Andrea Bocelli (; born 22 September 1958) is an Italian tenor and multi-instrumentalist. He was born visually impaired, with

congenital glaucoma Primary juvenile glaucoma is glaucoma that develops due to ocular hypertension and is evident either at birth or within the first few years of life. It is caused due to abnormalities in the anterior chamber angle development that obstruct aqueous o ...

, and at the age of 12, Bocelli became completely blind, following a

brain hemorrhage Intracerebral hemorrhage (ICH), also known as cerebral bleed, intraparenchymal bleed, and hemorrhagic stroke, or haemorrhagic stroke, is a sudden bleeding into the tissues of the brain, into its ventricles, or into both. It is one kind of bleed ...

resulting from a

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kicking a ball to score a goal. Unqualified, the word ''football'' normally means the form of football that is the most popular where the word is used. Sports commonly c ...

accident. After performing evenings in piano bars and competing in local singing contests, Bocelli signed his first recording contract with the Sugar Music label. He rose to fame in 1994, winning the 44th Sanremo Music Festival performing "

Il mare calmo della sera ''Il mare calmo della sera'' is the debut album by Italian tenor singer Andrea Bocelli, following his win of the Sanremo Festival in 1994, singing his first single and the leading single of the album of the same name. It was certified Gold in the ...

". Since 1994, Bocelli has recorded 15 solo studio albums of both pop and classical music, three greatest hits albums, and nine complete operas, selling over 75 million records worldwide. He has had success as a crossover performer, bringing classical music to the top of international pop charts. His album ''

Romanza ''Romanza'' is the first compilation album by Italian singer Andrea Bocelli, released internationally in 1997. Although a compilation, ''Romanza'' is considered Bocelli's breakthrough album and remains his most commercially successful to date, ...

'' is one of the best-selling albums of all time, while '' Sacred Arias'' is the biggest selling classical album by any solo artist in history. '' My Christmas'' was the best-selling holiday album of 2009 and one of the best-selling holiday albums in the United States. The 2019 album '' Sì'' debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart and US ''Billboard'' 200, becoming Bocelli's first number-one album in both countries. His song " Con te partirò", included on his second album '' Bocelli'', is one of the best-selling singles of all time. The track was licensed to feature in a series of television commercials for TIM in the late 1990s, which eventually became very popular in Italy. In 1998, Bocelli was named one of ''People'' magazine's

50 Most Beautiful People ''People'' is an American weekly magazine that specializes in celebrity news and human-interest stories. It is published by Dotdash Meredith, a subsidiary of IAC. With a readership of 46.6 million adults in 2009, ''People'' had the l ...

. He duetted with Celine Dion on the song " The Prayer" for the animated film ''

Quest for Camelot ''Quest for Camelot'' (released internationally as ''The Magic Sword: Quest for Camelot'') is a 1998 American animated musical fantasy film produced by Warner Bros. Feature Animation and directed by Frederik Du Chau and very loosely based on the ...

'', which won the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song and was nominated for the

Academy Award for Best Original Song The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS). It is presented to the ''songwriters'' who have composed th ...

. In 1999, he was nominated for Best New Artist at the Grammy Awards. He captured a listing in the ''

Guinness Book of World Records ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

'' with the release of his classical album '' Sacred Arias'', as he simultaneously held the top three positions on the US Classical Albums charts. Bocelli was made a Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic in 2006 and was honored with a star on the

Hollywood Walk of Fame The Hollywood Walk of Fame is a historic landmark which consists of more than 2,700 five-pointed terrazzo and brass stars embedded in the sidewalks along 15 blocks of Hollywood Boulevard and three blocks of Vine Street in Hollywood, Californ ...

on 2 March 2010 for his contribution to Live Theater and he was awarded a Gold Medal for Merit in Serbia in 2022. Singer Celine Dion has said that "if God would have a singing voice, he must sound a lot like Andrea Bocelli", and record producer David Foster has often described Bocelli's voice as the most beautiful in the world.

Early life

Bocelli was born with impaired sight to Alessandro and Edi Bocelli on 22 September 1958. He was born with

. He stated that his mother's decision to give birth to him and overrule the doctor's advice was the inspiration for him to oppose abortion. Bocelli grew up on his family's farm where they sold farm machinery and made wine in the small village of

La Sterza La Sterza is a village in Tuscany, central Italy, administratively a frazione of the comuni of Lajatico and Terricciola, province of Pisa. At the time of the 2001 census its population was 91.frazione'' of

Lajatico Lajatico is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Pisa in the Italian region Tuscany, located about southwest of Florence and about southeast of Pisa. Lajatico sits in mainly hilly terrain at variable elevations from above sea level) ...

, Tuscany, Italy, about south of

Pisa Pisa ( , or ) is a city and ''comune'' in Tuscany, central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for its leaning tower, the cit ...

. His mother and younger brother Alberto still live in the family home; his father died in 2000. 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. His nanny Oriana gave him the first record of

Franco Corelli Franco Corelli (8 April 1921 – 29 October 2003) was an Italian tenor who had a major international opera career between 1951 and 1976. Associated in particular with the spinto and dramatic tenor roles of the Italian repertory, he was cel ...

, and he began to show interest in pursuing the career of a tenor. By age 7, he was able to recognize the famous voices of the time and tried to emulate the great singers. At age 12, Bocelli lost his vision completely due to a football accident. He was hit in the eye playing goalkeeper during a match and experienced a

. Doctors resorted to

leech Leeches are segmented parasitic or predatory worms that comprise the subclass Hirudinea within the phylum Annelida. They are closely related to the oligochaetes, which include the earthworm, and like them have soft, muscular segmented bodie ...

es in a last-ditch effort to save his sight, but they were unsuccessful and he remained blind. Bocelli also spent time singing during his childhood. He gave his first concert in a small village not far from where he was born. He won his first song competition at age 14 with "

'O sole mio "O sole mio" () is a well-known Neapolitan song written in 1898. Its Neapolitan language lyrics were written by Giovanni Capurro and the music was composed by Eduardo di Capua (1865–1917) and Alfredo Mazzucchi (1878–1972).. The title transl ...

" at the Margherita d'Oro in Viareggio. He finished secondary school in 1980, and then studied law at the University of Pisa. To earn money, he performed evenings in piano bars, and it was there that he met his future wife Enrica in 1987. He completed law school and spent one year as a court-appointed lawyer.

Career

1992–1994: Sanremo and ''Il mare calmo della sera''

In 1992, Italian rock star

Zucchero Adelmo Fornaciari (; born 25 September 1955), more commonly known by his stage name Zucchero Fornaciari or simply Zucchero (), is an Italian singer, musician and songwriter. His stage name is the Italian word for "sugar", as his elementary teach ...

held auditions for tenors to make a

demo tape A demo (shortened from "demonstration") is a song or group of songs typically recorded for limited circulation or for reference use, rather than for general public release. A demo is a way for a musician to approximate their ideas in a fixed for ...

of his song "Miserere", to send to Italian tenor

Luciano Pavarotti Luciano Pavarotti (, , ; 12 October 19356 September 2007) was an Italian operatic tenor who during the late part of his career crossed over into popular music, eventually becoming one of the most acclaimed tenors of all time. He made numerou ...

. After hearing Bocelli on tape, Pavarotti urged Zucchero to use Bocelli instead of him. Zucchero eventually persuaded Pavarotti 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" from Giacomo Puccini's opera '' Turandot''. Bocelli signed with the

Sugar Music Sugar Music is a vertically integrated, family owned, independent business, active globally as a record label, music publisher, soundtrack and audio-visual producer. The company is headquartered in Milan, Italy. History Established in 1932 by Lad ...

label in Milan after Caterina Caselli heard Bocelli sing "Miserere" and "Nessun Dorma" at a birthday party for Zucchero. In December, Bocelli entered the preliminary round of the Sanremo 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 the

Teatro Romolo Valli The Teatro Municipale (also since the 1980s called the Teatro Municipale Valli due to being named after the actor Romolo Valli) is a theatre in Reggio Emilia, Northern Italy. Following the destruction by fire of the 1741 Teatro Cittadella in April ...

Reggio Emilia Reggio nell'Emilia ( egl, Rèz; la, Regium Lepidi), usually referred to as Reggio Emilia, or simply Reggio by its inhabitants, and known until 1861 as Reggio di Lombardia, is a city in northern Italy, in the Emilia-Romagna region. It has abou ...

. In February 1994, he entered the main Sanremo Festival competition with "

", and he won the newcomers section, again with a record score. Following his win, Bocelli released his debut album of the same name in April, and it entered the Italian Top Ten, being certified platinum within weeks. In May 1994, he toured with pop singer

Gerardina Trovato Gerardina Trovato (born 27 May 1967) is an Italian singer-songwriter. Background Born in Catania, Trovato started her career as backing vocalist, then, put under contract by singer-discographer Caterina Caselli, she took part at the 1993 Sanremo ...

. In September, he sang at Pavarotti's annual Charity Gala concert, ''Pavarotti International'' in

Modena Modena (, , ; egl, label=Emilian language#Dialects, Modenese, Mòdna ; ett, Mutna; la, Mutina) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern I ...

, where he sang

Ruggiero Leoncavallo Ruggero (or Ruggiero) Leoncavallo ( , , ; 23 April 18579 August 1919) was an Italian opera composer and librettist. Although he produced numerous operas and other songs throughout his career it is his opera '' Pagliacci'' (1892) that remained h ...

's "Mattinata" and sang a duet with Pavarotti, Maurizio Morante's "Notte e Piscatore". In September, he made his opera debut as Macduff in Verdi's ''

Macbeth ''Macbeth'' (, full title ''The Tragedie of Macbeth'') is a tragedy by William Shakespeare. It is thought to have been first performed in 1606. It dramatises the damaging physical and psychological effects of political ambition on those w ...

'' at the Teatro Verdi in Pisa. Bocelli had been an agnostic, but around 1994, partly as a result of immersing himself in the works of Russian author Leo Tolstoy, he returned to the practice of the Catholic faith. He performed the hymn " Adeste Fideles" in Rome before Pope John Paul II in St. Peter's Basilica at Christmas.

1995–1997: ''Bocelli'' and ''Romanza''

As winner of the newcomers section at the 1994 Sanremo Festival, Bocelli was invited to return the following year. He entered the main competition with " Con te partirò" and finished in fourth place. The song was included on his second album, '' Bocelli'', produced by

Mauro Malavasi Mauro Malavasi (born 21 March 1957) is an Italian pianist, songwriter and producer. He was an important figure in Italian disco with his business partner Jacques Fred Petrus and went on to write and produce hits with various Italian musicians. He ...

and released in November 1995. In Belgium, "Con te partirò" became the best-selling single of all time. His third album, ''

Viaggio Italiano ''Viaggio Italiano'' is Andrea Bocelli's third studio album and first classical album. The album features some of the most popular opera arias and Neapolitan songs of all time, such as Nessun Dorma, O Sole Mio and la Donna è Mobile. Although r ...

'', was released in Italy in 1996. He was invited to sing a duet with English soprano

Sarah Brightman Sarah Brightman (born 14 August 1960) is an English classical crossover soprano singer, actress and dancer. Brightman began her career as a member of the dance troupe Hot Gossip and released several disco singles as a solo performer. In 1981, ...

at the final bout of German

boxer Boxer most commonly refers to: * Boxer (boxing), a competitor in the sport of boxing *Boxer (dog), a breed of dog Boxer or boxers may also refer to: Animal kingdom * Boxer crab * Boxer shrimp, a small group of decapod crustaceans * Boxer snipe ee ...

Henry Maske Henry Maske (, ; born 6 January 1964) is a German former professional boxer and one of Germany's most popular sports figures. He held the IBF light heavyweight title from 1993 until 1996. Amateur career Maske was born in Treuenb ...

