Bocelli has been blind since a football accident at age 12. He was made a Grand Officer of theOrder of Merit of the Italian Republic in 2006, and was honoured with a star on theHollywood Walk of Fame on 2 March 2010, for his contribution to Live Theater, and he was awarded a gold medal for Merit in Serbia in 2022. SingerCeline Dion has said that "ifGod had a singing voice, it would sound a lot like Andrea Bocelli",[5][15] and record producerDavid Foster has often described Bocelli's voice as the most beautiful in the world.[16][17]
Maestro Bocelli was born to Alessandro and Edi Bocelli on 22 September 1958.[18][19] His sight was impaired from birth due tocongenital glaucoma. He stated that his mother's decision to give birth to him and overrule the doctor's advice was the inspiration for him to opposeabortion.[19]
Bocelli grew up on his family's farm, with a younger brother Alberto, where they sold farm machinery and made wine in the small village ofLa Sterza, nearLajatico, Tuscany, Italy, about 40 km (25 mi) south ofPisa.[20]
Bocelli showed a great passion for music as a young boy. His mother has said that music was the only thing that would comfort him. He started piano lessons at age 6 and later learned to play the flute, saxophone, trumpet, trombone, guitar, and drums.[18] His nanny Oriana gave him the first record ofFranco Corelli, and he began to show interest in pursuing the career of a tenor.[21] By age 7, he was able to recognize the famous voices of the time and tried to emulate the great singers.[21]
At age 12, Bocelli lost his vision completely after being hit in the eye with afootball.[14][22] Doctors resorted toleeches in a last-ditch effort to save his sight, but they were unsuccessful and he remained blind.[23]
Bocelli also spent time singing during his childhood.[24] He gave his first concert in a small village not far from where he was born.[21] He won his first song competition at age 14 with "'O sole mio" at the Margherita d'Oro inViareggio.[24] He finished secondary school in 1980, and then studied law at theUniversity of Pisa.[25][18] To earn money, he performed evenings in piano bars, and it was there that he met his future wife Enrica in 1987.[18] He completed law school and spent one year as a court-appointed lawyer.[26]
In 1992, Italian rock starZucchero held auditions for tenors to make ademo tape of his song "Miserere", to send to Italian tenorLuciano Pavarotti. After hearing Bocelli on tape, Pavarotti urged Zucchero to use Bocelli instead of him. Pavarotti eventually persuaded Zucchero to record the song with Bocelli, and it became a hit throughout Europe. In Zucchero's European concert tour in 1993, Bocelli accompanied him to sing the duet, and he was also given solo sets in the concerts, singing "Nessun dorma" fromGiacomo Puccini's operaTurandot.[27] Bocelli signed with theSugar Music label inMilan afterCaterina Caselli heard him sing "Miserere" and "Nessun Dorma" at a birthday party for Zucchero.[citation needed]
In December, Bocelli entered the preliminary round of theSanremo Music Festival in the category of Giovani, performing "Miserere". He won the preliminary competition with the highest marks ever recorded in the newcomers' section. On 28 December, he debuted in the classical world in a concert at theTeatro Romolo Valli inReggio Emilia.[27] In February 1994, he entered the main Sanremo Festival competition with "Il mare calmo della sera", and he won the newcomers section, again with a record score. Following his win, Bocelli released his debut albumof the same name in April, and it entered the Italian Top Ten, being certifiedplatinum within weeks.[27]
In May 1994, he toured with pop singerGerardina Trovato.[27] In September, he sang at Pavarotti's annual Charity Gala concert,Pavarotti International inModena, where he sangRuggiero Leoncavallo's "Mattinata" and sang a duet with Pavarotti,it:Maurizio Morante's "Notte e Piscatore".[27] In September, he made his opera debut asMacduff in Verdi'sMacbeth at the Teatro Verdi in Pisa.[28] Bocelli had been an agnostic, but around 1994, partly as a result of immersing himself in the works of Russian authorLeo Tolstoy, he returned to the practice of theCatholic faith.[29] He performed the hymn "Adeste Fideles" in Rome beforePope John Paul II inSt. Peter's Basilica at Christmas.[27]
As winner of the newcomers' section at the 1994 Sanremo Festival, Bocelli was invited to return thefollowing year. He entered the main competition with "Con te partirò" and finished in fourth place.[30] The song was included on his second album,Bocelli, produced byMauro Malavasi and released in November 1995. In Belgium, "Con te partirò" became the best-selling single of all time.[31]
