives with a sandbag behind the stage…..😁
GIANLUCA= Obviously there is also the cat bowl.. 😂😂
CATTELAN= To drink if you are thirsty!!! I don’t know if they wanted to know this!!! It was still very beautiful.
PIERO= However when you see Il Volo singing, imagine what happens behind it….
GIANLUCA= We are back there with the sand….😂
IGNAZIO= We are waiting for you…
CATTELAN= I don’t know if I will be able to look at you with the same eyes!!
So, we went through it quickly before, there was this interview on the radio in which you had a bit of an argument and from there it created an avalanche….
IGNAZIO= I wasn’t there!!!🙄
CATTELAN= Weren’t you there????
IGNAZIO= No, I wasn’t there, I had fallen asleep that morning.
CATTELAN= But do you fall asleep every time you go to see someone? You have a problem!
IGNAZIO = Sometimes…
GIANLUCA= But he arrives on time like 8:30 down…. but basically the next day, so you’re there waiting….😂
IGNAZIO= I have my time zone! 😁
CATTELAN= You need to rest.
GIANLUCA= Look, everything was exploited there, then we didn’t immediately deny it.
CATTELAN= But did it have anything to do with the different vision of music?
PIERO= No, no, I said.
GIANLUCA= No, you have to stop, now I’m pissed (he’s re-enacting the scene from then)
PIERO= I only told the truth guys…
GIANLUCA= I simply said that it’s nice to return to Sanremo and sing Queen and show that we can be something else too.
PIERO= And I said: “Excuse me, if you want to be someone else, speak for yourself, I know who I am….”
GIANLUCA= But you can’t answer me like that in front of everyone!
CATTELAN= Stay calm, or beat yourself up.
PIERO= (to Gianluca) But I can tell you..(Piero hugs Gianluca) 🥰
IGNAZIO= I was sleeping. 😁
GIANLUCA= He was sleeping.
CATTELAN= Ah ah ah, certainly!
CATTELAN= However, we thought of exploiting the topic of the discussion….
GIANLUCA= Enough, enough, break away. (to Piero who continues to hold Gianluca)
CATTELAN= ….we wanted to try to make you play a little game. Each of you sings a different song at the same time as the others, three songs in time, but everyone is singing their own.
PIERO= You know you seem more Marzullo than Cattelan. (Marzullo always does complicated things)
CATTELAN= Maybe it stirs something in your conscience, I don’t know.
PIERO= Each of us sings a song together with the others, but isn’t it the same song?
CATTELAN= Put it this way it seems difficult, but now you’ll see what happens, it’s a game we’re about to play called “I understand it on the fly” (it means I understand it immediately) Come, come!
CATTELAN= Ok, each member of Il Volo is about to sing a song. Everyone will sing their own but they will do it at the same time.
The competitor who will play with me and I will have to guess the three songs. The only custodian of the correct answers is our Ilenia, can you confirm that you have them there Ilenia?
ILENIA= Yes.
CATTELAN= Perfect, then you will be the one to give us the right or wrong answer. The competitor who is about to play with us must have particular characteristics, he must be as similar to me as possible, also have blue eyes, support Inter, have a surname that ends in N, give a huge round of applause to Pier Paolo Spollon. (an italian actor)
SPOLLON= Good evening, I see they are looking at me strangely.
GIANLUCA= I want to give a round of applause to the Street Clerks (the band) because without them this program would be a film without a soundtrack.
BAND= Did you see? Other than Coachella, Coachella. 😁😁 Thanks Gianluca!
CATTELAN= It would be a bad film without the soundtrack.
SPOLLON= Can I get out of the embarrassment for a second? I saw them (Il Volo) looking at me and thinking….but who the hell is this?
But you must not know anything about me.. (he means that the game is not on his person)
PIERO= But did I see you in Doc or not? (Italian television series)
SPOLLON= More or less.
CATTELAN= That’s right, yes!
SPOLLON= The only thing you need to know is that I’m the one who works with Luca Argentero (Italian actor), the one over there.
CATTELAN= He’s a fake doctor. (he impersonates a doctor in the TV series)
SPOLLON= Exactly!