. 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 Time to Say Goodbye may refer to: * "Time to Say Goodbye" (Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman song), a version of Andrea Bocelli's song "Con te partirò" with Sarah Brightman * ''Time to Say Goodbye'' (album), a 1997 album by Sarah Brightman *''Tim ...

", they re-recorded it as a duet with members of the London Symphony Orchestra and sang it as a farewell for Maske. 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. He topped the Spanish singles chart in 1996 with a duet with Marta Sánchez, "Vivo por ella", the Spanish version of " Vivo per lei", recorded with Giorgia for his 1997 compilation album, ''

''. He also recorded a Portuguese version of the song with Brazilian singer

Sandy Sandy may refer to: People and fictional characters *Sandy (given name), including a list of people and fictional characters * Sandy (surname), a list of people *Sandy (singer), Brazilian singer and actress Sandy Leah Lima (born 1983) * (Sandy) ...

. The same year, Bocelli recorded "Je vis pour elle", the French version of "Vivo per lei", as a duet with French singer Hélène 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 in Hamburg, Germany, with Sarah Brightman to receive the ECHO music award for " Best Single of the Year". In the summer of 1997, he gave 22 open-air concerts in Germany, and an indoor concert in

Oberhausen Oberhausen (, ) is a city on the river Emscher in the Ruhr Area, Germany, located between Duisburg and Essen ( ). The city hosts the International Short Film Festival Oberhausen and its Gasometer Oberhausen is an anchor point of the European Rout ...

on 31 August. In September, he performed in concert at the

Piazza dei Cavalieri Piazza dei Cavalieri () is a landmark in Pisa, Italy, and the second main square of the city. This square was the political centre in medieval Pisa. After the middle of 16th century the square became the headquarters of the Order of the Knights ...

in Pisa for the home video ''

A Night in Tuscany ''A Night in Tuscany'' is the first DVD released by Italian singer Andrea Bocelli of a concert which took place at the Piazza dei Cavalieri in Pisa in 1997. The concert includes duets with soprano Nuccia Focile, Italian rock star Zucchero, and ...

'' ( it, una notte nella Toscana) with guests

Nuccia Focile Nuccia Focile (born 25 November 1961) is an Italian operatic soprano. Nuccia Focile was born in Militello in Val di Catania, Sicily, studied in Turin under Elio Battaglia, and made her opera debut in 1983 as Serpina in ''La Serva Padrona'' by ...

, Sarah Brightman and Zucchero. The concert was also Bocelli's first concert to air on PBS part of the ''In The Spotlight'' series. It also marked as Bocelli's debut to the American audiences. On 14 September, in Munich, Germany, he received an ECHO Klassik Best Seller of the Year award for his album, ''Viaggio Italiano''. Back in Italy in Bologna on 27 September, he sang at the International Eucharistic Congress. On 19 October, he sang at the

TeleFood The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)french: link=no, Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture; it, Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura is an intern ...

benefit concert held in the Vatican City to raise awareness about world hunger. On 25 October, he received a Bambi Award in the Klassik category in Cologne, Germany.

1998–1999: ''Aria: The Opera Album'', ''Sogno'' and ''Sacred Arias''

Bocelli made his debut in a major operatic role in 1998 when he played Rodolfo in a production of '' La bohème'' at the Teatro Comunale in

Cagliari Cagliari (, also , , ; sc, Casteddu ; lat, Caralis) is an Italian municipality and the capital of the island of Sardinia, an autonomous region of Italy. Cagliari's Sardinian name ''Casteddu'' means ''castle''. It has about 155,000 inhabitant ...

from 18 to 25 February. His fifth album '' Aria: The Opera Album'' was released in March. On 19 April, Bocelli made his United States debut with a concert at the

John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts The John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts (formally known as the John F. Kennedy Memorial Center for the Performing Arts, and commonly referred to as the Kennedy Center) is the United States National Cultural Center, located on the Potom ...

in Washington, D.C., followed the next day by a reception at the White House with then US President Bill Clinton. On 5 May, he appeared in Monte Carlo, winning two World Music Awards, one in the category "Best Italian Singer", and one for "Best Classical Interpretation". He was also named one of ''People'' magazine's 50 Most Beautiful People of 1998. 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 with ''Aria: The Opera Album''. On Thanksgiving Eve, Bocelli was a guest on Céline Dion's television special ''These 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 album ''

These Are Special Times ''These Are Special Times'' is the seventeenth studio album by Canadian singer Celine Dion, and her first English-language Christmas album. It was first released in Europe on 30 October 1998, by Columbia Records. In the United States, it ...

'' (1998) and was re-issued with the DVD of the TV special in 2007. The song also appeared on the ''

'' soundtrack in 1998 and on Bocelli's album, ''

Sogno ''Sogno'' ( en, Dream) is the fifth studio album by Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. The album sold 2.5 million copies in the United States,

'', the following year. In the New Year, he performed two concerts at the

Bellagio Bellagio may refer to: * Bellagio, Lombardy, an Italian town * Bellagio (resort), a luxury resort and casino in Las Vegas * Bellagio (Hong Kong), a private housing building * Bellagio declaration, an intellectual copyright resolution * 79271 Bellag ...

hotel in Las Vegas. At the

56th Golden Globe Awards The 56th ceremony of the Golden Globe Awards, honoring the best in film and television for 1998, were held on January 24, 1999, at the Beverly Hilton Hotel in Beverly Hills, California. The nominations were announced on December 17, 1998. Winners ...

held on 24 January, "The Prayer" won the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song from the film ''Quest for Camelot''. At the

41st Grammy Awards The 41st Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 24, 1999, at Shrine Auditorium, Los Angeles. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1998. Lauryn Hill received the most nominations with 10, setting a record for the most no ...

ceremony on 24 February, Bocelli was nominated for Best New Artist, which was won by Lauryn Hill. Bocelli and Dion sang "The Prayer" at the ceremony. The song was also nominated for an

and performed by Bocelli and Dion at the ceremony held at the

Los Angeles Music Center The Music Center (officially named the Performing Arts Center of Los Angeles County) is one of the largest performing arts centers in the United States. Located in downtown Los Angeles, The Music Center is composed of the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion ...

on 21 March. From 11 to 24 April, he toured the West Coast of North America, from San Diego to Vancouver, with a final performance at the

Hollywood Bowl The Hollywood Bowl is an amphitheatre in the Hollywood Hills neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. It was named one of the 10 best live music venues in America by ''Rolling Stone'' magazine in 2018. The Hollywood Bowl is known for its distin ...

in Los Angeles. Actress

Elizabeth Taylor Dame Elizabeth Rosemond Taylor (February 27, 1932 – March 23, 2011) was a British-American actress. She began her career as a child actress in the early 1940s and was one of the most popular stars of classical Hollywood cinema in the 1950s. ...

stood by his side on the stage during the encore, while he sang "The Prayer". At the invitation of

Steven Spielberg Steven Allan Spielberg (; born December 18, 1946) is an American director, writer, and producer. A major figure of the New Hollywood era and pioneer of the modern blockbuster, he is the most commercially successful director of all time. Spie ...

, Bocelli sang in Los Angeles on 15 May before Bill Clinton at an event on behalf of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

. At the end of May, he toured Portugal and Spain and sang with Portuguese Fado singer Dulce Pontes. On 27 June, he took part in the Michael Jackson benefit concert for suffering children in Munich's Olympic Stadium. From 10 July to 27 August, he appeared in a guest role for seven performances of ''

The Merry Widow ''The Merry Widow'' (german: Die lustige Witwe, links=no ) is an operetta by the Austro-Hungarian composer Franz Lehár. The librettists, Viktor Léon and Leo Stein, based the story – concerning a rich widow, and her countrymen's attempt t ...

'' at the Verona Arena. As the "Tenor Conte Andrea" he performed three arias: " La donna è mobile" from Verdi's '' Rigoletto''; "Tu, che m' hai preso il cuor" from Franz Lehár's ''

Das Land Des Laechelns ''The Land of Smiles'' (German: ') is a 1929 romantic operetta in three acts by Franz Lehár. The German language libretto was by and Fritz Löhner-Beda. The performance duration is about 100 minutes. This was one of Lehár's later works, and h ...

'' and "Libiamo ne' lieti calici" from Verdi's ''La traviata''. On 10 September, together with soprano

Daniela Dessì Daniela Dessì (14 May 1957 – 20 August 2016) was an Italian operatic soprano. Life and career Born in Genoa, Italy, Dessì completed her studies at the Arrigo Boito Conservatory in Parma and the Accademia Musicale Chigiana in Siena. She made ...

and two Polish singers, he performed at the Great Theatre of Łódź in Poland. From 7 October to 19 November, he made his United States operatic debut in

Jules Massenet Jules Émile Frédéric Massenet (; 12 May 1842 – 13 August 1912) was a French composer of the Romantic era best known for his operas, of which he wrote more than thirty. The two most frequently staged are '' Manon'' (1884) and ''Werther' ...

's '' Werther'' at the Detroit Opera House with the Michigan Opera Theater. He also performed at Rodeo Drive in Beverly Hills and gave further concerts in Detroit, Cleveland and Chicago, and made an appearance on Jay Leno's first installment of '' The Tonight Show''. Then

Mayor of New York City The mayor of New York City, officially Mayor of the City of New York, is head of the executive branch of the government of New York City and the chief executive of New York City. The mayor's office administers all city services, public property ...

Rudy Giuliani Rudolph William Louis Giuliani (, ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 107th Mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney General from 1981 to 198 ...

gave him the Crystal Apple award. His seventh album '' Sacred Arias'', which contains exclusively sacred music, was released worldwide on 8 November, and two weeks later reached number one on the US Classic Billboard charts – making Bocelli the first vocalist to hold all top three places on the chart, with ''Aria, the opera album'' in second place, and ''Viaggio 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. To promote ''Sacred Arias'', Bocelli recorded his second PBS concert at the Roman church of Santa Maria sopra Minerva, in Rome, in 1999, singing most of the songs from the album. The special was nominated for an

Emmy Award The Emmy Awards, or Emmys, are an extensive range of awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international television industry. A number of annual Emmy Award ceremonies are held throughout the calendar year, each with the ...

for Outstanding Classical Music-Dance Program during the

52nd Primetime Emmy Awards The 52nd Primetime Emmy Awards were held on Sunday, September 10, 2000. The ceremony was hosted by Garry Shandling and was broadcast on ABC. Two networks, Bravo and The WB, received their first major nominations. This remains the only year in whi ...

. In Italy, Bocelli sang in Florence at a meeting of the centre-left Heads of State. Invited by

Queen Elizabeth II Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until Death and state funeral of Elizabeth II, her death in 2022. She was queen ...

, he performed at the annual

Royal Variety Performance The ''Royal Variety Performance'' is a televised variety show held annually in the United Kingdom to raise money for the Royal Variety Charity (of which King Charles III is life-patron). It is attended by senior members of the British royal f ...

in Birmingham, UK, on 29 November. On 30 November, his book ''La musica del silenzio'', an autobiographical novel, was released in Italy, and in 2017 it was turned into a movie as ''

The Music of Silence ''The Music of Silence'' ( it, La musica del silenzio) is a 2017 Italian biographical film directed by Michael Radford, based on the 1999 novel of the same name written by the tenor Andrea Bocelli and freely inspired by his childhood life until ...

'', directed by Michael Radford. From 12 to 21 December, he performed six concerts in Barcelona,

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label=Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label=Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the Eu ...

, Lisbon, Zagreb, Budapest and

Messina Messina (, also , ) is a harbour city and the capital of the Italian Metropolitan City of Messina. It is the third largest city on the island of Sicily, and the 13th largest city in Italy, with a population of more than 219,000 inhabitants in ...

, some of which were broadcast on local television. He also performed on German television; '' Wetten, dass..?'' on 11 December and the

José Carreras Josep Maria Carreras Coll (; born 5 December 1946), better known as José Carreras (, ), is a Spanish operatic tenor who is particularly known for his performances in the operas of Donizetti, Verdi and Puccini. Born in Barcelona, he made his de ...