His third album,Viaggio Italiano, was released in Italy in 1996.[30] He was invited to sing a duet with English sopranoSarah Brightman at the final bout of GermanboxerHenry Maske. Brightman approached Bocelli after she heard him singing "Con te partirò" while she was dining in a restaurant. Changing the title lyric of the song to "Time to Say Goodbye", they re-recorded it as a duet with members of theLondon Symphony Orchestra and sang it as a farewell for Maske.[32] The single debuted atop the German charts, where it stayed for fourteen weeks. With sales nearing three million copies, and a sextuple platinum award, "Time to Say Goodbye" eclipsed the previous best-selling single by more than one million copies.[30] In 1996 he topped the Spanish singles chart with a duet withMarta Sánchez, "Vivo por ella", the Spanish version of "Vivo per lei", recorded with Giorgia for his 1997 compilation album,Romanza. He also recorded a Portuguese version of the song with Brazilian singerSandy.[citation needed]
The same year, Bocelli recorded "Je vis pour elle", the French version of "Vivo per lei", as a duet with French singerHélène Ségara. Released in December 1997, the song became a hit in Belgium (Wallonia) and France, where it reached No. 1 on the charts. To date, it is the best-selling single for Ségara, and the second for Bocelli after "Time to Say Goodbye". On 3 March, he appeared inHamburg, Germany, with Sarah Brightman to receive the ECHO music award for "Best Single of the Year".[30]
In the summer of 1997, he gave 22 open-air concerts in Germany, and an indoor concert inOberhausen on 31 August. In September, he performed in concert at thePiazza dei Cavalieri in Pisa for the home videoA Night in Tuscany (Italian:una notte nella Toscana) with guestsNuccia Focile, Sarah Brightman and Zucchero. The concert was also Bocelli's first concert to air on PBS, as part of theIn The Spotlight series. It also marked Bocelli's debut to American audiences. On 14 September, inMunich, Germany, he received anECHO Klassik Best Seller of the Year award for his album,Viaggio Italiano.[30][33]
Back in Italy in Bologna on 27 September, he sang at theInternational Eucharistic Congress. On 19 October, he sang at theTeleFood benefit concert held in theVatican City to raise awareness about world hunger. On 25 October, he received aBambi Award in the Klassik category in Cologne, Germany.[30]
1998–1999:Aria: The Opera Album,Sogno andSacred Arias
Bocelli made his debut in a major operatic role in 1998 when he played Rodolfo in a production ofLa bohème at the Teatro Comunale inCagliari from 18 to 25 February.[34] His fifth albumAria: The Opera Album was released in March.[35]
From June to August, he toured North and South America. In September, he received his second Echo Klassik award, this time for Best Selling Classical Album withAria: The Opera Album.[35] On Thanksgiving Eve, Bocelli was a guest onCéline Dion's television specialThese Are Special Times in which he joined Dion to sing "The Prayer" and he also sang "Ave Maria" solo. The duet was included on Dion's albumThese Are Special Times (1998) and was re-issued with the DVD of the TV special in 2007. The song also appeared on theQuest for Camelot soundtrack in 1998 and on Bocelli's album,Sogno, the following year.
From 11 to 24 April, he toured the West Coast of North America, fromSan Diego toVancouver, with a final performance at theHollywood Bowl in Los Angeles. ActressElizabeth Taylor stood by his side on the stage during the encore, while he sang "The Prayer".[37] At the invitation ofSteven Spielberg, Bocelli sang in Los Angeles on 15 May before Bill Clinton at an event on behalf of theDemocratic Party. At the end of May, he toured Portugal and Spain and sang with PortugueseFado singerDulce Pontes. On 27 June, he took part in theMichael Jackson benefit concert for suffering children in Munich'sOlympic Stadium.[37]
He also performed atRodeo Drive in Beverly Hills and gave further concerts in Detroit,Cleveland and Chicago, and made an appearance on Jay Leno's first instalment ofThe Tonight Show. ThenMayor of New York CityRudy Giuliani gave him the Crystal Apple award. His seventh albumSacred Arias, which contains exclusivelysacred music, was released worldwide on 8 November, and two weeks later reached number one on the USClassic Billboard charts – making Bocelli the first vocalist to hold all top three places on the chart, withAria, the opera album in second place, andViaggio Italiano in third place. The album also included the hymn of the Holy Year 2000, which was chosen as the official version by the Vatican in October.[37] To promoteSacred Arias, Bocelli recordedhis second PBS concert at the Roman church ofSanta Maria sopra Minerva, in Rome, in 1999, singing most of the songs from the album. The special was nominated for anEmmy Award for Outstanding Classical Music-Dance Program during the52nd Primetime Emmy Awards.
