We received the great news on Sunday that the guys will go to Sanremo in 2024. This is what we were all hoping for, and we are all so happy that the guys will be Chasing the Lion again!
For the new fans and the fans who don’t know what the Lion is, I will give a brief description of the Sanremo Music Festival.
The Sanremo Music Festival, officially the Italian Song Festival is the most popular Italian song contest and awards ceremony held annually in the city of Sanremo. It is the longest-running annual TV music competition in the world on a national level; making it one of the world’s longest running TV programs.
The award for winning the contest is a trophy of a Lion.
The songs selected in the competition are original songs (never previously published) in Italian (or in an Italian dialect), and the three most voted songs are awarded. Other special awards are also given, including the Critics’ Award, created ad hoc by the press in 1982 to reward the quality of Mia Martini’s song, and named after the singer in 1996, after her death.
Il Volo’s “Grande Amore” won the Sanremo Music Festival 2015.
During the final night of the song contest, held on February 14, 2015, “Grande Amore” finished in first place, receiving 56.1878% of the votes and won the competition!
So that is what the award is about and now I will tell you how the guys came to the competition and how they won it!
First let me apologize to the fans for breaking the story I’ve been writing the last few weeks. I’m sure Ignazio will not mind that I am not writing his next episode this week.
In order to understand how the guys came to do the competition, we must first go back to 2014 and understand what was going on in their lives.
Before I begin, I must tell you this is my favorite story in their book. The story as told by the guys is so interesting. They were young and they were very intelligent. They knew what they wanted and what they needed and went for it! Bravo! They stepped up to the plate and did what other groups could not achieve in their lifetime careers!
Since I am not writing Ignazio’s story this week, I will let him begin to explain what happened in 2013 that caused their decision in 2014….
Ignazio begins….
After the Latin American tour (2013) we started promoting the Christmas album.
My house began to fail me. Being four months away, changing cities, hotels and planes almost every day is not easy. From the age of sixteen, finding yourself catapulted into a world completely different to the one I was used to, was not a simple thing to manage. At first no, actually the first two years I thought ‘What a beautiful life!.’ Then I realized that ‘all that glitters is not gold.’
To get satisfaction and achieve the goals you have set yourself, you have to give up many things and work hard. Stay focused on your work. It’s not easy.
Many people say: ‘But these guys never get tired?.’ Well, yes, we get tired too, sometimes. Personally, there was a time when I thought only of friends. I wanted to go out, I never answered the phone, the emails, the messages, I was out of this world.
It was thanks to my family, to the boys and to Michele that I realized that I was neglecting what was always important for me: the Music!
Gianluca….
True, Ignazio is right. It was not easy, and neither is it now.
In those years, in 2012 and 2013, no one knew us in Italy, we were just the three children who had come from Ti Lascio Una Canzone.
But in America, in South America, in Europe we were very well known. And not only there.
After the release of our first CD, we went on tour even in places that none of us could have imagined we would go to: Australia, Singapore, Malaysia, Taiwan and New Zealand. In Singapore we also had a gold record with that first CD.
In 2012 we arrived in Norway, one of the few European countries that we had not yet touched. We participated in the concert dedicated to the Nobel Peace Prize – that year went to the European Union – in Oslo. A fantastic evening that allowed us to meet Gerard Butler and Sarah Jessica Parker, who were the presenters, and an artist like Kylie Minogue.
And then, in 2014 we were twice in Moscow, once guests in a concert by Toto Cutugno and once with a concert of our own, and at the beginning of 2015 we were in Beijing, guests of a TV program for the Chinese New Year.
So, before Sanremo, we lived two lives, two completely different lives. Abroad we were stars, and we came to Italy to rest. I took refuge in Montepagano, Piero in Naro, Ignazio in Marsala. It was nice to come back to ‘normal’ life.
Even if we felt that something was missing, that it was bad to be so successful outside of our country and not be able to have it in Italy.
Ignazio continues….
2014 was not our best year!
In fact, along with Eurovision, one of those things that I do not like to talk about, but we’re telling the truth, so let’s tell it all. That year the contract with Universal expired, so we started looking for a new record company.
Universal makes more pop, hip pop, rap and for us it was time to look for a label that would make a more classical and more suitable music genre for us.
It’s just that finding a new record company is not something you do in two days.
We did not sleep at night.
We talked with Michele about it until late in the evening to look for solutions.