Gala in Leipzig on 17 December. On 31 December, he finished a marathon twenty-four concerts in thirty days, with a concert at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in New York, welcoming in the new millennium.

2000–2001: ''Verdi'' and ''Cieli di Toscana''

At the

42nd Grammy Awards The 42nd Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 23, 2000, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1999. Nominations were announced on January 4, 2000. Santana was the main r ...

, Bocelli was nominated twice. "The Prayer" was nominated for

Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals The Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals was an honor presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality pop songs on which singers c ...

and for

Best Male Pop Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a male in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The award wen ...

. Bocelli performed it with Dion at the ceremony. His "World Tour 2000" started on 31 March. In May, his ''Sacred Arias'' album was voted album of the year by listeners of the Classic 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 the UEFA European Football Championship, he performed with Valery Gergiev and Renée Fleming at a concert on the River Maas in Rotterdam. On 6 July, he performed at the

Statue of Liberty The Statue of Liberty (''Liberty Enlightening the World''; French: ''La Liberté éclairant le monde'') is a List of colossal sculpture in situ, colossal neoclassical sculpture on Liberty Island in New York Harbor in New York City, in the U ...

in New York City for his third PBS special '' American 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 Maestro

Steven Mercurio Steven Mercurio (born 1956, Bardonia, New York (state), New York) is an American conductor and composer. Early life and education Mercurio was raised in New York and is of Italian descent. For most of his adolescence, he gravitated towards rock an ...

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's ''

Messa da Requiem The ''Messa da Requiem'' is a musical setting of the Catholic funeral mass ( Requiem) for four soloists, double choir and orchestra by Giuseppe Verdi. It was composed in memory of Alessandro Manzoni, whom Verdi admired. The first performance, at ...

'' 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" for '' Sacred Arias''. In November, his first complete opera recording, ''La Bohème'', was released. In December, he received another award in Germany, the

Goldene Europa Goldene Europa award is the oldest German Television award for artists and entertainers. It was awarded from 1968 to 2003. In the years 1989 and 2001, there were no ceremonies. Since 1981, the gala was broadcast on television. The original sculptu ...

for classical music. In January 2001, Bocelli portrayed the main character in

Mascagni Mascagni is a surname of Italian origin. Notable people with the surname include: * Donato Mascagni (1579–1636), Italian painter * Paolo Mascagni (1755–1815), Italian physician * Pietro Mascagni (1863–1945), Italian composer {{surname Su ...

's opera '' L'amico Fritz'' at the Teatro Filarmonico in Verona and again performed the tenor part in Verdi's ''Requiem''. On 19 March, the ''Requiem'' album was released with Bocelli as tenor. From 22 March to 6 April, he toured North America accompanied by Cecilia Gasdia and the Hartford Symphony Orchestra. On 17 June, he performed at the re-opening of the Leaning Tower of Pisa. In July, he performed two concerts in Dublin with

Ana María Martínez Ana María Martínez (born 1971) is a Puerto Rican soprano. Early life Martínez was born in San Juan, Puerto Rico; she is the daughter of Puerto Rican opera singer Evangelína Colón and Cuban psychoanalyst Ángel Martínez. Martínez' grandpar ...

and the

New Symphony Orchestra The New Symphony Orchestra is one of the best-known orchestras in Bulgaria. History The New Symphony Orchestra was founded in 1991 in Sofia, Bulgaria by the music critic Julia Hristova as an alternative to the existing Bulgarian musical instituti ...

. At the

Scuola Grande di San Rocco The Scuola Grande di San Rocco is a building in Venice, northern Italy. It is noted for its collection of paintings by Tintoretto and generally agreed to include some of his finest work. History The building is the seat of a confraternity establ ...

in Venice on 4 October, he presented his new album ''Cieli 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 of Sicilian opera composer Vincenzo Bellini in

Catania Catania (, , Sicilian and ) is the second largest municipality in Sicily, after Palermo. Despite its reputation as the second city of the island, Catania is the largest Sicilian conurbation, among the largest in Italy, as evidenced also by ...

. On 28 October, he sang Franz Schubert's '' Ellens dritter Gesang'' (also known as "Ave Maria", Latin for "Hail Mary") as a representative of the Roman Catholic faith, during a memorial concert at Ground Zero in New York City for the victims of the September 11 attacks there. In November, he received the Platinum Europe Award for one million sales of the album ''Cieli di Toscana'', and at the Italian Music Awards he was given a special award from the Federation 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 by Ana María Martínez, and on 23 December, he sang the

Italian national anthem "" (; "The Song of the Italians") is a canto written by Goffredo Mameli set to music by Michele Novaro in 1847, and is the current national anthem of Italy. It is best known among Italians as the "" (, "Mameli's Hymn"), after the author of the ...

as well as works of Bellini and Verdi at the traditional Christmas concert in the

Italian Senate The Senate of the Republic ( it, Senato della Repubblica), or simply the Senate ( it, Senato), is the upper house of the bicameral Italian Parliament (the other being the Chamber of Deputies). The two houses together form a perfect bicameral sy ...

, which was broadcast live on television for the first time.

2002–2005: ''Sentimento'' and ''Andrea''

In Berlin on 5 February, he received a

Goldene Kamera The Goldene Kamera ("Golden Camera") is an annual German film and television award, awarded by the Funke Mediengruppe. The award show is usually held in early February in Hamburg, but has also taken place in Berlin in the past. The gold-plate ...

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 the Basilica di San Marco a Venezia in Venice, accompanied by the orchestra of the

Teatro La Fenice Teatro La Fenice (, "The Phoenix") is an opera house in Venice, Italy. It is one of "the most famous and renowned landmarks in the history of Italian theatre" and in the history of opera as a whole. Especially in the 19th century, La Fenice beca ...

and conducted by

Lorin Maazel Lorin Varencove Maazel (, March 6, 1930 – July 13, 2014) was an American conductor, violinist and composer. He began conducting at the age of eight and by 1953 had decided to pursue a career in music. He had established a reputation in th ...

. On 15 March, he took part in the opening of

Walt Disney Studios Park Walt Disney Studios Park ( French: ''Parc Walt Disney Studios'') is the second of two theme parks built at Disneyland Paris in Marne-la-Vallée, France, which opened on 16 March 2002. It is owned and operated by The Walt Disney Company through ...

in Marne-la-Vallée France. On 7 May, Bocelli and Tony Renis received a Telegatto Italian Television award for the soundtrack of the series '' Cuore''. On 23 May he received the 2002 Classical BRIT Award for "Outstanding Contribution to Music". On 27 May, he performed at the Villa Madama in Rome in front of US president

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

and Italian president Silvio Berlusconi. On 28 May, he took part in "Pavarotti & Friends" charity concert in

in aid of Angola. In June he again toured the US, then on 26 July and 3 August, he portrayed Lieutenant B.F. Pinkerton in ''

Madama Butterfly ''Madama Butterfly'' (; ''Madame Butterfly'') is an opera in three acts (originally two) by Giacomo Puccini, with an Italian libretto by Luigi Illica and Giuseppe Giacosa. It is based on the short story "Madame Butterfly" (1898) by John Luther ...

'' at the 48th Puccini Festival in Torre del Lago. On 14 October, he and Lorin Maazel presented his new album ''

Sentimento ''Sentimento'' is the ninth studio album released by Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. It was recorded between 30 September and 7 October 2000, and released on 5 November 2002. The album was conducted by Lorin Maazel with London Symphony Orchestra, a ...

'' 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 his ''Sentimento'' tour in Zürich which took in large arenas in several European and North American cities. In February 2003, Bocelli performed ''Madama Butterfly'' in an exclusive Monte Carlo concert, which was attended by

Caroline, Princess of Hanover Princess Caroline of Monaco (Caroline Louise Marguerite; born 23 January 1957) is, by her marriage to Prince Ernst August, the Princess of Hanover. As the eldest child of Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, and Grace Kelly, she is the elder sister ...

. 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. In May his second complete opera, '' Tosca'', was released. It did not attract unanimous praise, though.

Andreas Dorschel Andreas Dorschel (born 1962) is a German philosopher. Since 2002, he has been professor of aesthetics and head of the Institute for Music Aesthetics at the University of the Arts Graz (Austria). Background Andreas Dorschel was born in 1962 ...

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." At a private benefit gala for the Royal National Institute of Blind People, Bocelli sang in front of the British Royal Family. A day later he received two awards for ''Sentimento'' at the 2003 Classical BRIT Award held at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

in London – "Best selling classical album" and "Album of the year". On 24 May, he performed in a benefit concert for the

Arpa Foundation for Film, Music and Art Arpa Foundation for Film, Music and Art (AFFMA) is a Los Angeles based non-profit organization, formed in 1995 for the purpose of promoting the arts. AFFMA has been running its annual Arpa International Film Festival held in Hollywood, Califor ...

in the

Piazza del Campo Piazza del Campo is the main public space of the historic center of Siena, Tuscany, Italy and is regarded as one of Europe's greatest medieval squares. It is renowned worldwide for its beauty and architectural integrity. The Palazzo Pubblico and i ...

in Siena, with sopranos

Maria Luigia Borsi Maria Luigia Borsi (born 1973) is an Italian opera singer. A lyric soprano, she is especially known for interpreting operas by Giacomo Puccini and Giuseppe Verdi. Among the qualities noted by the critical press are her breath control, phrasing, ...

and Lucia Dessanti,

baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in the r ...

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 of Neapolitan songs together with Pavarotti. In June, he continued his ''Sentimento'' tour in Athens and Cyprus. In September, he took part in a concert for the Justice ministers and Interior ministers of the European Union at the Parco della Musica in Rome. He then resumed his tour, accompanied by

, Ruth Rogers and Marcello Rota. Bocelli won the "Favourite Specialist Performer" award at the UK National Music Awards in October 2003. In November he once again toured in the United States, this time accompanied by Ana Maria Martinez,

Kallen Esperian Kallen Esperian (born June 8, 1961) is an American lyric soprano. She won the Luciano Pavarotti International Voice Competition in 1985 and is best known for her performances in major opera productions. History Kallen Esperian was born on June ...

and

. In December he gave his first concert in China and at the end of the month, sang Gounod's ''Ave Maria'' at Pavarotti's wedding in Modena. In Bologna in January, he performed as Werther 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 at

Circo Massimo The Circus Maximus (Latin for "largest circus"; Italian language, Italian: ''Circo Massimo'') is an ancient Rome, ancient Roman chariot racing, chariot-racing stadium and mass entertainment venue in Rome, Italy. In the valley between the Aventin ...

in Rome organised by Quincy Jones to launch the " We are the Future" project. In June, his third complete opera '' Il trovatore'' was released. In July, he played the part of Mario Cavaradossi in ''Tosca'' at the 50th Puccini Festival in Torre del Lago, and he took part in the International Olympic Committee (IOC) global campaign for the

2004 Summer Olympics The 2004 Summer Olympics ( el, Θερινοί Ολυμπιακοί Αγώνες 2004, ), officially the Games of the XXVIII Olympiad ( el, Αγώνες της 28ης Ολυμπιάδας, ) and also known as Athens 2004 ( el, Αθήνα 2004), ...

in Athens. In September, he performed his "Once in a Lifetime" tour in Australia with concerts in Sydney and Melbourne and one concert in Christchurch, New Zealand, where he was joined on stage by New Zealand soprano

Hayley Westenra Hayley Dee Westenra (born 10 April 1987) is a New Zealand classical crossover singer and songwriter. Her first internationally released album, ''Pure'', reached number one on the UK classical charts in 2003 and has sold more than two million c ...