In Italy, Bocelli sang inFlorence at a meeting of the centre-left Heads of State. Invited byQueen Elizabeth II, he performed at the annualRoyal Variety Performance in Birmingham, UK, on 29 November. On 30 November, his bookLa musica del silenzio, an autobiographical novel, was released in Italy,[37] and in 2017 it was turned into a movie asThe Music of Silence, directed byMichael Radford. From 12 to 21 December, he performed six concerts inBarcelona,Strasbourg, Lisbon,Zagreb,Budapest andMessina, some of which were broadcast on local television. He also performed on German television;Wetten, dass..? on 11 December and theJosé Carreras Gala inLeipzig on 17 December. On 31 December, he finished a marathon of twenty-four concerts in thirty days, with a concert at theNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in New York, welcoming in the new millennium.[37]
At the42nd Grammy Awards, Bocelli was nominated twice. "The Prayer" was nominated forBest Pop Collaboration with Vocals and forBest Male Pop Vocal Performance. Bocelli performed it with Dion at the ceremony. His "World Tour 2000" started on 31 March. In May, hisSacred Arias album was voted album of the year by listeners of theClassic FM radio station in the UK. His world tour continued from 12 to 14 May with four concerts in Japan and South Korea. At the end of theUEFA European Football Championship, he performed withValery Gergiev andRenée Fleming at a concert on theRiver Maas inRotterdam. On 6 July, he performed at theStatue of Liberty in New York City for his third PBS specialAmerican Dream: Andrea Bocelli's Statue Of Liberty Concert. The concert was a dedication to his father, who died in the beginning of 2000. He was accompanied by the New Jersey Symphony Orchestra under the direction of MaestroSteven Mercurio with special guest Soprano Ana Maria Martinez and a surprise appearance by Sarah Brightman to sing with Bocelli on "Time to Say Goodbye". For the final encore, he dedicated "Sogno" to his late Father. On 17 August, he performed in Giuseppe Verdi'sMessa da Requiem at the Verona Arena in Rome.
His seventh album,Verdi, was released on 11 September. In September, he performed three concerts in Australia. He received another Echo Klassik award for "Bestseller of the year" forSacred Arias. In November, his first complete opera recording,La Bohème, was released. In December, he received another award in Germany, theGoldene Europa for classical music.[38]
In January 2001, Bocelli portrayed the main character inMascagni's operaL'amico Fritz at the Teatro Filarmonico inVerona and again performed the tenor part in Verdi'sRequiem. On 19 March, theRequiem album was released with Bocelli as tenor. From 22 March to 6 April, he toured North America accompanied byCecilia Gasdia and theHartford Symphony Orchestra. On 17 June, he performed at the re-opening of theLeaning Tower of Pisa. In July, he performed two concerts inDublin withAna María Martínez and the New Symphony Orchestra. At theScuola Grande di San Rocco in Venice on 4 October, he presented his new albumCieli di Toscana and was recognised for having sold more than 40 million albums worldwide. In October, he opened the celebrations of the 200th anniversary of the birth ofSicilian opera composerVincenzo Bellini inCatania. On 28 October, he sang Franz Schubert'sEllens dritter Gesang (also known as "Ave Maria", Latin for "Hail Mary") as a representative of the Catholic faith, during a memorial concert atGround Zero in New York City for the victims of theSeptember 11 attacks there. In November, he received the Platinum Europe Award for one million sales of the albumCieli di Toscana, and at theItalian Music Awards he was given a special award from theFederation of the Italian Music Industry for his merits as an "Ambassador of Italian music in the world". He performed seven more concerts in the US accompanied byAna María Martínez, and on 23 December, he sang theItalian national anthem as well as works of Bellini and Verdi at the traditional Christmas concert in theItalian Senate, which was broadcast live on television for the first time.[39]