The first thing that came to mind was to take charge of everything. Not that we could stop because we were looking for a new record company. We had earned and then we would have invested those profits on ourselves. So, we continued to work on the projects we had, new records and tours. We were planning a new tour in Canada and the United States for that summer. We could do it.
We learn that being brave has brought us luck because, after a few months, an email from Sony Latin arrived: they were interested in us.
Sony Music Latin, as you understand by the name, is a label of the record company Sony all dedicated to Latin music. And the label includes, to name a few, Gloria Estefan, Marc Anthony, Ricky Martin and Shakira.
After a few weeks and long negotiations, we went to Miami to sign the contract.
It was unique and emotional because we were underage when we were signed by Universal, our parents signed for us. This was the first record contract signed by our fist!
It was also at this time that Italy began to recognize Il Volo!
Ignazio continues….
Italy made us close in 2014 with a flourish. What started out very badly finished very well: with the Christmas concert in the Senate.
“…the hymn of Mameli was the heart-pounding one… singing in that place, with everyone singing along with us, including Giorgio Napolitano (President) and Pietro Grasso (President of the Senate).”
This is one of my favorite concerts!
We also want to talk about the thrill of singing in front of the highest offices of state! What twenty-year-old boy has something like that happen? It happened to us, and it seems to me a beautiful result, an honor.
The concert was on December 21st. You cannot imagine the emotional feeling to be called ‘guests of honor’ inside the Senate.
The fantastic Filarmonia Orchestra Veneta conducted by Diego Basso. Half the beauty of the song is in the orchestra.
We start with Christmas classics such as Adeste Fideles and White Christmas, but then there was also Caruso, Mattinata, No Puede Ser, Memory and of course our classic ‘O Sole Mio.
The most exciting moments? Everyone! But the hymn of Mameli was the heart-pounding one, the first song, singing in that place, with everyone singing along with us, including Giorgio Napolitano, (President) and Pietro Grasso (President of the Senate). It is one thing that I cannot explain.
And then, of course, the pleasure of shaking hands with the President of the Republic and of feeling that he knows Marsala, he has been there.
In short, in the end, instead of remembering it as the worst year of our lives together, 2014 brought us well: great changes and an important step towards Italy, towards home.
Piero begins….
Meanwhile, the first thing that comes to mind, after so many years of great success abroad, the greatest successes there has been, one wakes up one morning, indeed, three wake up one morning and decide to go to the Sanremo Festival.
When one is famous all over the world, there comes a moment when he must also be able to say: ‘Wow, they love me even in Italy.’ He must be able to say: ‘They also love me in my country.’
You go abroad and, during the interviews, you hear the fateful question: ‘You are loved even in Italy, right?’ and you have to answer no.
No one can understand how much we suffered in those moments.
Also, in meetings with Universal, in the United States, we sometimes tried to say: ‘Why do we publish concerts all over the world, except in Italy?’ We wanted the record company to try to support us in this sense too.
I remember that once, during a meeting with the president, I asked him for the thousandth time. And what does he do? He had a globe on his desk, I’m not joking, he gives it to me and says: ‘Turn it around, then stop it and find Italy at the first shot.’
The problem is that you have to look for it because it is a small country, very small compared to the United States and Latin America or Australia (and we have been on both of these continents). Then I got mad: ‘Oh, no, it’s my country, and the country where I was born, and the country where we come from, you cannot say it’s not important, do not think about it.’
For us, Sanremo was a decisive opportunity to let us be known to Italians, to say to Italians ‘We exist.’ And we are proud and really happy that our music genre was appreciated.
Operatic pop, it’s called, or pop opera, that is – just to be precise – a set of pop music and elements of lyrical music. And where was the lyric born? In Italy, belcanto is Italy.
It made us suffer that abroad we were loved and in Italy snubbed for something that is ours. And a bit like if the pizza was loved only abroad but not here.
Ignazio….
As they say, Piero? A prophet is not recognized in his own land, so we were snubbed, perhaps because they never had the opportunity to really know us and show, once and for all, who we are personally and humanly, as well as being singers.
Then, after a few months of night phone calls with Michele, towards the end of 2014, we finally decided: ‘new year, new life: we go to the Sanremo Festival.’
It must also be said that in the meantime in Italy people were starting to get to know us better as Il Volo, and no longer as the Tre tenorini, thanks to our friend Bruno Vespa who invited us to the Porta a Porta episode on November 20, 2014 on Rai One, we conquered the maximum, of the television ratings of the season.
