Internationally known opera singer Andrea Bocelli, who became an area resident in October 2013 when he bought a waterfront Mediterranean-style estate in North Miami Beach, currently is on tour but will return in time for a Valentine’s Day concert.
The Italian tenor explained in an interview with Community Newspapers why he chose Miami over other popular American cities for his second home.
“Because this is a very special land, kissed by the sun and by the sea, full of flowers and of natural beauties and above all full of nice young people, cheerful and full of energy, efficient at work and friendly in human relations,” Bocelli said.
“Florida has always been a meeting point of different cultures which have melted thus giving to this place a sparkling atmosphere which it is not so easy to find elsewhere, perhaps thanks also to the influence of the Cuban and South American communities.”
Bocelli, his children and his longtime love, fiancée Veronica Berti, will be here often, he said. He thinks it is a natural choice for him.
“It is no coincidence, if already its name, given in the honor of the Spanish ‘Pascua Florida,’ brings about a sort of spring of the soul which is reflected in daily life,” Bocelli said. “And then in my language ‘florid’ is an adjective that means prosperous, attractive, vigorous, and exuberant. How not to be attracted by such a land. How not to make it become my own second home, when it is a land that in name and in fact offers so much beauty?”
His Valentine’s Day performance at the BB&T Center in Sunrise, his third there on that date and fifth in total, will be the first time he has had so little distance to travel to that stage from his own house. The day has special meaning for him, given its romantic significance.
“Certainly on the occasion that celebrates love, I try, even more, to convey in every musical phrase the power of this wonderful feeling,” Bocelli said. “Valentine’s Day is an opportunity to celebrate love and love is the engine of the world; it’s its fire. Without it, life would not make sense. I have spent my whole life evoking and honoring, through singing, the strength and the beauty of love.”
He said he wishes that it could be Valentine’s Day 365 days a year, and that he always enjoys the response of his audiences in the United States.
“I hope my music will get into the heart of those listening to me,” Bocelli said. “I hope I will be able to give them a moment of happiness, thus reviving the emotions of such a special day. My preparation is as meticulous as for any other concert of mine, on any day of the year. The content of the performance offers the same ingredients, also because anyway the songs and arias that I prefer inevitably speak of love.”
Bocelli said that he tries to think of his tight agenda of upcoming concerts as little as possible, because it would make him feel “dizzy and discouraged,” but he does have a series of concerts in Europe and a new tour in South America. One new project close to his heart is the recording of Manon Lescaut by Puccini.
“A work that I particularly like and that has required a lot of energy, in this sweet and troubled story of love and death, an early masterpiece of the Tuscan composer, the tenor role is one of the most difficult and complex of the opera repertoire of all times,” Bocelli said.
His Valentine’s Day concert will be on Friday, Feb. 14, 8 p.m., at the BB&T Center, 1 Panther Pkwy, in Sunrise. It will feature songs from his new album, Love In Portofino, in addition to a mix of arias, famed love songs, and Bocelli classics. For tickets, visit www.ticketmaster.com.
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