InBerlin, on 5 February, he received aGoldene Kamera award in the "Music & Entertainment" category. On 6 March, he received two World Music Awards in Monte Carlo: "World best selling classical artist" and "Best selling Italian artist". On 11 March, he gave a concert for peace at theBasilica di San Marco a Venezia in Venice, accompanied by the orchestra of theTeatro La Fenice and conducted byLorin Maazel. On 15 March, he took part in the opening ofWalt Disney Studios Park inMarne-la-Vallée France. On 7 May, Bocelli and Tony Renis received aTelegatto Italian Television award for the soundtrack of the seriesCuore. On 23 May he received the2002 Classical BRIT Award for "Outstanding Contribution to Music".[40] On 27 May, he performed at theVilla Madama in Rome in front of US presidentGeorge W. Bush and Italian presidentSilvio Berlusconi. On 28 May, he took part in "Pavarotti & Friends" charity concert inModena in aid ofAngola. In June, he again toured the US, then on 26 July and 3 August, he portrayedLieutenant B.F. Pinkerton inMadama Butterfly at the 48th Puccini Festival in Torre del Lago. On 14 October, he and Lorin Maazel presented his new albumSentimento to a worldwide audience. Further presentations took place in Milan and New York, and the album was released on 4 November, selling over two million copies in 40 days. On 24 October, he started hisSentimento tour inZürich; the tour took in large arenas in several European and North American cities.[41]
In February 2003, Bocelli performedMadama Butterfly in an exclusive Monte Carlo concert, which was attended byCaroline, Princess of Hanover. In March for the first time he appeared as a producer, at the Sanremo Festival, where the young artists Allunati and Jacqueline Ferry sang for his new record label, Clacksong.[42] In May, his second complete opera,Tosca, was released.[43] It did not attract unanimous praise, though.Andreas Dorschel notices "monochrome timbre" and "little dynamic variability" in Bocelli's performance: "Whatever is suffered by Cavaradossi − torture for instance or the prospect of execution −: Bocelli does not seem to register it, but goes on in the musical equivalent of Stoic indifference."[44] At a private benefit gala for theRoyal National Institute of Blind People, Bocelli sang in front of theBritish royal family.[42] A day later, he received two awards forSentimento at the2003 Classical BRIT Award held at theRoyal Albert Hall in London – "Best selling classical album" and "Album of the year".[45] On 24 May, he performed in a benefit concert for theArpa Foundation for Film, Music and Art in thePiazza del Campo inSiena, with sopranosMaria Luigia Borsi and Lucia Dessanti,baritone Soo Kyung Ahn, and violinist Ruth Rogers, accompanied by Marcello Rota and the Orchestra Città di Pisa. Three days later, he was again invited to perform at "Pavarotti & Friends" in Modena and sang a medley ofNeapolitan songs together with Pavarotti. In June, he continued hisSentimento tour inAthens andCyprus. In September, he took part in a concert for the Justice ministers and Interior ministers of the European Union at theParco della Musica in Rome. He then resumed his tour, accompanied byMaria Luigia Borsi, Ruth Rogers and Marcello Rota.[42]
Bocelli won the "Favourite Specialist Performer" award at the UK National Music Awards in October 2003.[46] In November, he once again toured in the United States, this time accompanied by Ana Maria Martinez,Kallen Esperian andSteven Mercurio. In December, he gave his first concert in China and at the end of the month, sang Gounod'sAve Maria at Pavarotti's wedding in Modena.[42] In Bologna in January, he performed asWerther in four performances of the opera of the same name. In April and May, he toured Asia again, visiting Manila, Hong Kong and Singapore. In May, he took part in a concert atCirco Massimo in Rome organised byQuincy Jones to launch the "We are the Future" project. In June, his third complete operaIl trovatore was released. In July, he played the part of Mario Cavaradossi inTosca at the 50th Puccini Festival in Torre del Lago, and he took part in theInternational Olympic Committee (IOC) global campaign for the2004 Summer Olympics in Athens.[47]
During early 2005, Bocelli was on tour including performances inMadeira, Hungary, Norway, the US, the UK, Italy and Germany.[48] He also appeared inSesame Street singing "Time to Say Goodnight", a parody of "Time to Say Goodbye", as a lullaby toElmo.[49] On 21 March, he performed at theMusic for Asia benefit concert in Rome, televised onItalia 1, in aid of the2004 Indian Ocean earthquake appeal.[50] In June, he performed at the Deutsche Opera in Berlin. On 2 July, he performed at the Paris concert as part of theLive 8 event. Also during the second part of the year, he performed in Croatia,Serbia, Italy, the US,Dubai, Switzerland and finally in Scandinavia.[48] On 28 August, he performed at theFaenol Festival held inVaynol, Wales and organised by Welshbass-baritoneBryn Terfel.[50] In December, his first contemporary music concert took place at aLake Las Vegas village resort inNevada, US, which was recorded forPBS and released as theUnder the Desert Sky DVD. He also took part in the Royal Christmas Show, which took place in several cities in the US in December. The albumWerther was released in December.