Then, not to mention Piero, the fussy one, but we have never been three tenors, neither small nor big. Piero is the only one who is really a tenor. He has a more classic voice. Gianluca has a baritone voice, a warm tone. I am the most pop one. Let’s say that these are three different ways of expressing emotions but, we are not three tenors.
However, even if they began to appreciate us in Italy, the fear of participating in the festival was so great. Fear of giving way to people to say: ‘Here, now they want to come and do the phenomena here.’ The only way to not have to hear certain things was to win.
Personally, I did not believe it so much. I have always been a bit pessimistic; you know it by now. But who really believed we could do it, Gianluca!
Gianluca….
Not so much, I believed it very, very much, I felt it inside that we would have won.
I am like that, I’m not immediately enthusiastic about things, or rather of us three, maybe I’m the one who wants to think about it more, but if I have positive feelings, nobody stops me. Let’s say I have a certain sensitivity.
No one trusted, no one believed it. It was I who persuaded Piero to persuade Ignazio to go to Sanremo. Because? I told him: ‘Guys, if we go, we’ll win it, I’m sure, I’m sure.’
I do not even remember anymore how many times I heard it repeated, even from my father: ‘If than, they throw you out, you do not make long faces.’ But I if nothing, am stubborn to the end, and in the end, I convinced them.
Piero….
Yes, even if we thought about the participation really until the last possible day, we were not very sure. But then we said to ourselves: ‘Guys, make it or break it, in the end, we were not anyone here in Italy, at most we would not be anyone even afterwards.’
So, first problem solved: we go to Sanremo, It’s official.
But then there was the second problem: the song. True, Gian?
Gianluca….
I did not agree to go with that piece. If I think about it now, I’ll say to me that the next time I have to reflect better before judging, try to sing a song and then judge because we ‘change’ the songs, arranging them by cutting them on our voice, and I did not have this fact taken into consideration, despite the song on first listening was not very ugly.
Ignazio….
It’s not that we’ve heard only that, no. Do you think it is easy to choose a piece for Sanremo? We started to do a search and a selection of unpublished tracks. Our policy was: either we go with something strong, or we do not go right.
One day this song comes through Michele: Grande Amore by Francesco Boccia and Ciro Esposito, two Neapolitan authors. As usual, I am pessimistic. I listen to it and it does not make me crazy. Not even Gianluca was convinced. The only enthusiast was Pie …
Piero….
I loved Grande Amore! I did not believe that we would have won, but I was the one who pushed, I and Michele pushed for Grande Amore. Because the audition that we heard was not beautiful, but we imagined if it was made by Celso Valli! and I must say that he had guessed right.
Ignazio….
And I said it too if you let me talk.
I was saying, in fact, that Grande Amore was not as we hear it today. It was always called Grande Amore, but it was totally different. So, we start to think: who can produce the piece? And Michele calls the great Celso Valli. After several weeks of work in the studio, we managed to churn out a song that for us could have left its mark at the Sanremo Festival.
Gianluca….
That’s why when we left for Sanremo I was very convinced: we had the piece, the right project.
Piero….
He wanted to influence us, but we are superstitious …
Gianluca….
Every day at lunch and dinner with Michele and the president of Sony, I said: ‘Guys, we will win Sanremo.’
Piero….
Do you know what a week like this means?
Ignazio….
Piero and I were all day touching iron and the low parts. Gianluca was convinced that the little lion (the Sanremo award is represented by a lion) would be ours? And the two of us tried to keep the situation under control.
Gianluca….
What should I tell you? I am an optimist. They took it something like ‘he makes fun of us,’ but I felt it inside. I do not know why.
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 Una Canzone. 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.
But do you remember how we were dressed before? I remember that time at Una Notte per Caruso, in July 2009, it was the second time we saw Torpedine.
Michele arrives with another white Range Rover, not that of Jesolo, and as soon as he arrives we do not even say hello and we go to see the car. Let’s run, let’s open the car.
Ignazio immediately goes up to the car. We went crazy for the cars, one like that, we did not see every day. The day after we go for a ride in downtown Sorrento, a shopping trip, and we enter into Gucci. Michele spent almost two thousand euros and we with that written number at the counter, we exclaimed: ‘Mizziga! (Damn!) Two thousand euro!’ with wide eyes. And we still have those clothes, at least I personally still have them.
He had bought us a jacket, but above all the need for us to dress all in white and blue.
I had the blue jacket and the white shirt, Gianluca had blue trousers and white shirt, Ignazio the blue shoes and everything else white, Michele the blue jacket. And we took a picture in front of the hotel.