. On 15 October, he performed at the People Conference Hall in Beijing, China, and on 17 October at the Great Hall in Shanghai. During early 2005, Bocelli was on tour including performances in

Madeira ) , anthem = ( en, "Anthem of the Autonomous Region of Madeira") , song_type = Regional anthem , image_map=EU-Portugal_with_Madeira_circled.svg , map_alt=Location of Madeira , map_caption=Location of Madeira , subdivision_type=Sovereign st ...

, Hungary, Norway, US, UK, Italy and Germany. He also appeared in '' Sesame Street'' singing "Time to Say Goodnight" a parody of "Time to Say Goodbye" as a lullaby to Elmo. On 21 March, he performed at the ''Music for Asia'' benefit concert in Rome, televised on Italia 1, in aid of the

2004 Indian Ocean earthquake An earthquake and a tsunami, known as the Boxing Day Tsunami and, by the scientific community, the Sumatra–Andaman earthquake, occurred at 07:58:53 local time (UTC+7) on 26 December 2004, with an epicentre off the west coast of northern Suma ...

appeal. In June, he performed at the Deutsche Opera in Berlin. On 2 July, he performed at the Paris concert as part of the Live 8 event. Also during the second part of the year, he performed in Croatia, Serbia, Italy, the US, Dubai, Switzerland and finally in Scandinavia. On 28 August, he performed at the

Faenol Festival The Faenol Festival ( cy, Gŵyl y Faenol) is a music festival organised by Welsh singer Bryn Terfel, originally held annually on the Faenol Estate (Welsh: ''Y Faenol''), near Y Felinheli in Gwynedd, north Wales. The festival was launched in ...

held in

Vaynol Vaynol or ''Y Faenol'' (Welsh ) is a country estate dating from the Tudor period near Y Felinheli in Gwynedd, North Wales (). It has of park, farmland, and gardens, with more than thirty listed buildings, surrounded by a wall which is long. ...

, Wales and organised by Welsh

bass-baritone A bass-baritone is a high-lying bass or low-lying "classical" baritone voice type which shares certain qualities with the true baritone voice. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing thr ...

Bryn Terfel. In December, his first contemporary music concert took place at a Lake Las Vegas village resort in Nevada, US, which was recorded for PBS and released as the ''

Under the Desert Sky ''Under the Desert Sky'' is a live album and DVD of a classical - pop concert by classical Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. The concert was performed on a specially built floating stage at Lake Las Vegas Resort (near Las Vegas, Nevada) and taped for ...

'' DVD. He also took part in the Royal Christmas Show, which took place in several cities in the US in December. The album ''Werther'' was released in December.

2006–2007: ''Amore'' and ''Vivere, Greatest hits''

On 18 February, he sang at the Toyota Center in Houston during the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2006 All-Star Weekend, and broadcast live on the TNT Cable television network. On 26 February, Bocelli sang "Because We Believe" from his ''Amore'' album in the Carnevale section of the closing ceremony of the Torino Olympics. He also began another tour with a concert at the Piazza di Castello in Turin. In March, he was honoured by the Italian state with a Grande 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 singer Christina Aguilera on 4 March. From 31 March to 2 April, he took part in the Maggio Musicale in Florence where he sang the ''Canto di pace (Canto of peace)'' by

Marco Tutino Marco Tutino (born May 30, 1954) is an Italian composer. His emergence during the late 1970s was as the spearhead of an Italian ''Neo-Romantico'' group, founded with two other composers, Lorenzo Ferrero and Carlo Galante. He graduated from the ...

and the tenor part from Gioachino Rossini's ''

Messa di Gloria ''Messa di Gloria'' is a nine movement mass, composed by Gioacchino Rossini for the Arciconfraternità di San Luigi. First performed on 24 March 1820 in the Chiesa di San Ferdinando in Naples, it is in the traditional form of a "Gloria" mass, ...

'' and in Naples where he took part in Rossini's Petite messe solennelle. In April 2006, he featured as a guest coach on '' American Idol'' helping the finalists sing the week's themed songs, "Greatest Love Songs". He also performed on that week's results show. American Idol runner-up Katharine McPhee performed at three of Bocelli's concerts in California from 9 to 11 June singing duets of ''Somos Novios'' and ''The Prayer'' with Bocelli. They also performed on ''

J. C. Penney Penney OpCo LLC, doing business as JCPenney and often abbreviated JCP, is a midscale American department store chain operating 667 stores across 49 U.S. states and Puerto Rico. Departments inside JCPenney stores include Mens, Womens, Boys, Girl ...

Jam: The Concert for America's Kids'' and recorded duet versions of ''Somos Novios'' for the resulting album, and also '' Can't Help Falling in Love'' on the CD of the

DVD. In June, he sang the Italian duet version of " Because We Believe", "Ama, credi e vai", with Gianna Nannini at the "großen Fan Party" at the opening of the

2006 FIFA World Cup The 2006 FIFA World Cup, also branded as Germany 2006, was the 18th FIFA World Cup, the quadrennial international football world championship tournament. It was held from 9 June to 9 July 2006 in Germany, which had won the right to host the ...

, in Berlin in front of billions of worldwide television viewers. On 1 July 2007, Bocelli performed " The Music of the Night" from

Andrew Lloyd Webber Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber (born 22 March 1948), is an English composer and impresario of musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 21 musicals, ...

's '' The Phantom of the Opera'', in a special musicals medley during the

Concert for Diana Concert for Diana was a benefit concert held at the newly built Wembley Stadium in London, United Kingdom in honour of Diana, Princess of Wales, on 1 July 2007, which would have been her 46th birthday. 31 August that year brought the 10th ann ...

at Wembley Stadium in London, England. Bocelli returned to his home town for a concert at the newly created

Teatro del Silenzio The Teatro del Silenzio (English: Theater of Silence) is an open air amphitheater located in the city of Lajatico – the hometown of Andrea Bocelli – in the Tuscany region of Italy. In 2006, Bocelli convinced the municipality of Lajatico to ...

on 5 July 2007, with guest appearance by Kenny G,

Heather Headley Heather Headley (born October 5, 1974) is a Trinidadian-born American singer, songwriter, record producer and actress. She won the 2000 Tony Award for Best Actress in a Musical for the titular role of ''Aida''. She also won the 2010 Grammy Aw ...

, Lang Lang, Elisa,

and

Laura Pausini Laura Pausini (; born 16 May 1974) is an Italian singer. She rose to fame in 1993, winning the newcomer artists' section of the 43rd Sanremo Music Festival with her debut single "La solitudine", which became an Italian standard and an internat ...

. The concert was later released as ''

Vivere Live in Tuscany ''Vivere Live in Tuscany'' is a live album and DVD of a pop concert by classical Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. The concert was performed at Bocelli's Teatro del Silenzio in Lajatico, Tuscany, July 2007. In this DVD he performs duets with Sarah ...

''. In September, he debuted at the Avery Fisher Hall, in New York, with four concerts. October saw the release of the opera album of

's ''

Pagliacci ''Pagliacci'' (; literal translation, "Clowns") is an Italian opera in a prologue and two acts, with music and libretto by Ruggero Leoncavallo. The opera tells the tale of Canio, actor and leader of a commedia dell'arte theatrical company, who m ...

'' with Bocelli singing the role of Canio. In November, he won the "Best Italian Artist" and "World's Best-selling Classical Artist" awards at the World Music Awards. In December, he finished his 2006 tour with more concerts in North America and Europe. Bocelli and Sarah Brightman's duet version of "Con te partirò" was used in the 2007 film '' Blades of Glory'', as an ice skating song.

K-1 K-1 is a professional kickboxing promotion established in 1993, well known worldwide mainly for its heavyweight division fights and Grand Prix tournaments. In January 2012, K-1 Global Holdings Limited, a company registered in Hong Kong, acquired ...

mixed martial arts fighter Yoshihiro Akiyama started using "Con te partirò" as his ring entrance music. On 8 September, Bocelli sang an arrangement of Mozart's '' Ave verum corpus'' at the funeral of Luciano Pavarotti in Modena, Italy. On 21 October 2007, he sang "Con te partirò" on the UK television series ''

Strictly Come Dancing ''Strictly Come Dancing'' (informally known as ''Strictly'') is a British dance contest show in which celebrities partner with professional dancers to compete in mainly ballroom and Latin dance. Each couple is scored by a panel of usually 4 ...

'' results show, and on 30 October, he sang "The Prayer" during an ITV Special ''An Audience with Céline Dion''. The show was broadcast on 23 December. Alongside fellow Italian singer

, he sang ''Vive 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's ''

'', was also released in English on his 2007 album, '' The Best of Andrea Bocelli: Vivere'', as ''Dare to Live''. The album, '' Vivere'', sold over 3 million copies.

2008: ''Incanto'' and ''Carmen''

On 20 January 2008, Bocelli received the Italian TV award Telegatto in platinum for ''Italian music in the world'', in Rome. He sang "La voce del silenzio" – "The voice of silence" – and "Dare to Live" during the ceremony. VeronicaBerti

To promote the album, he performed " Canto della Terra" at '' The Alan Titchmarsh Show'' on the BBC in London on 1 February; was interviewed by Fabio Fazio on the Italian talk show '' Che tempo che fa'' on RAI 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 on '' The South Bank Show'' in London, where he sang the French aria "Pour mon âme" on 3 February. Then on 10 February, he performed "The Prayer" at the

50th Grammy Awards The 50th Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, on February 10, 2008. It honored musical achievement of 2007 in which albums were released between October 1, 2006, through September 30, 2007. The primary ceremonies ...

, held in Los Angeles, with Josh Groban in a tribute to

, and sang " Dare to Live" with

the following day on '' The Tonight Show with Jay Leno''. In April, he toured in Asia with performances in Tokyo, Taichung, and Seoul. On 7 May 2008, he sang at Steel Aréna in

Košice Košice ( , ; german: Kaschau ; hu, Kassa ; pl, Коszyce) is the largest city in eastern Slovakia. It is situated on the river Hornád at the eastern reaches of the Slovak Ore Mountains, near the border with Hungary. With a population of app ...

, Slovakia, in front of 8,000 people. Then on 13 May he sang at the ''"Teatro delle Muse"'' in Ancona, Italy, for a charity concert for "Francesca Rava – N.P.H. Italia Onlus", a foundation that helps poor and disabled children around the world. On 23 May 2008, he sang ''The Prayer'' with Katharine McPhee in a Las Vegas tribute concert for Canadian producer and songwriter David Foster. Bocelli later praised Filipina teen-aged singer Charice, whom he first heard perform at that concert. On 2 June 2008, he performed at the Piazza del Duomo, Milan in front of 80,000 people during a concert celebrating the anniversary of the Republic of Italy's formation. From 17 to 28 June, Bocelli played the role of Don José on stage, opposite Hungarian

mezzo-soprano A mezzo-soprano or mezzo (; ; meaning "half soprano") is a type of classical female singing voice whose vocal range lies between the soprano and the contralto voice types. The mezzo-soprano's vocal range usually extends from the A below middle C ...

Ildikó Komlósi Ildikó Komlósi () (Békésszentandrás, 1959) is a Hungarian mezzo-soprano. Biography Komlósi studied music at the Franz Liszt Academy of Music of Budapest and attended specialising classes at the Academy of the Teatro alla Scala in Milan and ...

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the Carmen (novella), novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first perfo ...

, in

Georges Bizet Georges Bizet (; 25 October 18383 June 1875) was a French composer of the Romantic music, Romantic era. Best known for his operas in a career cut short by his early death, Bizet achieved few successes before his final work, ''Carmen'', whi ...

's opera at the Teatro dell'Opera di Roma, in Rome, for four nights. Bocelli released the complete opera recording of ''Carmen'' in Italy in the same year, which he recorded in 2005. Myung-whun Chung conducted the Orchestre Philharmonique de Radio France and the Chœur de Radio France for the recording, and Welsh

Bass-baritone A bass-baritone is a high-lying bass or low-lying "classical" baritone voice type which shares certain qualities with the true baritone voice. The term arose in the late 19th century to describe the particular type of voice required to sing thr ...

