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Biography
of Andrea Bocelli
Andrea Bocelli is at
the present time the best loved and most
popular Italian voice, both in Europe and
in the United States. His records sell
like gold-dust and his tours draw 20,000
people per concert. Nonetheless, when
asked for the fondest memory of his
career, he answers: "A concert at the
Sferisterio in Macerata. In the
dressing-room, an old man said to me:
"Signor Bocelli, I have been
listening to opera for my whole life. I
was in two minds whether to come to your
concert, but I have to admit that your
performance of the aria from the Arlesiana
was perfect". These are the things
that really count." His life story is
characterised by unconditional love for
music from a very early age. Born on 22
September 1958, Bocelli grew up on his
family's farm in Lajatico, in the Tuscan
countryside. "I was hypnotised when I
heard works of opera," he remembers.
"At the age of six I began to study
the piano, then I learned to play the
flute and saxophone. I was always being
asked to sing for my relatives."
After finishing secondary school, he
enrolled at the University of Pisa and
graduated in law, but never abandoned
singing. Quite the opposite. He became the
pupil of the tenor Franco Corelli and even
sang in piano bars. It was during this
period that he met Enrica, whom he married
and with whom he had two children, Amos
and Matteo. The "official" start
to his singing career came about by
chance, when in 1992 Zucchero Fornaciari
held an audition for a recording of "Miserere"
to be presented to the tenor Luciano
Pavarotti. When Pavarotti heard the
recording, he commented: "Thank you
for the splendid song, but allow Andrea to
sing it. No one can do it better than him."
As it turned out, Pavarotti recorded the
song, but during Zucchero's European tour
Andrea Bocelli took Pavarotti's place on
stage. Shortly afterwards, in 1993, he
also began his discographic career,
signing a contract with Caterina Caselli.
After getting through the preliminary
rounds at Sanremo with "Miserere", he
won hands down at the Festival in the
Nuove Proposte (New Singers) category. In
1994 he was invited to take part in the
Festival of Sanremo among the big names
with "Il mare calmo della sera", and
scored a record number of points. He
published his first album (with the same
title as the song), which confirmed his
rapidly growing popularity. Within a few
weeks he won his first platinum disc. He
returned to the San Remo Festival a year
later with "Con te partirò", which
featured on the album Bocelli and
in Italy obtained a double platinum disc.
The same year, during a European tour ("Night
of the Proms") which included the
participation of Bryan Ferry, Al Jarreau
and other leading artists, Bocelli sang in
front of 500,000 people and tens of
millions of television viewers. His
success worldwide was immediate. The
singles "Con te partirò" (and the
English version "Time to Say Goodbye")
broke sales records in numerous countries
and the albums won awards throughout
Europe. In France the single topped the
charts for six weeks and won three gold
discs. In Belgium it was number one for 12
weeks, the greatest success of all time.
The album "Bocelli" subsequently
obtained four platinum discs in Germany (almost
2 million copies sold), four in Holland
and two in Italy. But it was his next
album, "Romanza", that in 1996
carried him to unbelievable heights of
international success. Within just a few
weeks, the CD was already a platinum disc
in all countries where it had been
released and the international press was
hailing Bocelli as a worthy heir to Enrico
Caruso. But as early as 1995 Bocelli had
paid tribute to the tradition of the
Italian tenor with the CD "Viaggio
Italiano", dedicated to the emigrés
and artists who had made Italian opera
famous worldwide. In 1998, with the
international debut of the classical album "Aria", he found himself dominating
the classical music charts while climbing
the international pop charts. Along with
his tours, he received numerous offers to
sing opera, a dream he had cherished since
his childhood. "I have been very
lucky," he commented. He recently
released his new CD, "Sogno", an
album that was so keenly awaited that it
immediately topped the European charts and
reached fourth in the USA. This album is
expected to equal the sales record set by
Domenico Modugno in 1958 with "Volare". Nonetheless, Bocelli's incredible success
appears to have done nothing to alter his
philosophy of life, draw him away from his
family and friends or diminish his love of
the Tuscan countryside.
"Success is just a matter of
chance," he continues to say as
accolades arrive from all over the world,
"and it's important not to get too
attached to it. There are other things in
life. When I get home, I close the door
and organise meals with the people I love.
The only thing I bring home is my voice.
If for no other reason, I have to practice
at least two hours a day."
G.B.
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