Gianluca….
We were just dressed badly to be the singers by trade, we were children, we came from families of workers. What could I buy? There was not even the need.
Piero….
And then you remember the restaurant? Afterwards we went to a restaurant near the sea. When we finished eating, the three of us took off our shoes and ran to the beach. Michele ran behind us telling us: ‘Guys, calm down. Guys, slow down.’
Ignazio….
Yes, but what does that have to do with it, Pie? We’re talking about Sanremo. What has Sorrento got to do with it?
Sanremo 2015, from 10th to 14th of February, we sang on the second evening, legs shaking, Gianluca’s birthday.
Video with English subtitles.
Among the many interviews, the diary that we kept every day for ‘TV Sorrisi e Canzoni’… We had fun with the diary!
It was a sort of ‘pill,’ a very few minutes, in which we recorded from the 9th to 14th of February (the last episode after the award ceremony). We told about some of the emotions we felt. For example, the time that Gianluca almost stumbles on stage or the happiness of seeing the audience get up and applaud the first night we sang Grande Amore. The recording then, went online on the site of the magazine.
What was I saying? Ah, yes, among the many interviews, the diary that we kept every day for ‘TV Sorrisi e Canzoni,’ meetings and press conferences …
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. I can 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.
You have to admit that is the most incredible story! Every time I read it I find something else about it that amazes me. 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.
The other thing that makes the story incredible is that they did it on their own without the support of the press.
Today things are really good for them in Italy. They have come into their own and much of the press is out there supporting them. As to the others, for the life of me I will never understand what they could possibly dislike about three amazing teenagers who won fame on the stage of Ti Lascio una Canzone.
They traveled around the world and won the hearts of every nation and then risking the possible of losing Italy forever, they took a big chance and finally won the hearts of the Italian people.
Welcome, guys, to Italy, your life, your home! No one is better than you guys! The Italians were always there for you; you just didn’t know it! And they will be there for you for the 74th edition of Sanremo! I can’t wait to hear the song! I have some idea about who it should come from, but I’ll keep it to myself for now! We are all cheering for you! As for me, you already won!
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure!
Next we week we go back to our story and pick up Ignazio’s story and follow him down the road where he meets his fate.
For your listening pleasure and staying with 2014, I give you The concert at Taormina!
*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 mans’ 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)
Just in time for Christmas, the guys released a new EP 4Xmas Amazing Grace, O Tannenbaum, Feliz Navidad and Happy Xmas (the War is Over) order yours now on Spotify, Amazon, etc.
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 and don’t forget to visit the Archives.
Now we have arrived at the part of the story which is the main event ~ Ti Lascio una Canzone! I’m going to say a few words about it for all the new fans out there and then I am a going to skip to The Night the Lion Roared. Why? Because everyone who knows Il Volo knows their amazing story! But I will share a few important facts and some videos of that amazing night.
Their amazing 1,2,3 win, as important as it was, was not the most important part to this story. The the biggest win of all was ~ Il Volo!
Let’s begin with Episode Four…
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. Flawless!
But before the trio came together, there were some amazing performances….
Let’s talk about some of the people they performed with on the show. Really great names in the Italian music industry. Massimo Ranieri, Fausto Leali, Al Bano, Adamo, Piero Mazzoccheti.
What I witnessed in those performances were great performers who were in awe of these three teenage boys who were singing, in some cases, their songs and they were totally amazed. It was written all over their faces. They could not believe what they were hearing.
What was going on behind the scenes? Well, we certainly know that the idea to put the three together was the genius of Roberto Cenci the artistic director and director of the program. But there was so much more happening!
We know when Michele Torpedine heard them sing for the first time, he thought the three possessed an incredible vocality for their age.
He instinctively knew signing these kids would be for him the find of a lifetime!
Michele says, “The next day I am a volcano. I want to talk to everyone: producers, managers, families.”
Michele continues, “Another great story started, a new story at a time when it seemed to me that there was no future for me, for my profession: a breath of oxygen in my environment.”
After years of disappointment, loss of trust and gratitude, missing or denied, with Ignazio, Piero and Gianluca, Michele rediscovers the values of gratitude. Michele says, “The boys allowed me to really go back to my job.”
And the results….
They were the first Italian artists in history to sign a contract with a major American music label.