Bryn Terfel, was part of the Ensemble. The recording was not released internationally, until March 2010. '' Carmen: Duets & Arias'', a single-disc collection of some of the arias and duets of the recording, was also released in 2010.''Carmen: Duets & Arias'' on iclassics
/ref> On 20 July, Bocelli held his third concert at the Teatro del Silenzio in

, his hometown. The concert was a tribute to the

cinema of Italy The cinema of Italy (, ) comprises the films made within Italy or by Italian directors. Since its beginning, Italian cinema has influenced film movements worldwide. Italy is one of the birthplaces of art cinema and the stylistic aspect of film ...

. Its performers included Italian composer and musician

Nicola Piovani Nicola Piovani (born 26 May 1946) is an Italian light-classical musician, theater and film score composer, and winner of the 1998 Best Original Dramatic Score Oscar for the score of the Roberto Benigni film ''La Vita è bella'', better known to ...

, Italian ballet dancer Roberto Bolle, Israeli singer Noa, and Charice. Then on 31 July, he performed at a concert in

Vingis Park Vingis Park ( lt, Vingio parkas) is the largest park in Vilnius, Lithuania, covering . It is located in a curve of the Neris River, hence its Lithuanian name: 'vingis' means "bend", "curve"; the same meaning has the historical Polish name of the l ...

in Vilnius,

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

, in front of more than 18,000 people. Australian singer Tina Arena performed two duets with Bocelli – "Canto Della Terra" and " The Prayer" – at the closing stages of the concert. On 7 August 2008, he held a benefit concert at

Medjugorje Medjugorje ( sh-Latn-Cyrl, separator=" / ", Međugorje, Међугорје, ) is a town located in southwestern Bosnia and Herzegovina, about southwest of Mostar and east of the border with Croatia. The town is part of the Čitluk municipality ...

, Bosnia Herzegovina, and was accompanied by the Czech National Symphony Orchestra. Then, during the rest of August, he was on tour in Australia and New Zealand for the third time. Tina Arena performed with him in all 5 concerts during the tour. On 26 September 2008, during the 2008 Veneto Festival, he held a concert in the Church of the Eremitani in Padova, Italy. He was accompanied by the I Solisti Veneti orchestra, celebrating its 50th birthday and conducted by

Claudio Scimone Claudio Scimone (23 December 1934 – 6 September 2018) was an Italian conductor. He was born in Padua, Italy and studied conducting with Dmitri Mitropoulos and Franco Ferrara. He established an international reputation as a conductor, as well a ...

, and by the Wiener Singakademie choir. The concert was a celebration of Giacomo Puccini's 150th birthday. On 10 and 11 October he performed at

Petra Petra ( ar, ٱلْبَتْرَاء, Al-Batrāʾ; grc, Πέτρα, "Rock", Nabataean Aramaic, Nabataean: ), originally known to its inhabitants as Raqmu or Raqēmō, is an historic and archaeological city in southern Jordan. It is adjacent to t ...

, singing " Dare to Live" with

, as well as performing "E Lucevan le Stelle" from ''Tosca''. On 19 October, he sang "

'O surdato 'nnammurato ''O surdato 'nnammurato'' (; in English: "The Soldier in Love") is a famous song written in the Neapolitan language. The song is used as the anthem of S.S.C. Napoli. The words were written by Aniello Califano and the music composed by Enrico Cann ...

" and a duet of "Non Ti Scordar Di Me" with Cecilia Bartoli, both from the ''

Incanto ''Incanto'' is the twelfth studio album by Classical Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli, released on 4 November 2008 and coinciding with his 50th birthday. The album, a personal tribute to the musical traditions of his homeland, features mainly Neapoli ...

'' album, during the

ECHO Awards Echo Music Prize (stylised as ECHO, ) was an accolade by the , an association of recording companies of Germany to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry. The first ECHO Awards ceremony was held in 1992, and it was set up to hono ...

in Germany; and later presented the soprano with an ECHO award. On 24 October, he performed at '' Piazza del Plebiscito'' in Naples, as a tribute to the city, where he celebrated the Italian release of ''Incanto''. Performing with him were flautist Andrea Griminelli, Italian pop singer Massimo Ranieri and soprano Cecilia Bartoli, with

conducting the Czech National Symphony Orchestra. On 31 October, he performed a solo version of "The Prayer", as well as " Because", a song from ''Incanto'', live on The Oprah Winfrey Show. On 21 and 22 November Bocelli was amongst a quartet of soloists (soprano

Sabina Cvilak Sabina Cvilak (born 8 July 1977) is a Slovenian operatic soprano, who has appeared internationally, mostly at opera houses in Europe and the United States. Her stage presence is noted in portrayals of tragic female characters such as Puccini's Tu ...

Kate Aldrich Kate Aldrich (born October 31, 1973, Damariscotta, Maine) is an American mezzo-soprano. She has performed with the Metropolitan Opera, San Francisco Opera, Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, the Hamburg State Opera, Teatro Regio (Turin), Rossini Ope ...

and

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in the bass range: ** Bass (instrument), including: ** Acoustic bass gui ...

Alexander Vinogradov) to sing Rossini's '' Petite messe solennelle'', conducted by Plácido Domingo, at the Washington National Opera in Washington, D.C. Bocelli sang twice in the piece and later the two tenors sang "

The Pearl Fishers' Duet "" ("At the back of the holy temple") is a duet from Georges Bizet's 1863 opera '' Les pêcheurs de perles''. The libretto was written by Eugène Cormon and Michel Carré. Generally known as "The Pearl Fishers' Duet", it is one of the most popula ...

" which would be the first aria they had ever sung together. On 25 and 26 November he starred alongside soprano Verónica Villarroel in an opera in concert of Mascagni's Cavalleria rusticana at the ''"Municipal Auditorium"'' in San Antonio, Texas. He later held a concert at ''"Atrio de la Catedral"'' in

Campeche Campeche (; yua, Kaampech ), officially the Free and Sovereign State of Campeche ( es, Estado Libre y Soberano de Campeche), is one of the 31 states which make up the 32 Federal Entities of Mexico. Located in southeast Mexico, it is bordered by ...

, Mexico, on 28 November, where he sang songs from ''Incanto'' as well as some of his Spanish hits, including '' Bésame Mucho'', ''

Somos Novios "Somos Novios" (Spanish for "We Are Lovers") is a song first recorded by Mexican songwriter Armando Manzanero in 1968. Originally a French song " J'ai le mal de toi", different versions with unrelated lyrics in different languages have been writte ...

'', '' Amapola'' and ''

Por ti Volare Por or POR may refer to: Por *Por (Thai word) *Por, Armenia, a town * Por, a Spanish preposition * Por, a Portuguese preposition POR * POR (gene), cytochrome P450 reductase * Power-on reset * Program of Record (PoR), a term used in US governme ...

'' – the Spanish version of ''Con te Partiro''.

2009: ''My Christmas'', first holiday album

On 27 May 2009, Bocelli sang "Il Gladiatore", from the ''

Gladiator A gladiator ( la, gladiator, "swordsman", from , "sword") was an armed combatant who entertained audiences in the Roman Republic and Roman Empire in violent confrontations with other gladiators, wild animals, and condemned criminals. Some gla ...

'' soundtrack, followed by the

UEFA Champions League Anthem The UEFA Champions League Anthem, officially titled simply "Champions League", is the official anthem of the UEFA Champions League, written by English composer Tony Britten in 1992, and based on George Frideric Handel's ''Zadok the Priest''.

, which is based on G.F. Handel's " Zadok the Priest", during the opening ceremony of the

2009 UEFA Champions League Final The 2009 UEFA Champions League Final was played on 27 May 2009 at the Stadio Olimpico in Rome, Italy. The match determined the winners of the 2008–09 season of the UEFA Champions League, a tournament for the top football clubs in Europe. The m ...

, in the

Stadio Olimpico The Stadio Olimpico (English: ''Olympic Stadium'') is the largest sports facility in Rome, Italy, seating over 70,000 spectators. It is located within the Foro Italico sports complex, north of the city. The structure is owned by the Italian Na ...

, in Rome. On 3 November, '' My Christmas'', his first

Holiday album Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music regularly performed or heard around the Christmas season. Music associated with Christmas may be purely instrumental, or, in the case of carols or songs, may employ lyrics whose subject ma ...

, produced by David Foster, was released and went on to become the best-selling Holiday album of the year. The '' Andrea Bocelli & David Foster Christmas Special'', the PBS special of the album, first aired on Thanksgiving night in the United States, and continued to be broadcast in the United States and Canada throughout the month of December. In late November, the program was broadcast in Mexico and in the UK; it later aired, 15 and 25 December, on Italia 1, in Italy, 19 December, on

TVE2 La 2 (, ''The Two'') is a Spanish free-to-air television channel owned and operated by Televisión Española (TVE), the television division of state-owned public broadcaster RTVE, Radiotelevisión Española (RTVE). It is the corporation's secon ...

and TROS, in Spain and the Netherlands, and Christmas Eve, on vtm and RTL-TVI, in Belgium and Luxembourg. Andrea Bocelli with piano @ Premio Faraglioni 2009

Andrea Bocelli with piano @ Premio Faraglioni 2009

On 3 November, during the World Premiere of Disney's ''

A Christmas Carol ''A Christmas Carol. In Prose. Being a Ghost Story of Christmas'', commonly known as ''A Christmas Carol'', is a novella by Charles Dickens, first published in London by Chapman & Hall in 1843 and illustrated by John Leech. ''A Christmas C ...

'', in

Leicester Square Leicester Square ( ) is a pedestrianised square in the West End of London, England. It was laid out in 1670 as Leicester Fields, which was named after the recently built Leicester House, itself named after Robert Sidney, 2nd Earl of Leicester ...

, London, following the switching on of the annual Oxford Street and

Regent Street Regent Street is a major shopping street in the West End of London. It is named after George, the Prince Regent (later George IV) and was laid out under the direction of the architect John Nash and James Burton. It runs from Waterloo Place ...

Christmas lights, Bocelli led the

St Paul's Cathedral St Paul's Cathedral is an Anglican cathedral in London and is the seat of the Bishop of London. The cathedral serves as the mother church of the Diocese of London. It is on Ludgate Hill at the highest point of the City of London and is a Grad ...

Choir, and more than 14,000 people across the capital, as they broke the Official

Guinness World Record ''Guinness World Records'', known from its inception in 1955 until 1999 as ''The Guinness Book of Records'' and in previous United States editions as ''The Guinness Book of World Records'', is a reference book published annually, listing world ...

for the biggest ever Christmas carol

sing-along Sing-along, also called community singing or group singing, is an event of singing together at gatherings or parties, less formally than choir singing. One can use a songbook. Common genres are folk songs, patriotic songs, kids' songs, spirituals ...

, singing " Silent Night". He completed his performance in Leicester Square with, "God Bless Us Everyone", the closing song of the movie, which he provided the vocals for in English, Italian and Spanish. He returned to the United Kingdom, 16 December, for an appearance on '' The One Show'', broadcast live by BBC One, and on '' The Alan Titchmarsh Show'' which aired 18 December, on ITV1. On 21 November, a segment of ''Leute Heute'', a German tabloid-program on

ZDF ZDF (, short for Zweites Deutsches Fernsehen; ; "Second German Television") is a German public-service television broadcaster based in Mainz, Rhineland-Palatinate. It is run as an independent nonprofit institution, which was founded by all fe ...

, was about ''My Christmas'' and Bocelli's meeting in Rome with Pope Benedict XVI and 250 other artists, an event which was broadcast live earlier that day in Italy, by Rai Uno. Bocelli was also joined by the

Piccolo Coro dell'Antoniano The Piccolo Coro "Mariele Ventre" dell'Antoniano, until 1995 simply Piccolo Coro dell'Antoniano ( en, "Little Choir of Antoniano"), is an Italian children's choir from Bologna. History The choir was created by Mariele Ventre in 1963 at the Anto ...