CATTELAN= So, the guys from Il Volo are about to sing. I’ll give a quick recap of the rules, they each sing a song, but at the same time, it will be up to us to try to understand the three titles of the songs. We have a small blackboard that we will have to write on.
SPOLLON= And you called this game for me?
CATTELAN= Because I like to win. Are you ready guys?
PIERO= Wait, I’ll fix this (ear microphone)
SPOLLON= And what is this for? (one button)
CATTELAN= They put this but it’s useless, we crush it but it’s useless! Ready, go!
(the three songs start, difficult to recognize them)
CATTELAN= Damn I miss the first one! At that time…
GIANLUCA= But did you in the audience understand? – Yes-
CATTELAN= Really? So I’ll play mine, I’ll show them here. Mine are: LOVE ME TENDER but I didn’t understand it, I just know that Gianluca likes it and so I tried, then SEI BELLISSIMA and UN AMORE COSÌ GRANDE.
PIERO= Wait, who sang “Sei Bellissima”…..
CATTELAN= “Sei Bellissima”: Ignazio, “Un Amore Così Grande”: Piero and Gianluca : “Love me Tender.”
PIERO= Well done!!
SPOLLON= I’d say you did a really good job, congratulations…
CATTELAN= But what did you write?
SPOLLON= You guessed them all, well done, we have a winner…so I wrote in abbreviation: You’re Belliss+++ and that was it, I wrote Presley because I felt it but I’m not convinced it’s Love Me Tender, maybe it’s Falling in Love….
GIANLUCA= Great, he got it! Great!
SPOLLON= I didn’t understand the last one and I wrote: Caruso!
CATTELAN= So, because a Caruso is always good! Ilenia?
ILENIA= You were wrong, you and him too.
CATTELAN= But what is the way to deliver results? Which are the right ones? Read there.
ILENIA= Piero: “Un Amore Così Grande”, Ignazio: “ Sei Bellissima”, Gianluca: “Can’t help falling in love”.
CATTELAN= Damn, but you got it right. Okay, 2 to 1.
SPOLLON= No, I also understood “Sei Bellissima” and Presley.
CATTELAN= Are you ready (to the public) – Yes-
You can also help us if you think of something, we can cheat easily, don’t worry! Guys….Ignazio the headphones…
IGNAZIO= Go…
CATTELAN= Whenever you want….(three more songs begin…difficult to understand some…Gianluca gives help to Spollon)….But come on…
SPOLLON= Is there a jury?
CATTELAN= No, it’s me. So for this round, as far as I’m concerned it is made up of: MERAVIGLIOSA CREATURA ALMENO TU NELL’UNIVERSO ROCKET MAN by Elthon John.
PIERO= Applause, applause!!
SPOLLON= I start from the bottom: ROCKET MAN and I guessed it before you (Gianluca) said Rocket Man, then I wrote DIVERSO (He wanted to write Universo), and then I wrote Nannini. (he means Meravigliosa Creatura)
CATTELAN= It doesn’t apply and I would say that this is mine too…
SPOLLON= Ilenia, can we say that Nannini is fine?
ILENIA= Yes, it’s fine.
IGNAZIO= Sorry, it would be like saying: What show do you like by Alessandro Cattelan? Cattelan! But what does it mean?
CATTELAN= Ignazio is right, it’s not worth saying Nannini. Oh well, last round, whoever wins this one wins it all.
SPOLLON= Are we tied?
CATTELAN= I would be ahead but I’ll leave you tied. Guys, let’s do the last one, whenever you want! (last three songs begin)
So, what did you write?
SPOLLON= You go first, you have a clean face but you continue to spy.
CATTELAN= I have a long eye. 😁
IGNAZIO= Yes, he spied!
SPOLLON= But it’s bad for you, because I was the last one in the class, so if you copy from me….😁
CATTELAN= Go, what did you write?
SPOLLON= I wrote: IL MONDO, I understood it, then I wrote E POI… So, what did you write?
CATTELAN= Me too.
SPOLLON= And then I (Gianluca) didn’t understand.