Universal Music signed them immediately. Michele said, “It is important to give due recognition to the man who made all this possible, the great record manager Peter Lopez. Peter immediately sensed the enormous potential of our artistic project. To him we owe an incredible international contract signed simply trusting that the boys would have audiences all over the world.”
But what did they bring to the table to win over the kids, the parents, and the grandparents? They had an idea and it worked….
Their music was Operatic pop or Pop-Opera. What was this new movement? It’s singing Opera in a more modern style. While opera is very strict and regimented, Pop-Opera is more ethereal it has a lighter feeling, and it moves freely. It takes away the hard edges of opera and replaces it with a more ethereal feel while still presenting the drama and the high notes of the opera. This along with the classical Neapolitan songs became a big draw. Why did it work? One reason is three amazing voices! If the voice wasn’t there, the song wasn’t going to sell.
They started their career in America and immediately went around the world! There was no stopping them. Everyone everywhere loved them and their music. There are some great memories along the way but that’s a story for another day….
So now I will flash forward six years and tell you about The Night the Lion Roared….
When I read Un’avventura Straordinaria, the story that I loved the most was the story of Sanremo. The decision by the guys to take on the Sanremo Festival. This story brought out their personalities, their differences and how they are so bound to one another that they could make the decision of a lifetime together even if it meant they could lose what was so important to them, their country and their people!
We know 2014 started out as a bad year, but suddenly things were happening. They were invited to sing at the Italian Senate. This was an event of immense importance for them. It said Italy was finally noticing them so, it only made sense that it was time to take a giant step!
But this story doesn’t start with Sanremo, nor does it end there! Sanremo was the door opener!
They will tell you that the decision to go to Sanremo was a good one but, in contrast going to Eurovision may not have been their best decision. My reply, going to Eurovision was an excellent decision!
Let’s see how these decisions were made and what path they chose….
Sanremo 2015
The Decision
So where do you begin to make the decision. Well, you have to start with….
Who’s in and who’s out!
Who’s in?
From day one, Gianluca wanted to go. He was so convinced that they would win that he never backed down from it. He had no doubt in his mind that they would win.
Who’s out?
Always the pessimist, Ignazio. He said “No, we can’t win. It’s too hard.”
So that leaves Piero! Piero at first was not on board but Gianluca persuaded him. Gianluca said, “No one trusted, no one believed it. It was I who persuaded Piero to persuade Ignazio to go to Sanremo. Because I told them: ‘Guys, if we go, we’ll win it, I’m sure, I’m sure’”.
Piero said, “We said to ourselves: ‘Guys, make it or break it, in the end, we were not anyone here in Italy, at most we would not be anyone even afterwards.’”
Decision made! It’s official the guys go to Sanremo!
Then there’s the second problem, the song!
At Sanremo you must perform an unpublished song. How do you begin to find such a song?
Now this is the part of the story that’s really interesting and sometimes funny! Oddly enough, the one who wanted this the most was the one who did not agree to the song. I so enjoyed listening to this dialogue between the guys. This is where we begin to hear the guys make important decisions together. They’re really good. When they begin, they’re not agreeing but as time goes by…. well, why don’t I let them tell you how they finally got to Sanremo….
The Song
Gianluca:I did not agree to go with that piece. If I think about it now, I’ll say that the next time I must reflect better before judging, try to sing a song and then judge because our voices change the songs. We arrange them by cutting them on our voice, and I did not take this fact into consideration. The song when we first listened to it was not very ugly!
Ignazio:It’s not that we’ve heard only that, no. Do you think it is easy to choose a piece for Sanremo? We started to do a search and a selection of unpublished tracks. Our policy was: either we go with something strong, or we do not go, right?
One day this song comes to us through Michele: Grande Amore by Francesco Boccia and Ciro Esposito, two Neapolitan authors. As usual, I am pessimistic. I listen to it and it does not make me crazy. Not even Gianluca was convinced. The only enthusiast was Pie …
Piero (interrupts):I loved ‘Grande Amore!’ I did not believe that we would have won, but I was the one who pushed, I and Michele pushed for ‘Grande Amore’ because the audition that we heard was not beautiful, but we imagined it if it was made by Celso Valli and, I must say that we had guessed right.
Ignazio (interrupts): And I said it too if you let me talk. I was saying, in fact, that ‘Grande Amore’ was not as we hear it today. It was always called ‘Grande Amore,’ but it was totally different. So, we start to think: who can produce the piece? And Michele calls the great Celso Valli. After several weeks of work in the studio, we manage to churn out a song that could leave its mark at the Sanremo Festival.