, in his home in Forte dei Marmi, where they sang "Caro Gesù Bambino", a song from ''My Christmas'' which was originally recorded by the choir in 1960. Rai Uno also broadcast the performance later that day, during the Zecchino d'Oro Festival. The following day, Bocelli was among Fabio Fazio's guests, on his popular Italian talk-show, Che tempo che fa, broadcast on

Rai Tre Rai 3 (formerly Rete 3) is an Italian free-to-air television channel owned and operated by state-owned public broadcaster RAI – Radiotelevisione italiana. It was launched on 15 December 1979 and its programming is centred towards cultural and ...

. During the program Bocelli talked about his album and performed "

The Lord's Prayer The Lord's Prayer, also called the Our Father or Pater Noster, is a central Christian prayer which Jesus taught as the way to pray. Two versions of this prayer are recorded in the gospels: a longer form within the Sermon on the Mount in the Gosp ...

", "

White Christmas White Christmas most commonly refers to: * White Christmas (weather), snowfall or snow-covered ground on Christmas Day * "White Christmas" (song), a 1942 song written by Irving Berlin White Christmas may also refer to: Film, television, and the ...

", and " Silent Night". It was also announced that Bocelli would return to the show on 20 December and give a live concert of ''My Christmas''. Bocelli also took part in the annual 2009 ''José Carreras Gala'', on 17 December, where he sang Adeste Fideles, before singing "White Christmas" with

for the very first time; this was broadcast live, by

Das Erste Das Erste (; "The First") is the flagship national television channel of the ARD association of public broadcasting corporations in Germany. ''Das Erste'' is jointly operated by the nine regional public broadcasting corporations that are member ...

, in Germany. He then returning to Italy, for a concert in the Upper Basilica of San Francesco d'Assisi, on 19 December, which was broadcast directly after the '' Urbi et Orbi'' blessing of Pope Benedict XVI, 25 December, on Rai Uno. In North America, Bocelli gave 6 concerts. On 28 November, he performed in the BankAtlantic Center, in

Ft. Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale () is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and largest city in Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the 2020 census, making it the tenth ...

. He later performed in the Air Canada Centre, in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, in the

Izod Center Meadowlands Arena (formerly Brendan Byrne Arena, Continental Airlines Arena and Izod Center) is a closed indoor arena facility located in the Meadowlands Sports Complex in East Rutherford, New Jersey, United States. The arena is located on N ...

, in

East Rutherford, New Jersey East Rutherford is a borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the borough's population was 10,022, reflecting an increase of 1,109 (+12.4%) from the 8,913 counted in the 2010 census.

, in the William Saroyan Theatre, in Fresno, California (changed from the much larger

Save Mart Center Save Mart Center at Fresno State is a multi-purpose arena, on the campus of California State University, Fresno (Fresno State), located in Fresno, California. An open house was held for the community on November 5, 2003, with the official ribbon ...

due to scheduling conflicts), in the MGM Grand, in Las Vegas, and finally in the Honda Center, in Anaheim, California, on 3, 5, 8, 12 and 13 December. His last three arena concerts alone grossed a total of over 5,6 million dollars, placing him third on Billboard Magazine's week's Hot Tours ranking, behind the Trans-Siberian Orchestra and Il Divo, who both held over 5 times more concerts worldwide, compared to Bocelli's three in the United States, explaining their better showings. In the United States, Bocelli made a number of high-profile TV appearances. He first performed "White Christmas" at the 83rd annual Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, broadcast live on NBC, 26 November. He performed the song again on 30 November during '' The Today Show'' also live. His appearance on '' The Oprah Winfrey Show'' during her ''Holiday Music Extravaganza'', where he sang " What Child Is This", with

Mary J. Blige Mary Jane Blige ( ; born January 11, 1971) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Often referred to as the " Queen of Hip-Hop Soul" and " Queen of R&B", Blige has won nine Grammy Awards, a Primetime Emmy Award, four American Music Award ...

, and later closed the show with Adeste Fideles, was also aired the same day, and was later rebroadcast on 23 December. Bocelli also sang "Adeste Fideles" and was interviewed by

Barbara Walters Barbara Jill Walters (born September 25, 1929) is an American broadcast journalist and television personality. Known for her interviewing ability and popularity with viewers, Walters appeared as a host of numerous television programs, including ...

and

Joy Behar Josephine Victoria "Joy" Behar (; née Occhiuto) is an American comedian, television host, actress, and writer. She co-hosts the ABC daytime talk show '' The View'', where she is the only original panelist still regularly appearing. She hosted ...

on '' The View'', which aired 2 December, on

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script known as the alphabet. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Broadcasting * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial U.S. TV broadcaster ** Disney–ABC Television ...

. On 8 December, he performed " Jingle Bells" with The Muppets on '' The Jay Leno Show''. He also performed a number of songs from the album, including " The Christmas Song" with Natalie Cole, during a dinner at David Foster's

mansion A mansion is a large dwelling house. The word itself derives through Old French from the Latin word ''mansio'' "dwelling", an abstract noun derived from the verb ''manere'' "to dwell". The English word '' manse'' originally defined a property l ...

in Malibu, which was featured on ''

The Dr. Phil Show ''Dr. Phil'' is an American talk show created by Oprah Winfrey and the host Phil McGraw. After McGraw's segments on ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', ''Dr. Phil'' debuted on September 16, 2002. On both shows, McGraw offers advice in the form of "life ...

'', on 10 December. Bocelli also performed "White Christmas" and " Silent Night", on the '' Larry King Live'' and '' Fox & Friends'' holiday-specials, broadcast 23 December, on CNN, and 19, 24 and 25 December, on Fox News. In Brasil, following the success of the South American leg of the ''Incanto tour'', where over 100,000 people attended his free concert at the São Paulo's "Parque Indipendencia", earlier in the year, it was announced that Bocelli would hold another Open-Air, entrance free, concert in

Florianópolis Florianópolis () is the capital and second largest city of the state of Santa Catarina, in the South region of Brazil. The city encompasses Santa Catarina Island and surrounding small islands, as well as part of the mainland. It has a populat ...

, 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 canceled on short notice, along with all the other events scheduled for Christmas in the city.

2010: Hollywood Walk of Fame and FIFA World Cup

On 31 January 2010, during the

52nd Grammy Awards The 52nd Annual Grammy Awards took place on January 31, 2010, at Staples Center in Los Angeles honoring the best in music for the recording year beginning October 1, 2008 through September 30, 2009. Neil Young was honored as the 2010 MusiCares Pe ...

, Bocelli,

and David Foster joined forces again, singing " Bridge over Troubled Water" as a tribute to the victims of that year's earthquake in Haiti. On 2 March, he was honoured with a star on the

for his contribution to Live Theater, at 7000 Hollywood Boulevard, in front of the Roosevelt Hotel. The previous day, Bocelli, along with David Foster, were honored by ''L.A. Italia Film, Fashion and Art Fest'' during a ceremony at the

Grauman's Chinese Theatre Grauman's Chinese Theatre (branded as TCL Chinese Theatre for naming rights reasons) is a movie palace on the historic Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6925 Hollywood Boulevard in Hollywood, Los Angeles, California, United States. The original Chines ...

, in Hollywood, where ''The Story Behind The Voice'', a documentary about Bocelli's life and career was shown. DavidFosterMar10

On 12 March, Bocelli made an appearance on

Skavlan ''Skavlan'' was a Norwegian-Swedish television talk show hosted by Norwegian journalist Fredrik Skavlan. It premiered in Sweden on Sveriges Television (SVT) in January 2009, and the first guests to appear on the show were former Prime Minister o ...

, in Oslo, Norway, to promote his upcoming Scandinavian tour, giving a rare interview to the show's host

Fredrik Skavlan Fredrik Skavlan (born 2 September 1966) is a Norwegian TV host, journalist, and cartoonist. He hosted the talk show ''Først & sist'' from 1998 to 2007, for which he won the 1999 Norwegian Television Award for best host as well as the talk show ...

, and later performing "Voglio Vivere Cosi", from his 2008 album ''Incanto'', with Norwegian Boys' choir,

Sølvguttene Sølvguttene ("The Silver Boys") is a boys' choir founded by Torstein Grythe in June, 1940. He held the position as conductor until 2004, when Fredrik Otterstad took over.Eldri Espedal StorhaugSølvguttene kom med julefredAftenbladet, December 1 ...

. In April, he returned to Scandinavia for a concert in

Telenor Arena Telenor Arena, sometimes referred to as Fornebu Arena, is a multi-purpose indoor arena located at Fornebu in Bærum, outside Oslo, Norway. It serves as a venue for a variety of events, including concerts, exhibitions, action shows, family shows ...

in Bærum, Norway, on 8 April, a concert in

Forum Copenhagen Forum Copenhagen ( da, Forum København, italic=no) is a large multi-purpose, rentable indoor arena located in Frederiksberg, Denmark. It hosts a large variety of concerts, markets, exhibitions and other events. The venue can hold up to 10,000 p ...

in Copenhagen, Denmark, on 9 April, and finally a concert in the

Ericsson Globe Avicii Arena, originally known as Stockholm Globe Arena and previously as Ericsson Globe, but commonly referred to in Swedish simply as Globen (; "the Globe"), is an indoor arena located in Stockholm Globe City, Johanneshov district of Stockho ...

, in Stockholm, Sweden, on 11 April. He was joined by

and 120 musicians from the Stockholm Concert Orchestra, in all three concerts, and by Swedish

Malena Ernman in his Swedish concert. On 30 April, Bocelli sang "Nessun dorma" during the opening ceremony of the Expo 2010, in Shanghai, China. The following day, on 1 May, he held a concert, titled ''Charming China'', at Shanghai Stadium. The concert was later broadcast by Shanghai TV, and by

CCTV Channels Broadcast since 1 May 1958, China Central Television (CCTV) has 17 channels plus an additional five channels in different languages broadcast from China and across the globe. All CCTV channels are broadcast around the world through satellite broad ...

throughout mainland China. The two appearances coincided with Bocelli's Asian tour, consisting of a concert in

Budokan The , often shortened to simply Budokan, is an indoor arena located in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. It was originally built for the inaugural Olympic judo competition in the 1964 Summer Olympics. While its primary purpose is to host martial arts ...

, Tokyo, Japan, on 28 April, a concert in Jamsil Gymnasium, Seoul, South Korea, on 2 May, a concert in Hong Kong Convention and Exhibition Centre, in Hong Kong, on 4 May, a concert in Taipei Arena, Taipei, Taiwan, on 6 May, and finally a free concert, organized by the YTL Corporation, at the Singapore Botanic Gardens, in Singapore, on 8 May, attended by over 12,000 people, picked via public ballot. The concert was later broadcast, in its entirety, by Channel NewsAsia, on 28 and 29 May, and by Okto, on 30 May, in Singapore. An orchid in the Botanic Gardens'

National Orchid Garden The National Orchid Garden, located within the Singapore Botanic Gardens, was opened on 20 October 1995 by Senior Minister Lee Kuan Yew. The National Orchid Garden is located in the Central Core of the gardens. See also *Singapore Botanic Garde ...

was also named after Bocelli in response to the concert. Australian pop singer

Delta Goodrem Delta Lea Goodrem AM (born November 9, 1984) is an Australian singer, songwriter, and actress. Goodrem signed to Sony Music at the age of 15. Her debut album, '' Innocent Eyes'' (2003), topped the ARIA Albums Chart for 29 non-consecutive week ...

performed again with Bocelli in all five concerts, after supporting him in his United States My Christmas 2009 winter tour. On 18 May, during the

2010 World Music Awards The 2010 (21st annual) World Music Awards took place in Monte Carlo, Monaco and it was hosted by Michelle Rodriguez and Hayden Panettiere on May 18, 2010. This award ceremony returned after a one-year break, in the same spiritual home of Monte Carl ...

