BocelliOnline

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ABS-CBNNEWS.COM, Tuesday, April 20, 2004 12:23 AM

Opera's renaissance man

By NEIL RAY RAMOS

In the world of opera, as with any other musical genre, there are those regarded as legendary because of the talent they possess and what they have achieved and continue to accomplish.

For many years, the tenor trio of Jose Carreras, Placido Domingo and Luciano Pavarotti was regarded as not only the most formidable but also irreplaceable. All that changed seemingly overnight in 1992, when a then totally unknown tenor, Andrea Bocelli, suddenly burst into the classical music scene to lead opera into a Renaissance age.

Before then, the ruggedly handsome Bocelli was just another “piano bar performer” playing tunes by Sinatra, Aznavour and Piaf when Italian rock legend Zucchero held auditions for tenors to make a demo tape of “Miserère,” in a sly attempt to persuade Luciano Pavarotti to record the song.

Zucchero couldn’t believe his ears when he heard Bocelli’s version of his song.

“Andrea was just unbelievable! He had something not one of the other tenors possessed. He had soul.”

When Pavarotti received the demo, the tenor was enormously impressed with Andrea’s voice as well.

“Zucchero, who is this guy?” Pavarotti demanded. “You do not need me to sing it. Let Andrea sing ‘Miserere’ with you -- there is no one finer.”

The rock legend, however, succeeded in convincing Pavarotti to record “Miserere” with him. Still, when Zucchero embarked on a European tour, he invited Bocelli to perform the duet in place of Pavarotti and the tenor’s magnificent rise began.

Zucherro’s involvement in Bocelli’s career didn’t end there. In 1993 he helped jump-start Bocelli’s recording career when he invited him to sing “Miserere” and “Nessun Dorma” at his birthday party. Caterina Caselli, Sugar Record’s president, who was also present at the gathering, signed Bocelli immediately after hearing him sing.

Further victories followed, catapulting Bocelli as one of only a handful of operatic stars to crossover into the pop realm and become an international phenomenon.

In 1996 the song “Time to Say Goodbye,” which he did with Sarah Brightman, spent 14 weeks atop the German singles chart, on its way to become Germany’s best-selling single of all time.

His duet with Celine Dion in “The Prayer” for the movie Quest for Camelot was another milestone. It established him as a star in America as it also won a Golden Globe.

Besides his career in popular music, Bocelli has pursued his operatic passions with stunning success like those incredible performances seen and heard at the Puccini Festival at Torre del Lago and Cagliari, to name a few. Bocelli’s arrival can only be regarded as most opportune, coming as he did at a time when the demise of opera seemed pretty much foregone.

Blinded by congenital glaucoma and an accident in his youth, Bocelli learned opera from Maestro Luciano Bettarini. But more than talent, what catapulted Bocelli to the top of his class was his courage and strength. “My blindness has never been a tragedy to me; I don’t know why it should be a tragedy to others,” Bocelli has often said. He has taken inspiration from the words of French novelist Antoine de Saint-Exupéry: “You see clearly only through your heart. The essential is invisible to your eyes.”

Now, Filipinos will have the rare chance to experience firsthand the performance of the man who has single-handedly brought new life to opera in a one-night-only concert at the Araneta Coliseum on April 30. Andrea Bocelli: Live in Manila will benefit the Padre Pio Lend-a-Hand Foundation, Bantay Bata, Philippine National Red Cross, the Ateneo AHS ’79 Foundation and the Mount Pinatubo Hidden Temple Shrine Foundation in Zambales.

Appearing with Bocelli in his Manila turn are soprano Maria Luigia Borsi and conductor Marcello Rota. Tickets are available at popular prices at the Araneta Ticketron and Ticketnet. For more information: 750-8888.

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