Gianluca (interrupts): That’s why when we left for Sanremo I was very convinced we had the piece, the right project.
Piero:He wanted to influence us, but we are superstitious ….
Gianluca:Every day at lunch and dinner with Michele and the president of Sony, I say: ‘Guys, we will win Sanremo.’
Piero (interrupts):Do you know what a week like this means?
Ignazio:Piero and I were all day touching iron and the low parts. Gianluca was convinced that the little lion (the Sanremo award is represented by a lion) would be ours? And the two of us tried to keep the situation under control.
Gianluca (interrupts):What should I tell you? I am an optimist. They took it something like ‘he makes fun of us,’ but I felt it inside. I do not know why.
So many interruptions! Ignazio, before he was interrupted, was about to tell us about the first night they sang.
Ignazio:The 65th edition of the Festival begins on 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 (interrupts):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 una Canzone. One thing that cannot be described: in Sanremo, in Italy, to sing and receive the applause of the Italian public. It cannot be explained.
The Wardrobe
Gianluca:Can you imagine for me this was also my birthday? I turned twenty on the Ariston 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. First evening look more rock: total black with leather jacket. Because when we do our work the image matters, too.
I really wanted to use the video of “Ancora” at Sanremo but I couldn’t get it to work so, instead I chose the one from Verona. Amazing no matter where they sing it!
Piero (interrupts):Count, of course that counts. But do you remember how we were dressed before? I remember that time at Una Notte per Caruso, in July 2009, it was the second time we saw Torpedine. Michele arrives with another white Range Rover, not that of Jesolo, and as soon as he arrives, we do not even say hello and we go to see the car. Let’s run, let’s open the car. Ignazio immediately goes up to the car. We went crazy for cars, one like that, we did not see every day. The day after we go for a ride in downtown Sorrento, a shopping trip, and we enter Gucci’s. Michele spent almost two thousand euros and we with that written number at the counter, we exclaimed: “Mizziga! (Damn!) Two thousand euro” with wide eyes. And we still have those clothes, at least I personally still have them.
He had bought us a jacket, but above all the need for us to dress all in white and blue. I had the blue jacket and the white shirt, Gianluca had blue trousers and white shirt, Ignazio the blue shoes and everything else white, Michele the blue jacket. And we took a picture in front of the hotel.
Gianluca (interrupts):We were just dressed badly to be singers by trade, we were children, we came from families of workers. What could I buy? There was not even the need.
Piero (interrupts):And then you remember the restaurant? Afterwards we went to a restaurant near the sea. When we finished eating, the three of us took off our shoes and ran to the beach. Michele ran behind us telling us: ‘Guys, calm down. Guys, slow down.’
At this point Ignazio loses his patience. YES, but, what does that have to do with it, Pie? We were talking about Sanremo. What has Sorrento got to do with it?
The Performance
Ignazio gets the conversation back on track!
Sanremo 2015, from the 10th to 14th of February, we sang on the second evening, legs shaking, Gianluca’s birthday.
This video has English subtitles
Among the many interviews, the diary that we kept every day for TV Sorrisi e Canzoni … We had fun with the diary!
It was a sort of ‘pill.’ A very few minutes, in which we recorded from the 9th to 14th of February. We talked about some of the emotions we felt. For example, the time that Gianluca almost stumbles on stage or the happiness of seeing the audience get up and applaud the first night we sang ‘Grande Amore.’ The recording, then, went online on the site of the magazine.
What was I saying? Ah, yes, among the many interviews, the diary that we kept every day for TV Sorrisi e Canzoni, meetings and press conferences …
Piero (interrupts):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 a criticism of you?
Piero:Ah, tell me…
Ignazio:You interrupted me. I was about to tell the final. I can continue?
The Win
Ignazio:In short, the final evening arrives, February 14th. I realize from my shirt that in a week we have eaten more than we sang. 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 (interrupts):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 had ever listened to me, ever. I believed it so much that, if you notice, maybe I’m the one with the least surprised look on my face 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 look at Sanremo as a child, when there was Pippo Baudo, and I was there and have 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?”
Taking the conversation back, I have to say, to me this was the best conversation we could listen to. They disagree, they find middle ground, and they agree but, most importantly they listen to one another and that’s what makes the bond so great!
In the end Gianluca said: In short, Sanremo was just a dream that brought us many different emotions.