On 26 February, Bocelli sang "Because We Believe" from hisAmore album in the Carnevale section of theclosing ceremony of the Torino Olympics.[52] He also began another tour with a concert at the Piazza di Castello in Turin.[53] In March, he was honoured by the Italian state with aGrande Ufficiale Italian Order of Merit (Grand Officer of the Italian Republic), given to him by then President of the Italian Republic,Carlo Azeglio Ciampi. The award was presented to him at the Sanremo Festival, where he performed a duet with American singerChristina Aguilera on 4 March.[52][54]
In April 2006, he featured as a guest coach onAmerican Idol, helping the finalists sing the week's themed songs, "Greatest Love Songs". He also performed on that week's results show.[56] American Idol runner-upKatharine McPhee performed at three of Bocelli's concerts in California from 9 to 11 June, singing duets ofSomos Novios andThe Prayer with Bocelli. They also performed onJ. C. Penney Jam: The Concert for America's Kids[57] and recorded duet versions ofSomos Novios for the resulting album, and alsoCan't Help Falling in Love on the CD of theUnder the Desert Sky DVD.
In June, he sang the Italian duet version of "Because We Believe", "Ama, credi e vai", withGianna Nannini at the "großen Fan Party" at the opening of the2006 FIFA World Cup, in Berlin in front of billions of worldwide television viewers.
Bocelli and Sarah Brightman's duet version of "Con te partirò" was used in the 2007 filmBlades of Glory, as an ice skating song.K-1mixed martial arts fighterYoshihiro Akiyama started using "Con te partirò" as his ring entrance music. On 8 September, Bocelli sang an arrangement of Mozart'sAve verum corpus at the funeral of Luciano Pavarotti in Modena, Italy.
On 21 October 2007, he sang "Con te partirò" on the UK television seriesStrictly Come Dancing results show, and on 30 October, he sang "The Prayer" during an ITV SpecialAn Audience with Céline Dion. The show was broadcast on 23 December. Alongside fellow Italian singerLaura Pausini, he sangVive Ya during the 2007 Latin Grammy Awards. The song, originally released in 1997 as a duet in Italian between Bocelli and Italian singer-songwriter Trovatto on Bocelli'sRomanza, was also released in English on his 2007 album,The Best of Andrea Bocelli: Vivere, asDare to Live. The album,Vivere, sold over 3 million copies.
Bocelli with his then fiancée Veronica Berti in Tokyo, Japan, during his2008 Asian Tour
On 20 January 2008, Bocelli received the Italian TV awardTelegatto in platinum forItalian music in the world, in Rome. He sang "La voce del silenzio" – "The voice of silence" – and "Dare to Live" during the ceremony.[59] To promote the album, he performed "Canto della Terra" atThe Alan Titchmarsh Show on the BBC in London on 1 February; was interviewed byFabio Fazio on the Italian talk showChe tempo che fa onRAI 3 in Italy; and performed "Canto della terra", "A te" and "Besame mucho" from the album, as well as "My Way" on 2 February; and made an appearance onThe South Bank Show in London, where he sang the Frencharia "Pour mon âme" on 3 February. Then on 10 February, he performed "The Prayer" at the50th Grammy Awards, held in Los Angeles, withJosh Groban in a tribute toLuciano Pavarotti, and sang "Dare to Live" withHeather Headley the following day onThe Tonight Show with Jay Leno.[59] In April, he toured in Asia with performances in Tokyo,Taichung, and Seoul.[60]
On 7 May 2008, he sang atSteel Aréna inKošice, Slovakia, in front of 8,000 people.[61] Then on 13 May he sang at the"Teatro delle Muse" inAncona, Italy, for a charity concert for "Francesca Rava – N.P.H. Italia Onlus", a foundation that helps poor and disabled children around the world.[61] On 23 May 2008, he sangThe Prayer withKatharine McPhee in a Las Vegas tribute concert for Canadian producer and songwriterDavid Foster. Bocelli later praised Filipina teenage singerCharice, whom he first heard perform at that concert.[62][63] On 2 June 2008, he performed at thePiazza del Duomo, Milan in front of 80,000 people during a concert celebrating the anniversary of the Republic of Italy's formation.[61]
On 20 July, Bocelli held his third concert at the Teatro del Silenzio in Lajatico, his hometown. The concert was a tribute to thecinema of Italy. Its performers included Italian composer and musicianNicola Piovani, Italian ballet dancerRoberto Bolle, Israeli singerNoa, and Charice.[70] Then on 31 July, he performed at a concert inVingis Park inVilnius, Lithuania, in front of more than 18,000 people.[71] Australian singerTina Arena performed two duets with Bocelli – "Canto Della Terra" and "The Prayer" – at the closing stages of the concert.[72] On 7 August 2008, he held a benefit concert atMedjugorje,Bosnia Herzegovina, and was accompanied by theCzech National Symphony Orchestra.[71] Then, during the rest of August, he was on tour in Australia and New Zealand for the third time.[71]Tina Arena performed with him in all 5 concerts during the tour.[73] On 26 September 2008, during the 2008Veneto Festival, he held a concert in theChurch of the Eremitani inPadova, Italy. He was accompanied by theI Solisti Veneti orchestra, celebrating its 50th birthday and conducted byClaudio Scimone, and by theWiener Singakademie choir. The concert was a celebration ofGiacomo Puccini's 150th birthday.[74]
TheAndrea Bocelli & David Foster Christmas Special, thePBS special of the album, first aired onThanksgiving night in the United States, and continued to be broadcast in the United States and Canada throughout December. In late November, the program was broadcast inMexico and in the UK and Ireland; it later aired, 15 and 25 December, onItalia 1, in Italy, 19 December, onTVE2 andTROS, in Spain and the Netherlands, and Christmas Eve, onvtm andRTL-TVI, in Belgium andLuxembourg.