CATTELAN= I wrote TI PENSO but it was IL MONDO, you’re right, so E POI and then I wrote A WONDERFUL WORLD.
GIANLUCA= Ah, did you hear it?
CATTELAN = Of course! Piero you were disturbed by the other two, that’s how it went. Guys now let’s do the math to see who won, the important thing is that you give a big round of applause for Il Volo!!
Thank you so much for being with us, guys, it’s always a great pleasure to see you, Gianlu, come here (and hug Gianluca). Happy world tour, where are you going now?
GIANLUCA= China, Japan, then the Arena of Verona and we will tour our new album which is AD ASTRA.
PIERO= First album of unreleased songs.
CATTELAN= I’m in China and Japan, I don’t know if I can come, but I’ll see you at the Verona Arena. Best wishes (for Easter).
Best wishes ladies and gentlemen, Il Volo!!
And here are some short videos of the rehearsals for our guys’ entrance.
A special guitarist: Ignazio.
And three songs at the same time!!
Happiness 🥰🥰
This presence from Cattelan is also nice, but these guys are unstoppable, a new date has been announced on their Asian tour which will start soon and therefore SHANGHAI in China has been added.
Also two instore dates have also been given, one in Verona (which I will participate in) and one in Naples!!
But then there will be participation in the program On The Road Verso il Giubileo, and Domenica In da Mara Venier, and then Radio Italia live, so stay with us, there will still be a lot to read.
How wonderful, the guys seem more relaxed, the songs of this little private concert are beautiful.
And how wonderful to see the hugs between our kids, how much tenderness. 😍😍😍
This clashes with what the Italian newspapers are publishing on Il Volo relating to an alleged live radio argument between Piero and Gianluca, a video that I have already published here too, immediately telling you that it was nothing important, a simple exchange of opinions as often happens between brothers but which does not cause their affection to collapse.
Here I propose the video again, which moreover was taken from a much longer interview.
Our “dear” journalists took the cue to write that Il Volo is arguing, is separating and I must say that many fans also believed this.
Yesterday I counted 35 different newspapers that had headlines about this dispute, 🤬🤬🤬 and so Stefano Fisico, the one who was interviewing them in the video and also a great friend of our boys, published this video.
(The headline under his picture says): YOU MAKE ME LAUGH
STEFANO= So guys, I tend to be someone who laughs about everything, because we also need to be light-hearted, especially in the things we deal with, dealing with music and football not only at the highest levels.
I was told…..how sad….two articles from two newspapers which hypothesized a controversy between Gianluca and Piero from Il Volo, during an interview I did with them last week on Radio Number One.
If you watch the entire interview we did, don’t look for the controversy and the clicks that make me laugh, but sign your name, so at least you put your face in the bullshit you write. 👏👏👏
But even this did not stop the journalists and the newspapers went from two to 35.
So yesterday Alvise Salerno, DJ and host of Radio Number One, published this video:
Il Volo argued on the air on Radio Number One. What a stupid joke.
Piero and Gianluca from Il Volo argue on Radio Number One… I woke up this morning and I was doing my research, because now I’m going to the radio to do my program on Radio Number One, coincidentally, and I read on Repubblica, Il Messaggero (headlines of Italian newspapers) and I don’t know about other newspapers, but in Repubblica and Il Messaggero I read this news which concerned Il Volo, which concerned Piero and Gianluca who were guests on our track the week of Sanremo.
My first reaction when I read it was, “what’s going on?”
The second reaction was to write a comment on both the Il Messaggero and Repubblica pages saying that you are ridiculous!! Because objectively they are ridiculous. The news is false. From any point of view the boys have never argued, among other things the full video of this thing that they filmed can be found right here on the Radio Number One profile on Tik Tok, therefore easily available, extremely easy to find. Clearly and obviously I will say it on the radio now, that they were false, that they wrote something stupid, that nothing is true, the boys never argued, they were laughing and joking with each other as they have always done for years and the thing that I’m so sorry, do you know what it is? That in the case of both Il Messaggero and La Repubblica there are no names, it is written by the editorial and entertainment staff, so the director of my radio station cannot even call those directly involved (responsible for the two newspapers) and it really makes me laugh at this thing and I’d like to talk to the author of this…. what can we call it? Well…a joke?? Yes, I would call it a joke in bad taste….but I can’t do it, so amen!!