You might ask why did I put these two stories together? I wanted you to see what six years in their lives did for them. They started on the Ariston stage as three teenagers, went around the world gaining success everywhere along the way, only to come back to the Ariston Theater to win not only Sanremo but the hearts of the Italian people; the one thing they wanted from the beginning!
Over those six years they sang in concerts hall around the world. Their songs went gold and platinum. They won many awards including the Latin American Music Award’s Latin Pop Albums Artist of the Year for a duo or group. They sang with people like Barbara Streisand and joined some of the best singers in the music industry for “We Are the Whole Haiti” but what they wanted more than anything was to be accepted in their own country and they did that by coming back to their beginnings! Going full circle and taking a big chance paid off on the Ariston Stage for the second time.
As the winners of Sanremo, the guys went on to Eurovision. They came in third. They saw it as a loss but, I saw it as a win because here the press came out for them awarding them the Marcel Bezencon Press Award. The press has spoken!
As Italy is a member of the Big Five, the guys went straight into the Grand Final of the Eurovision Song Contest, which was held in Vienna on May 23rd, 2015. “Grande Amore” came in 3rd with 292 points but, they won the televote with 366 points and the Marcel Bezencon Press Award, as best song according to the collective voting of the accredited press.
And, the extended play “Sanremo Grande Amore” was released in Italy on February 20th, 2015, and it was certified triple platinum by FIMI.
The Night the Lion Roared, the guys felt they had finally achieved their dream to be number one in the hearts of the Italian people!
Against all odds they pulled it off. The part of the story they missed was about the Italian people. They were always on their side. Even when they were traveling around the world and hoping to perform concerts in Italy, the Italian people were always waiting for them. The press was against them but never the people. They wanted them home as much as they wanted to go home.
How does Michele Torpedine sum up our guys….
These three guys have very clear ideas and I have never seen them impressed in front of audiences that many would shake their legs. I never heard a wrong attack, and if some inconsistency arose that made something happen professionally, they knew how to handle the problem at the origin. They are always extraordinary, their voices grow with them, they mature in body and soul. There is no other team or artistic team so complete.
I couldn’t have said it better myself!
Join me next week as I go back Through the Fields of My Mind and open the door to a new adventure!
After six years the guys returned to the Ariston stage. They traveled around the world and stole the hearts of the people of the United States, South America, every corner of the earth. All the fame that any one person could want they had achieved. In six years, they did what most people cannot do in a lifetime! But all of this, which meant so much to them, at times, seemed lost because of what was missing. The joy was always lost in the pain which they felt in their hearts. They wanted to share it with their people, the Italian people. So, they decided to do something about it!
Off to Sanremo!
The pressure was tremendous. The doubts were there. Always there! Ignazio says, “No, we can’t win!” Gianluca says, “We win!” And Piero trying to keep the balance, “We were not anyone here in Italy, at most we would not be anyone even afterwards.”
So how do you begin to approach Sanremo when there is so much on the line! How do you get past the stress and the pressure?
The Video Diary!
TV Sorrisi e Canzoni asked the guys to do a diary of their days at Sanremo.
Since some people were having problems viewing all the separate videos below so we are posting the entire video here.
Day 1: February 9th, 2015
As Ignazio explains in the video, it was just a few minutes a day but, it was a “sort of pill.” It was the thing that kept them going when the pressure was on. “It was fun!” So much so that the guys said they would do it again! And it gave them the opportunity to talk directly to the Italian people and let them know how they felt about being home, experiencing Sanremo and sharing it with them!
So, let’s join the guys on their Sanremo journey.
Before General Soundcheck!
(The videos have English subtitles!) (Please click on each day’s photo to view the video diary.)
Day 2: February 10th, 2015
On day two Ignazio begins by telling us how the general soundcheck went and how it gave them the first beautiful emotions of singing at Sanremo! He also expresses how much he loves sharing these emotions with the other artist!
Piero tells us that he’s getting used to the video diary and he’s starting to like it! “It’s like writing in your diary at night!” He also tells us about his experience on the Red Carpet and experiencing the audience reaction to Il Volo.
Gianluca talks about the following evening when they will perform “Grande Amore” for the first time and certainly combine that with the fact that it’s his birthday!
After general soundcheck
Day 3: February 11th, 2015
Today Piero begins by telling us how he and millions of Italians enjoyed the opening of Sanremo. And the anticipation of singing for the Italian people this evening!
Gianluca tells us about the emotions, nervousness, and anxiety they are feeling. He anticipates something beautiful! And let’s not forget, it’s Gianluca’s birthday!
