The last time Andrea Bocelli performed in South Florida was Valentine’s Day, a sentimental custom the global superstar started over a decade ago. “I consider it a tradition,” he says. “It’s an appointment I hold dear to my heart and one I hope to honor in the future. When I’m in South Florida, I feel at home, I feel I am among friends with an audience that loves music, wants to feel emotions, knows how to share their feelings and understands the power of a smile and positivity.”
He’s so enamored with the area’s proximity to the sun and sea, he purchased a Miami waterfront estate in 2013, his chosen residence when he’s in America. “I was struck since my very first visit by the hospitality of this special land,” he explains. “In the end, I planted roots here, buying the only home I own in the United States. Because it’s one of the few places where I can relax and enjoy a moment of tranquility with my family.”
His main dwelling is, of course, the resplendent Villa Alpemare, an 8,000 square foot former hotel on the Tuscan coastal town of Forte dei Marmi in Bocelli’s native Italy which Bocelli and his wife Veronica outfitted with several bedrooms and guest rooms, an office, living and dining spaces and music studio. It’s large enough to host his growing family, which includes sons Amos, 27, and Matteo, 24, from his first marriage and daughter Virginia, 10, born March 2012 with Veronica. “Forte dei Marmi is a place of mild weather and, for a good portion of the year, is very tranquil, and thus is the ideal accommodation for me,” Bocelli notes. “Whereas in the summer, it’s lively and fun — just as my kids like it.”
The gift of music runs deep in the bloodline. Amos, an engineer, is a skilled pianist who has accompanied his father in the past, while Matteo — a rising singer in his own right — joined his father on a 2021 holiday tour, performing alongside Bocelli for duets and by himself as a soloist. Performing with his children is “a source of great emotion,” says Bocelli, a gift I did not think I would receive in my life.”
Even young Virginia has started sharing tender moments with her father in concert, accompanying him instrumentally and vocally in several heartwarming numbers, including a moving rendition of Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” which they have performed live and released as a single.
“Of course, at this time, it’s just a little more than a game for her,” Bocelli explains.
“Regardless of the road she will choose to realize her aspirations and talent, I believe that music studies are for her, and all children in general, an important building block of education, as it serves as priceless support for the growth of the human spirit. All of art is a gift of the heavens that raises the spirit and thus promotes the dissemination of good; music is a friend that accompanies you throughout your whole life.”
Growing up in Tuscany, his own family was not particularly musical, but they exposed Bocelli, now 63, to opera at a young age, something that helped evoke his skill, passion and eventually, calling. “I was immediately captivated emotionally by this form of expression,” he recalls. “I would listen to the arias; I would sing imitating the voices projected from the record player. I would imagine being one of the heroes, attempting to interpret their voices, often inventing plots that, in the end, had nothing to do with the opera libretti from which the songs were taken.”
Photo By Giovanni De Sandre
“I believe that we are all born with a talent that our Lord has lent to us, to make flourish,” he continues. “Despite the fact that I wasn’t born into a family of musicians, I feel that the genuine nature and authenticity of farm culture, the beauty and serenity I was surrounded by, have helped me identify and later cultivate my greatest passion, to the extent of making it my profession and, in certain respects, my mission in life.”
Not even glaucoma, which he was born with and left him 90% blind in one eye, followed by a sports injury at the age of 12, which left him without sight in the other, could stop his inimitable tenor voice from taking Bocelli from a one-time bar singer to an international star after one of his demo tapes was handed to Luciano Pavarotti, who soon became a collaborator and close friend. When Pavarotti passed away in 2007, it was Bocelli who had the honor of singing at his funeral.
To date, he has recorded 15 albums and sold over 75 million records. He frequently collaborates, not only with traditional operatic vocalists, but also pop stars including Celine Dion, Jennifer Lopez, Ariana Grande, Dua Lipa and Ed Sheeran. It’s one of the reasons Bocelli is credited with bringing classical music to a previously untapped audience and a new generation of listeners.
“Opera is a form of popular art that can stir deep emotions. As it originates from human impulse, it is forever current and universal and capable of sparking primary emotions with an intensity strong enough to break down any cultural or generational barrier,” he states. “I hope to have made my modest contribution to giving a breath of fresh air to the operatic repertory, a genre that perhaps has risked losing its popular vocation.”
Just don’t ask him to pick a favorite pairing. “Every artist is a world unto him or herself, to discover and from whom there’s always something to learn. It’s hard for me to name names, because there are so many artists I’ve shared the stage with in my over 25-year career. If I had to mention one, in pop, I can think of Céline Dion, a dear friend and great professional...but there’s also Tony Bennett, Barbra Streisand and the list could go on.”
Another passion of Bocelli’s: helping underserved communities in both Italy and abroad improve their quality of life through the Andrea Bocelli Foundation (ABF). Founded by Bocelli in 2011, the ABF’s mission is to provide basic necessities such as food, shelter and healthcare as well as exposure to the arts where children can discover and develop their interests and talents. It also supports vital rebuilding in the wake of natural disasters, such as the 2016 earthquake that devastated central Italy.
At the moment, Bocelli is relishing the return to live performances, the energy of which, he says, cannot be replicated. “These past two years were very complex for the entire world. It is a great privilege for me to sing; to perform in front of an audience is a way I can share the gift that God has given me. It’s the simplest and most direct way to have a connection with others, to feel their affection and try to give it back as much as you can, as intensely as you can. I missed very much not being able to keep that direct contact, that somewhat intimate connection you establish during a live performance. And although live streaming performances was an interesting alternative, the magic of a crowded concert venue is beyond compare. I am very happy to see a gradual return to normalcy and, as I already had a chance to highlight, in these past months I’ve been received with even greater, if possible, enthusiasm. It’s an excitement driven by the need to share emotions and to reclaim our freedom, which remains a fundamental value for human beings.”
Photo By Marinari Stefano