InBrazil, following the success of the South American leg of theIncanto tour, where over 100,000 people attended his free concert at theSão Paulo's "Parque Indipendencia", earlier in the year,[82] it was announced that Bocelli would hold anotherOpen-Air, entrance free, concert inFlorianópolis, on 28 December, where a crowd of about a million people was expected to attend. However, due to financial and political reasons, the concert was later cancelled on short notice, along with all the other events scheduled for Christmas in the city.
On 12 March, Bocelli made an appearance onSkavlan, inOslo, Norway, to promote his upcomingScandinavian tour, giving a rare interview to the show's hostFredrik Skavlan, and later performing "Voglio Vivere Cosi", from his 2008 albumIncanto, withNorwegianBoys' choir,Sølvguttene.[83][87] In April, he returned to Scandinavia for a concert inTelenor Arena in Bærum, Norway, on 8 April, a concert inForum Copenhagen in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 9 April, and finally a concert in theEricsson Globe, in Stockholm, Sweden, on 11 April. He was joined byHeather Headley and 120 musicians from the Stockholm Concert Orchestra, in all three concerts, and by Swedishmezzo-sopranoMalena Ernman in his Swedish concert.[88][89][90]
On 25 July, Bocelli held the fifth and final edition of the Teatro del Silenzio. Bocelli's guests included SpanishCatalan tenorJosé Carreras, and Italian rock singerZucchero. Sculptures by Swiss artistKurt Laurenz Metzler, who attended the concert, were exhibited during this year's edition. Bocelli was also awarded thePisano Doc, during the dress rehearsal for the concert, on 24 July, and received the 2010Premio Lunezia nel mondo, during a private ceremony held on 21 July, for "the musical-literary quality of his songs." In September 2010, Bocelli held a concert at theOdeon of Herodes Atticus, inAthens, Greece. All proceeds were donated to help cure cancer. Bocelli also gave concerts inCairo, Egypt, in front of the pyramids and theGreat Sphinx of Giza, as well as a fundraising concert inside theDuomo di Milano to benefit victims of the2010 Haiti earthquake.
In January, Bocelli gave three concerts in Germany. The concerts inMunich, Berlin, andHamburg were all part of theNotte Illuminata Tour, launched inPisa, at the Teatro Verdi, December 2010. In February, Bocelli performed a recital on the stage of theMetropolitan Opera house as part of the tour.[122] In late March and early April, as part of the 2011 Latin leg of his Incanto tour, Bocelli gave concerts inBogotá, andPanama City.