Ignazio is feeling all the excitement of the day. He says, “Today is our day.” He goes on to say, “Tonight is our turn!” He lightens things up by telling us about how the guys warm up before a show.
And then the final surprise of the video!
Singing for the Italian people!
Hey guys, why so serious?
I know the guys said we are all friends here but, it seems there were other forces at work! The Competition was fierce!
Exactly who is it they’re worried about?
Day 4: February 12th, 2015
The guys touch on so many facts and emotions in this video on Day 4. They are really into the Video Diary at this point and, they are learning how best to share it with everyone! They pack so much into such a short video.
Piero begins today by telling us that their desire last night was to smash on stage. (Smash meaning to be a hit!) And to give it their all!
Gianluca jokes that he wants to smash the peoples’ house. (Be a hit at Sanremo.)
Piero continues that the standing ovation and the applause was unexpected.
Ignazio jokes about a picture he saw, of Piero, on FaceBook. And asks, “Did you see it?”
Piero says no because I was too busy doing what we do before we go on stage. He explains their routine!
Ignazio picks up on it and explains other things they may do before a performance including the use of breadcrumbs. Interesting!
Piero tells Ignazio to explain about the song they will sing on this evening ~ “Ancora.”
Ignazio explains the difficulty of singing this song. He says this is one of the hardest songs to sing in the Italian repertoire.
Gianluca speaks about the new CD which will include “Ancora.” And they joke about the song.
Piero and Gianluca talk about how much they like the Video Diaries and how they will miss them when Sanremo is over.
A Standing Ovation!
Day 5: February 13th, 2015
Gianluca begins by telling us how beautiful it was to perform “Ancora” last night. He said it was a challenge but, it was very exciting.
They sang it with such ease I would never expect it was so hard to sing.
I tried to find a video with the full song, “Ancora,” at Sanremo. As far as I know, it doesn’t exist. So, I am including the one-minute video. This one-minute video took my breath away. Just amazing! Notice their expressions, their emotions, their passion! Look at how they share with one another! Their voices reach out to one another! Such joy in those voices! All of their performances are amazing but some of them bring you to tears! You can feel their emotions!
(Please click the photo below to view “Ancora”)
Piero says he thought, when he woke up this morning, he had some free time to walk but found out, there are no vacations in Sanremo. He directs his attention to Ignazio. He says Ignazio is angry because Gianluca wore his shoes. Ignazio ignores him.
Gianluca implies he’s not ignoring Piero, he’s just busy taking the sun. To which Ignazio replies, “I am letting the sun kiss me because the sun kisses good.” Gianluca asks Ignazio to let the people know what will happen tonight.
Ignazio says, tonight, we will again sing “Grande Amore.” But what follows is funny! I think at this point Ignazio doesn’t want to admit that he thinks they will win. We know till the end he said, “No we can’t win.”
Piero closes by saying “Guys, the last days of these diaries.”
Why did you put your shoes like mine?
Day 6: February 14th, 2015
Ignazio begins by saying how sad he is that the video diaries are coming to an end. The guys decided they would do the diary when they are working in the studio or on tour so they can share their day with the fans. He joked with Gianluca about how he tripped on stage. And Piero reminded him that his legs were trembling!
Gianluca talks about how unusual it was to have a standing ovation. It’s something you don’t see often in Italy. Of course, in America, they get a standing ovation for every song they sing.
Piero talks about how happy they were with the response of the Italian audience. He says again they will sing “Grande Amore” and he asks for the support of the people. He tells the people they will always be there for them.
Gianluca wishes everyone a Grande Amore (Great Love) for Valentine’s day.
Piero interrupts saying, after all the discussion about the shoes yesterday, today they dress with the same shoes, as yesterday.
Gianluca reminds him, every morning we dress the same, don’t we?
Piero reminds the guys that they forgot to thank Giorgio Armani for dressing them for the Sanremo Festival.
The guys close by sending a kiss to everyone!
Farewell to the Video Diaries!
So ends our journey to Sanremo. The guys won and now we must move on to our next adventure that can only be reached Through the Fields of My Mind….
There are a few people I need to thank for making this article possible. Daniela from Il Volo Traduzioni for the English subtitles. Daniela Ci from Il Volo Flight Crew for splitting the video. As always, I thank Daniela Perani and Pat Farley Ward for the Photos, Video’s and the wonderful layout of the articles. To read more Il Volo stories visit us at www.ilvoloflightcrw.com