, Bocelli performed "Un Amore Cosi Grande" from his 2008 album, ''Incanto'', and received his seventh World Music Award, for "Best Classical Artist". On 5 July, Bocelli gave a concert at the opening of the

Khan Shatyr Entertainment Center Khan Shatyr ( kk, Хан Шатыр, Han Şatyr, Royal Marquee) is a transparent tent located in Astana, the capital city of Kazakhstan. Built in a neo-futurism, neo-futurist style, the architectural project was unveiled by the first President of ...

, in Astana, on the occasion of Kazakhstan's president Nursultan Nazarbayev's 70th birthday. On 9 July, Bocelli headlined the "Celebrate Africa: The Grand Finale" Concert at the

Coca-Cola Dome The WeBuyCars Dome, previously known as the Ticketpro Dome is an indoor arena and car showroom located in Johannesburg, South Africa. The showroom accommodates over 1,000 vehicles and covers about 11,000 square metres. The Dome opened on 8 April ...

, in Johannesburg, South Africa, to mark the end of the World Cup, two days before the final. On 13 July, Montenegrin Statehood Day, Bocelli gave a concert at the seaside resort of Sveti Stefan, in western Montenegro, to mark the

Golden Jubilee A golden jubilee marks a 50th anniversary. It variously is applied to people, events, and nations. Bangladesh In Bangladesh, golden jubilee refers the 50th anniversary year of the separation from Pakistan and is called in Bengali ''"সু ...

of the Sveti Stefan Hotel.The anniversary of the Sveti Stefan Hotel marked by a concert by Andrea Bocelli
20 July 2010 article. On 14 July, Bocelli gave a concert at the European Parliament's Espace Léopold, in Brussels, Belgium, during "Rome in the heart of the future", an event hosted by the Vice President of the European Parliament for the seventh parliament,

MEP MEP may refer to: Organisations and politics * Mahajana Eksath Peramuna, a political party in Sri Lanka * Mahajana Eksath Peramuna (1956), a former political alliance in Sri Lanka * Maison européenne de la photographie, a photography centre ...

Roberta Angelilli Roberta Angelilli (born 1 February 1965 in Rome) is an Italian politician. She has been a Member of the European Parliament from 1994 to 2014. She served also as Vice President of the European Parliament from 1 July 2009 to 1 July 2014. In 2 ...

.Rome in the heart of the future: Invitation by Vice-President of the European Parliament, Roberta Angelilli MEP
, EPP Group, 13 July 2010 article. A screening of the film ''Homage to Rome'', directed by Franco Zeffirelli, who was present during the event, and starring Bocelli, in his

cinematographic Cinematography (from ancient Greek κίνημα, ''kìnema'' "movement" and γράφειν, ''gràphein'' "to write") is the art of motion picture (and more recently, electronic video camera) photography. Cinematographers use a lens to focus ...

debut, was shown prior to the special concert. On 25 July, Bocelli held the fifth and final edition of the

, in his hometown of

, Tuscany. Bocelli's guests included Spanish

Catalan Catalan may refer to: Catalonia From, or related to Catalonia: * Catalan language, a Romance language * Catalans, an ethnic group formed by the people from, or with origins in, Northern or southern Catalonia Places * 13178 Catalan, asteroid #1 ...

tenor

, and Italian rock singer

. Sculptures by Swiss artist

Kurt Laurenz Metzler Kurt Laurenz Metzler (born 26 January 1941), Signature "KLM", is a Swiss people, Swiss sculptor. His artworks adorned many Swiss cities, mostly in public places. Life Metzler was born 1941 in Balgach, St. Gallen. In School, Metzler already wa ...

, who attended the concert, were exhibited during this year's edition. Bocelli was also awarded the ''Pisano Doc'', during the dress rehearsal for the concert, on 24 July, and received the 2010 ''Premio 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 the

Odeon of Herodes Atticus The Odeon of Herodes Atticus (Greek: Ωδείο Ηρώδου του Αττικού; also called Herodeion or Herodion; Greek: Ηρώδειο) is a stone Roman theatre structure located on the southwest slope of the Acropolis of Athens, Greece. Th ...

, in Athens, Greece. All proceeds were donated to help cure cancer. Bocelli also gave concerts in Cairo, Egypt, in front of the pyramids and the

Great Sphinx of Giza The Great Sphinx of Giza is a limestone statue of a reclining sphinx, a mythical creature with the head of a human, and the body of a lion. Facing directly from west to east, it stands on the Giza Plateau on the west bank of the Nile in Giza, E ...

, as well as a fundraising concert inside the Duomo di Milano to benefit victims of the

2010 Haiti earthquake A disaster, catastrophic Moment magnitude scale, magnitude 7.0 Mw earthquake struck Haiti at 16:53 local time (21:53 UTC) on Tuesday, 12 January 2010. The epicenter was near the town of Léogâne, Ouest (department), Ouest department, a ...

. As part of the 2010 leg of the

My Christmas Tour ''My Christmas'' is the thirteenth studio album and first Christmas music, Christmas album released by Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. The album is a compilation of Christmas and holiday season, seasonal holiday favorites, mainly in English, with ...

, Bocelli gave two concerts in The O2 Arena, in London, and the Manchester Arena, in Manchester, and a concert at The O2, in Dublin, in late November 2010. His sold-out concert at the O2 in London, was the most attended show in the venue's history, with 16,500 people attending the event. In early December, Bocelli gave 6 concerts in the United States. He performed in

Madison Square Garden Madison Square Garden, colloquially known as The Garden or by its initials MSG, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in New York City. It is located in Midtown Manhattan between Seventh and Eighth avenues from 31st to 33rd Street, above Pennsylva ...

, in New York City, Prudential Center, in Newark, New Jersey, TD Garden, in Boston, Toyota Center, in Houston,

Staples Center Crypto.com Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Downtown Los Angeles. Adjacent to the L.A. Live development, it is located next to the Los Angeles Convention Center complex along Figueroa Street. The arena opened on October 17, 1999; it was ...

, in Los Angeles, and the MGM Grand's Garden Arena, in the Las Vegas Strip. Bocelli also took part in the Christmas in Washington special on 12 December. On 19 December, Bocelli gave a concert, conducted by

, in the

2011: Metropolitan Opera recital, and Central Park Concert

In January, Bocelli gave three concerts in Germany. The concerts in Munich, Berlin, and Hamburg were all part of the Notte Illuminata Tour, launched in

, at the Teatro Verdi, December 2010. In February, Bocelli performed a recital on the stage of the Metropolitan Opera house as part of the tour. In late March, early April, as part of the 2011 Latin Leg of his Incanto Tour, Bocelli gave concerts in Buenos Aires,

Bogotá Bogotá (, also , , ), officially Bogotá, Distrito Capital, abbreviated Bogotá, D.C., and formerly known as Santa Fe de Bogotá (; ) during the Spanish period and between 1991 and 2000, is the capital city of Colombia, and one of the larges ...

, and Panama City. In May 2011, Bocelli held 5 concerts in East and Southeast Asia, and was joined by New Zealand soprano

during the tour. He first gave a concert in

Jakarta Jakarta (; , bew, Jakarte), officially the Special Capital Region of Jakarta ( id, Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta) is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Lying on the northwest coast of Java, the world's most populous island, Jakarta ...

, Indonesia. Bocelli held two other concerts in Taipei, and two concerts in Beijing. In June and July, Bocelli gave two

open-air concert A music festival is a community event with performances of singing and instrument playing that is often presented with a theme such as musical genre (e.g., rock, blues, folk, jazz, classical music), nationality, locality of musicians, or ho ...

s at historic sites, the first at Masada, in Israel, with all proceeds dedicated to support the residents of the Israeli regions of

Galilee Galilee (; he, הַגָּלִיל, hagGālīl; ar, الجليل, al-jalīl) is a region located in northern Israel and southern Lebanon. Galilee traditionally refers to the mountainous part, divided into Upper Galilee (, ; , ) and Lower Galil ...

and Negev, and the second at

Syracuse Syracuse may refer to: Places Italy *Syracuse, Sicily, or spelled as ''Siracusa'' *Province of Syracuse United States *Syracuse, New York **East Syracuse, New York **North Syracuse, New York *Syracuse, Indiana * Syracuse, Kansas *Syracuse, Miss ...

's ancient Greek theatre, in Sicily, with all proceeds donated to the ''Fiamme di Solidarietà'' (Flames of Solidarity) organization, to raise awareness of issues concerning the poorest and most marginalized in Italy. Bocelli gave a free concert on 15 September, on the

Great Lawn The Great Lawn and Turtle Pond are two connected features of Central Park in Manhattan, New York City, United States. The lawn and pond are located on the site of a former reservoir for the Croton Aqueduct system which was infilled during the ...

of Central Park in New York City. He was accompanied by the New York Philharmonic, conducted by its music director Alan Gilbert, and the Westminster Symphonic Choir. The concert was broadcast throughout the United States and Canada, by PBS, and in Italy, by Rai 1. '' Concerto: One Night in Central Park'', the

live album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

and the DVD were released 15 November. On 25 September, Bocelli led ''

Songs of Praise ''Songs of Praise'' is a BBC Television religious programme that presents Christian hymns sung in churches of varying denominations from around the UK. The series was first broadcast in October 1961. On that occasion, the venue was the Ta ...

'' 50th anniversary celebration, alongside

LeAnn Rimes Margaret LeAnn Rimes Cibrian (born August 28, 1982) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. She originally rose to success as a country music artist at age 13 with 1996's "Blue". She has since crossed over into pop, contemporary Chris ...

and

Katherine Jenkins Katherine Maria Jenkins (born 29 June 1980) is a Welsh singer. She is a mezzo-soprano and performs operatic arias, popular songs, musical theatre, and hymns.Pope Benedict XVI and a crowd of 8,000 people in Vatican's Audience Hall. On 7 November, he gave an open-air free concert at Praça Rui Barbosa in

Belo Horizonte Belo Horizonte (, ; ) is the sixth-largest city in Brazil, with a population around 2.7 million and with a metropolitan area of 6 million people. It is the 13th-largest city in South America and the 18th-largest in the Americas. The metropol ...

, Brazil, to an audience of between 80,000 and 150,000 people. 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.

2012–2014: ''Roméo et Juliette'' and ''Passione''

Song Bocelli Lang East Meets West (cropped)

Bocelli played the role of Romeo in Charles Gounod's opera '' Roméo et Juliette'', at the Teatro Carlo Felice, for two performances in February 2012. He cancelled a third performance because of pharyngitis after having vocal strain throughout. On 22 April, Bocelli gave an open-air concert at Yerevan's Liberty Square, in Armenia, dedicated to the proclamation of Yerevan as the 2012 World Book Capital; he was accompanied by the

Armenian Philharmonic Orchestra The Armenian National Philharmonic Orchestra (''ANPO'') (Armenian: Հայաստանի ազգային ֆիլհարմոնիկ նվագախումբ) is the national orchestra of Armenia. It was founded in 1925 as a symphony orchestra of the Yerevan S ...

conducted by Marcello Rota. On 19 November, he performed for

and Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, at the

, during the 100th anniversary of the

. A new studio album entitled '' Passione'', featuring duets with

Jennifer Lopez Jennifer Lynn Affleck (' Lopez; born July 24, 1969), also known as J.Lo, is an American singer, actress and dancer. In 1991, she began appearing as a Fly Girl dancer on the sketch comedy television series ''In Living Color'', where she rema ...

and Nelly Furtado, was released on 29 January 2013. On 7 February, Bocelli was an honorary guest at the 61st Annual National Prayer Breakfast, held at the Washington Hilton, where he performed " Ombra mai fu" and Franz Schubert's " Ave Maria" in the presence of President Barack Obama, First Lady

Michelle Obama Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama (born January 17, 1964) is an American attorney and author who served as first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017. She was the first African-American woman to serve in this position. She is married t ...