And with this, I close the topic and I hope I have allayed all your fears. I listened to the entire interview and Piero and Gianluca laugh and at the end Piero reiterates to Stefano that there is love and respect between the three of them and Stefano confirms. 😉
Instead now I want to offer you this little video clip where our boys say their opinions on some topics.
THE FIRST PERFORMANCE IN SANREMO 2024
GIANLUCA= We shared a unique moment singing that song on stage. Only we can truly understand how it feels. We look at each other and with a look of complicity we understand each other deeply. And this is important. ❤️
CAPOLAVORO
GIANLUCA= We return with the presentation of a song that today represents a bit of our individual personalities that give this song this strength.
PIERO= We are proud of our song, because today Capolavoro talks about a feeling told in a different age. We are thirty years old and our feelings clearly change and mature for each of us.
THE EXPECTATIONS OF SANREMO
IGNAZIO= Let’s say that Sanremo is not an easy week and certainly many people have expectations of artists and we promised ourselves one thing, not to have expectations, to participate in this Sanremo with a smile and with the desire to celebrate 15 years and send this message of unity.
LISTEN TO EACH OTHER AND LOVE EACH OTHER
GIANLUCA= Perhaps to try to build healthy relationships we need to put aside egocentrism and presumption, be willing to listen, so it is the only way in working relationships, but also in relational ones and then ours is truly a marriage if so you can call it right? Then we love each other, I think this is the main thing, there is a boundless affection. ❤️
BEL CANTO IN THE WORLD
IGNAZIO= Bel canto is a genre that certainly attracts the attention of an audience that is more foreign than Italian. They have a different attention to this genre which has chosen us a bit, it wasn’t us who chose it, because since we were little we have always sung bel canto and this song from Sanremo, Capolavoro, we think will be a perfect bridge for the record that will be released soon, a record of unreleased songs, it will be completely different where people can hear our three different personalities.
PIERO= And then to follow a world tour, we will start from China, Japan and directly from Japan we will land at the Verona Arena. After Italy a world tour will follow, United States, Australia, South America. 👏👏👏
The speeches end by talking about the bomb scare that occurred the evening before Sanremo during all the singers’ dinner. Il Volo had just left the area and shortly afterwards everything was evacuated due to the alarm, luckily it was just a false alarm.😱
And now this other short video by Radio Italia.
IS THREE THE PERFECT NUMBER?
The boys’ answer is yes, that is, they very much agree.
Woman= In my opinion three is a lot.
Gianluca= So the three of us, would we be many?
Woman= But because I don’t get along with two people, I can’t.
Piero= Three is the perfect number for only one reason, because there is always a majority.
Ignazio= We are lucky enough to have mutual respect.
Woman= And are there any reasons for the argument? Do you argue?
Ignazio= Always, but thank goodness.
Gianluca= Of course, but paradoxically when it comes to music, because we are totally different. We invite you to spend a day on tour with us.
Woman= Oh god, that’s so cool, I would do it. 🤪
And now a look backstage at their official video for Capolavoro.
And this is good news, although we hope that every week it gets better and better.
Capolavoro by Il Volo was the highest new entry in the airplay chart: position 43. The song, competing in Sanremo 2024, was in 107th place last week.
Here is the link to the earone Facebook post if you would like to make a comment. Click on the photo below to take you there.
And finally a video of the reaction to the first listening to Capolavoro with English subtitles!!
Another video reaction to Capolavoro. (this one you’ll have to activate the English subtites)
Here is a unique version of Capolavoro with the orchestra removed so the guys’ voices are ‘acapella’.
And this time too I hope I have given you interesting news, but I’ll tell you straight away that next time we’ll only talk about our two lovers: Ignazio and Michelle!!❤️❤️
See you soon:
Daniela 🤗
Credit to owners of all photos and videos.
Come in and share the love of life, friends and Il Volo!