In May 2011, Bocelli held 5 concerts in East and Southeast Asia and was joined by New Zealand sopranoHayley Westenra during the tour.[123] He first gave a concert inJakarta, Indonesia.[124] Bocelli held two other concerts inTaipei, and two concerts inBeijing.[125] In June and July, Bocelli gave twoopen-air concerts at historic sites, the first atMasada, inIsrael,[126] with all proceeds dedicated to support the residents of the Israeli regions ofGalilee andNegev,[127] and the second atSyracuse'sancient Greek theatre, inSicily,[128] with all proceeds donated to theFiamme di Solidarietà (Flames of Solidarity) organization, to raise awareness of issues concerning the poorest and most marginalized in Italy.[129]
Andrea Bocelli andSong Zuying performingTime to Say Goodbye at theEast Meets West concert at London's Royal Albert Hall, June 2012
On 15 October, Bocelli performed again forPope Benedict XVI and a crowd of 8,000 people inVatican'sAudience Hall.[133] On 7 November, he gave an open-air free concert atPraça Rui Barbosa inBelo Horizonte, Brazil, to an audience of between 80,000 and 150,000 people.[134][135][136] On 17 November, he performed at the Children in Need Rocks Manchester concert, gaining critical acclaim for receiving a standing ovation from a crowd of pop and indie music fans. Bocelli played the role ofRomeo inCharles Gounod's operaRoméo et Juliette, at theTeatro Carlo Felice, for two performances in February 2012. He cancelled a third performance because ofpharyngitis after having vocal strain throughout.[137]
Andrea Bocelli concert in Gibraltar, September 2019
On 1 February 2019, Bocelli performed a sold-out concert in'Winter at Tantora' festival running atAl-'Ula for the first time inSaudi Arabia.[151] On 12 April 2020, during thenational COVID-19 lockdowns in Italy, Bocelli performed an Easter Sunday concert from an emptyMilan Cathedral, accompanied by cathedral organist Emanuele Vianelli.[152] The performance, titled "Music For Hope - Live From Duomo di Milano", was streamed live over YouTube, where it continues to be available for replay.[153] About 5 million people tuned in for the live stream performance and, by 13 April 2020, over 32 million views were logged on the archived video.[154]
Bocelli is a widely popular singer with a substantial fan base worldwide. However, he is also a polarizing figure in classical music, whose voice and performanceshave routinely been the subject of negative reviews by critics. Italianspinto tenorFranco Corelli praised Bocelli's voice after hearing it for the first time during amaster class in 1986, inTurin, and he later gave Bocelli private lessons.[163][164][15]
Puerto Rican sopranoAna María Martínez, who regularly performs with Bocelli, said, "More than anything, Andrea has something that is unique in that he brings this light that is always around him. And this purity of heart and beauty of sound just touches the listener. It can't be described."[164]
Celine Dion said while introducing him during her Christmas Special forThese Are Special Times, in 1998, that "if God had a singing voice, he must sound a lot like Andrea Bocelli",[5][15] andDavid Foster, a producer of the album, often describes Bocelli's voice as the most beautiful in the world. Similarly,jazz singerAl Jarreau, who performed with Bocelli on the "Night of the Proms" tour in Europe in 1995, described him as "the most beautiful voice in the world",[165] and American talk show hostOprah Winfrey commented onher talk show that, "when I hear Andrea sing, I burst into tears."[163][164] After attending Bocelli's concert at theHollywood Bowl in 2009, British-American actressElizabeth Taylor said, "My mind, my soul were transported by his beauty, his voice, his inner being. God has kissed this man and I thank God for it."[166] Taylor had been a passionate fan of Bocelli since the beginning of his music career in the mid-1990s.[167] Other fans includeAlbert II, Prince of Monaco, who invited the tenor to sing athis wedding, as well asSarah, Duchess of York, and actressIsabella Rossellini.[165]
Bocelli's voice, more specifically his interpretation of opera, has been regularly criticized by classical music critics. These includeBernard Holland ofThe New York Times and Andrew Clements ofThe Guardian.[168] In 1999,The New York Times chief music criticAnthony Tommasini in his review of Bocelli's North American opera debut at the Detroit Opera House in the title role of Massenet'sWerther commented, "The basic colour of Mr. Bocelli's voice is warm and pleasant, but he lacks the technique to support and project his sound. His sustained notes wobble. His soft high notes are painfully weak. Inadequate breath control often forces him to clip off notes prematurely at the end of phrases."[168] In December 2000, Tommasini again criticised Bocelli, this time for hisLa bohème album when he stated that Bocelli "still has trouble with basic things, like breath support" and his voice had been "carefully recorded ... to help it match the trained voices of the other cast members in fullness and presence."[169]
In describing Bocelli's singing,The New York Times music critic Bernard Holland noted, "the tone is rasping, thin and, in general, poorly supported. Even the most modest upward movement thins it even more, signalling what appears to be the onset of strangulation. To his credit, Mr Bocelli sings mostly in tune. But his phrasing tends toward carelessness and rhythmic jumble... The diction is not clear."[170] Furthermore, Holland observed that "The critic's duty is to report that Mr Bocelli is not a very good singer." TheAssociated Press reported "Passion? Yes. Power. No. Bocelli's voice – though robust in spirit and precisely in tune, even in the upper register – had a thin quality that never opened up."[171] Similarly, classical music critic Andrew Clements found Bocelli's studio opera recordings consistently disappointing in quality: "Bocelli's profoundly unmusical contribution, with its unvaryingly coarse tone, wayward intonation and never a phrase properly shaped, fatally undermines all their contributions."[172]Anne Midgette ofThe New York Times agreed, noting "a thinness of voice, oddly anemic phrasing (including shortchanging upper notes of phrases in a most untenorial manner), a curious lack of expression."[173]
During a 2009 performance in New York, the music critic Steve Smith wrote "For cognoscenti of vocal artistry the risks involved in Mr. Bocelli's undertakings, both then and now, need no explanation. Substantial technical shortcomings masked by amplification are laid bare in a more conventional classical setting. Mr. Bocelli's tone can be pleasant, and his pitch is generally secure. But his voice is small and not well supported; his phrasing, wayward and oddly inexpressive."[174]
In 2010, Joe Banno ofThe Washington Post gave an unfavourable review of Bocelli'sCarmen recording, describing the oft-noted failings in Bocelli's vocal resources on full display in this performance: "Bocelli, to be fair, possesses an essentially lovely tenor and knows his stuff when it comes to selling a pop ballad. And Decca's close miking of his puny voice inflates his sound to near-Franco Corelli-like dimensions. But his short-breathed, clumsily phrased, interpretively blank and often pinched and strained singing makes his Don Jose a tough listen."[175]
"Art, Science and Peace Prize" 2015 from PIER FRANCO MARCENARO founder of "Man Center" and "School of Spirituality" for Andrea Bocelli art which elevates the spirit.[184]
Bocelli met his first wife, Enrica Cenzatti, while singing at piano bars early in his career.[24] They were married on 27 June 1992. Their first child, son Amos, was born on 22 February 1995.[185] Their second son,Matteo, was born on 8 October 1997.[186] The couple separated in 2002.[1]
On 30 April 2000, Bocelli's father, Alessandro Bocelli, died. His mother encouraged him to honor his commitments, and so he sang forPope John Paul II, in Rome, on 1 May, and immediately returned home for the funeral. At his 5 July performance, filmed for PBS asAmerican Dream—Andrea Bocelli'sStatue of Liberty Concert, Bocelli dedicated the encoreSogno (Dream), from his 1999 albumSogno, to the memory of his father.[38] His mother and brother continued to live in the family home after his father's death.[187]
Bocelli lives with his second wife and manager, Veronica Berti. They met in 2002 and married on 21 March 2014, at theSanctuary of Montenero in the coastal town of Livorno, Italy.[188] In September 2011, the couple announced that Berti was expecting her first and Bocelli's third child.[189] Their daughter Virginia was born 21 March 2012.[190] The couple live in the Tuscan town ofForte dei Marmi on theMediterranean. Bocelli's first wife and two sons live in the couple's previous residence in the samecomune, inVersilia.[163]
On 12 November 2022, Andrea, Matteo and Virginia (aged 10) sang together at theRoyal Albert Hall during the UK Festival of Remembrance.[citation needed]
A section of the beach inJesolo, on the ItalianAdriatic coast, was named after Bocelli on 11 August 2003.[42]
Bocelli is a fan of the Italian football clubInter Milan. In an interview in Pisa, he told a group of Inter fans that "My passion for Inter started during my college years, when Inter was winning everything in Italy and the world. When Inter won the Champions League in 2010, I was with my friends and I was listening to the game on the radio, and everything was a little bit in advance so I was celebrating before them. That night I was also brought to tears of joy. The treble is a feeling no one in Italy will be able to equal".[192]
On 12 November 2023, Bocelli performed 'Hallelujah' with his daughter Virginia on the BBC One programmeStrictly Come Dancing. Bocelli performed 'Oh Holy Night' with his son Matteo on the December 2023 theatrical release of "Christmas with the Chosen: Holy Night".[citation needed]
In 2006, Bocelli convinced the municipality of his hometownLajatico to build an outdoor theatre, the "Teatro del Silenzio".[193] He serves as its honorary president and performs usually for one night only, every July; the rest of the year, the theatre does not operate.
Bocelli is the author, and co-author, of numerous works available in Italian, English, and other languages. Some books are available in Braille and others in large print.[206] The list below is limited to his English language books which are widely available.
Bocelli, A. (2002) [1999].The music of silence: a memoir by Andrea Bocelli. New York: HarperCollins.OCLC54699002. Braille edition, ISBN not available.
^abcdDay, Carol (10 November 1997)."Blind Ambition".People.Archived from the original on 16 April 2019. Retrieved22 July 2017.Bocelli's parents, Alessandro, 68, and Edi, 59, sold farm equipment and produced wine in tiny Lajatico, inTuscany about 20 miles fromPisa.
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