, Vice President Joe Biden, as well as other political leaders. On 20 February, he performed at the concert in Moscow

Kremlin The Kremlin ( rus, Московский Кремль, r=Moskovskiy Kreml', p=ˈmɐˈskofskʲɪj krʲemlʲ, t=Moscow Kremlin) is a fortified complex in the center of Moscow founded by the Rurik dynasty, Rurik dynasty. It is the best known of th ...

dedicated to 20th anniversary of

Gazprom PJSC Gazprom ( rus, Газпром, , ɡɐzˈprom) is a Russian majority state-owned multinational energy corporation headquartered in the Lakhta Center in Saint Petersburg. As of 2019, with sales over $120 billion, it was ranked as the larges ...

. On 1 June, Bocelli performed with Plácido Domingo at the Arena di Verona, celebrating the 100th anniversary of the opera festival.

2015–present: ''Cinema'', collaborations, and ''Sì''

Bocelli released his fifteenth

studio album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

'' Cinema'' on 23 October 2015. It contains renditions of classic film soundtracks and scores, featuring duets with

Ariana Grande Ariana Grande-Butera ( ; born June 26, 1993) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Her four-octave vocal range has received critical acclaim, and her personal life has been the subject of widespread media attention. She has received ...

, Nicole Scherzinger and his wife Veronica Berti. The album received a nomination for

Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album The Grammy Award for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album is an award presented to recording artists at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards. Honors in several categories are presented ...

at the

59th Annual Grammy Awards The 59th Annual Grammy Awards ceremony was held on February 12, 2017. The CBS network broadcast the show live from the Staples Center in Los Angeles. The ceremony recognized the best recordings, compositions, and artists of the eligibility year, ...

; the Spanish-language version was nominated for

Album of the Year Album of the Year, often abbreviated to AOTY, may refer to: Awards * ARIA Award for Album of the Year, Australia * Brit Award for British Album of the Year, UK * Grammy Award for Album of the Year, US * Juno Award for Album of the Year, CA * Lati ...

at the

17th Annual Latin Grammy Awards The 17th Annual Latin Grammy Awards were held on November 17, 2016 at the T-Mobile Arena in Paradise, Nevada. The nominations were announced on September 21, 2016. Julio Reyes Copello, Djavan, Fonseca, Jesse & Joy, and Ricardo López Lalinde l ...

. On 7 May 2016, Bocelli performed at the King Power Stadium before Leicester City's final match of the

2015–16 Premier League The 2015–16 Premier League (known as the Barclays Premier League for sponsorship reasons) was the 24th season of the Premier League, the top English professional league for association football clubs, since its establishment in 1992, and the ...

against Everton, as part of the club's title celebrations. On 15 December 2017, Ed Sheeran released a collaboration with Bocelli titled "

Perfect Symphony "Perfect" is a song by English singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran from his third studio album, ''÷ (album), ÷'' (2017). After the album's release, it charted at number four on the UK Singles Chart. On 21 August 2017, ''Billboard'' announced that "Pe ...

". The song is a duet version of Sheeran's song "

Perfect Perfect commonly refers to: * Perfection, completeness, excellence * Perfect (grammar), a grammatical category in some languages Perfect may also refer to: Film * Perfect (1985 film), ''Perfect'' (1985 film), a romantic drama * Perfect (2018 f ...

", with many of the original English lyrics sung in Italian. In June 2018, Bocelli released the single "If Only", his first after fourteen years. On 20 September 2018, Bocelli released the single "Fall On Me" which features vocals from his son Matteo. The two performed the song on 22 October episode of ''

Dancing With the Stars ''Dancing with the Stars'' is the name of various international television series based on the format of the British TV series '' Strictly Come Dancing'', which is distributed by BBC Studios, the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the forma ...

''. An English version of the song was released in October and was featured in the Walt Disney Pictures film ''

The Nutcracker and the Four Realms ''The Nutcracker and the Four Realms'' is a 2018 American fantasy adventure film directed by Lasse Hallström and Joe Johnston based on a screenplay by Ashleigh Powell. It is a retelling of E. T. A. Hoffmann's 1816 short story "The Nutcracker and t ...

'' as the end credit song. Both songs appear on Bocelli's album '' Sì'', released on 26 October 2018. Concierto Andrea Bocelli (48720880911)

On 12 October 2018, at the request of his close friend Sarah, Duchess of York, Bocelli performed two songs at the royal wedding of her daughter Princess Eugenie, the Bach/ Gounod '' Ave Maria'', and ''

Panis angelicus (Latin for "Bread of Angels" or "Angelic Bread") is the penultimate stanza of the hymn "" written by Saint Thomas Aquinas for the feast of Corpus Christi as part of a complete liturgy of the feast, including prayers for the Mass and the Liturgy of ...

'' by César Franck. On 1 February 2019, Bocelli performed a sold-out concert in 'Winter at Tantora' festival running at

Al-'Ula Al-'Ula ( ar, ٱلْعُلَا '), is a city of the Medina Region in north-western Saudi Arabia. Historically located on the incense route, the city lies within the Governorate of 'Ula ( ar, مُحَافَظَة ٱلْعُلَا, Muḥāfathat A ...

for the first time in Saudi Arabia. On 3 July 2019 Bocelli performed at the opening ceremony of the

2019 Summer Universiade ) , Nations participating = 118 , Athletes participating = 5,971 , Events = 220 , Sports = 18 , Opening ceremony = 3 July , Closing ceremony = 14 July , Officially opened by = President Se ...

in Naples with three songs includes "Fall On Me" with his son Matteo. On 12 April 2020, during the national COVID-19 lockdowns in Italy, Bocelli performed an Easter Sunday concert from an empty

Milan Cathedral Milan Cathedral ( it, Duomo di Milano ; lmo, Domm de Milan ), or Metropolitan Cathedral-Basilica of the Nativity of Saint Mary ( it, Basilica cattedrale metropolitana di Santa Maria Nascente, links=no), is the cathedral church of Milan, Lombard ...

, accompanied by cathedral organist Emanuele Vianelli. The performance, titled "Music For Hope - Live From Duomo di Milano", was streamed live over YouTube, where it continues to be available for replay. About 5 million people tuned in for the livestream performance and, by 13 April 2020, over 32 million views were logged on the archived video. On 13 September 2020, Bocelli performed the

Italian National Anthem "" (; "The Song of the Italians") is a canto written by Goffredo Mameli set to music by Michele Novaro in 1847, and is the current national anthem of Italy. It is best known among Italians as the "" (, "Mameli's Hymn"), after the author of the ...

at the

2020 Tuscan Grand Prix The 2020 Tuscan Grand Prix (officially known as the Formula 1 Pirelli Gran Premio della Toscana Ferrari 1000 2020) was a Formula One motor race held on 13 September 2020 at the Autodromo Internazionale del Mugello in Scarperia e San Piero, Tusca ...

. November 2020, Bocelli released an album,

Believe Believe may refer to: *Belief, a psychological state in which an individual holds a proposition or premise to be true, with or without proof for such proposition *Faith, a belief in something which has not been proven Arts, entertainment, and me ...

. It was in response to the COVID-19 pandemic and featured recent pandemic related songs. He performed Puccini's "Nessun Dorma" during the Opening Ceremony of the

2020 UEFA European Football Championship The 2020 UEFA European Football Championship, commonly referred to as UEFA Euro 2020 (stylised as UEFA EURO 2020) or simply Euro 2020, was the 16th UEFA European Championship, the quadrennial international men's football championship of Europe ...

held in Rome, Italy on 11 June 2021. On 5 June 2022 Bocelli performed Puccini's "Nessun Dorma" during the BBC’s

Platinum Party at the Palace The Platinum Party at the Palace was a British music concert, held outside Buckingham Palace on The Mall in London on 4 June 2022, in celebration of the Platinum Jubilee of Queen Elizabeth II. The concert began at 20:00 ( BST). Comedian Lee M ...

one of the celebrations of the Platinum Jubilee of Elizabeth II. On 21 October 2022, Bocelli released his first collaboration album with his son and daughter, Matteo and Virginia, entitled A Family Christmas.

Voice

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 performances have routinely been the subject of negative reviews by critics. Italian spinto tenor

praised Bocelli's voice after hearing it for the first time during a master class in 1986, in Turin, and he later gave Bocelli private lessons.Andrea Bocelli: 'Some voices have tears inside'
, The Daily Telegraph, 4 October 2007 article.Interview: Andrea Bocelli, opera singer
, The Scotsman, 27 October 2009 article. Puerto Rican soprano

, 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."Andrea Bocelli's ''Cieli di Toscana'' review
, ''bluecoupe.com'', 2001 article. Celine Dion said while introducing him during her Christmas Special for ''

'', in 1998, that "if God would have a singing voice, he must sound a lot like Andrea Bocelli," and David Foster, a producer of the album, often describes Bocelli's voice as the most beautiful in the world. Similarly, jazz singer

Al Jarreau Alwin Lopez Jarreau (March 12, 1940 – February 12, 2017) was an American singer and musician. His 1981 album '' Breakin' Away'' spent two years on the ''Billboard'' 200 and is considered one of the finest examples of the Los Angeles pop and R ...

, 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,"Blind Ambition
People Magazine 10 November 1997 issue. and American talk show host

Oprah Winfrey Oprah Gail Winfrey (; born Orpah Gail Winfrey; January 29, 1954), or simply Oprah, is an American talk show host, television producer, actress, author, and philanthropist. She is best known for her talk show, ''The Oprah Winfrey Show'', br ...

commented on her talk show that, "when I hear Andrea sing, I burst into tears." After attending Bocelli's concert at the

in 2009, British-American actress

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." Taylor had been a passionate fan of Bocelli's since the beginning of his music career in the mid-1990s. Other fans include

Albert II, Prince of Monaco Albert II – Website of the Palace of Monaco (Albert Alexandre Louis Pierre Grimaldi; born 14 March 1958) is Prince of Monaco, since 2005. Albert was born at the Prince's Palace of Monaco, and he is the second child and only son of Prince Rai ...

, who invited the tenor to sing at his wedding, as well as Sarah, Duchess of York, and actress Isabella Rossellini. Bocelli's voice, more specifically his interpretation of opera, has been regularly criticized by classical music critics. These include Bernard Holland of '' The New York Times'' and Andrew Clements of '' The Guardian''. In 1999, ''The New York Times'' chief music critic Anthony Tommasini in his review of Bocelli's North American opera debut at the Detroit Opera House in the title role of Massenet's ''Werther'' 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." In December 2000, Tommasini again criticised Bocelli, this time for his ''La 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." 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." Furthermore, Holland observed that "The critic's duty is to report that Mr Bocelli is not a very good singer." The Associated 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." 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." Anne Midgette of ''The 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." 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." In 2010, Joe Banno of '' The Washington Post'' gave an unfavorable review of Bocelli's ''Carmen'' 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."

Recognition

Honors

* Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of the Italian Republic (''Grande Ufficiale Ordine al Merito della Repubblica Italiana'') awarded in Rome, on 4 March 2006. * Grand Officer of the Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella by the President of the Dominican Republic, Leonel Fernández in 2009, for his contributions to International art and culture. * Star on the

, for his contribution to live theater, at 7000 Hollywood Boulevard, in 2010. * Gold medal for Merit by the president of Serbia Aleksandar Vučić in 2022.

Selected awards

* Winner of the 1994 Newcomers section of the Sanremo Music Festival. * ECHO music award for " Best Single of the Year" for "

", in 1997. * ECHO Klassik "Best seller of the year" award for his album, ''

'' in 1997. * Bambi Award in 1997. * Two World Music Awards, one in the category "Best Italian Singer", and one for "Best Classical Interpretation" in 1998. * ECHO Klassik, for "Best selling classical album" with '' Aria: The Opera Album'' in 1998. * ECHO Klassik for "Bestseller of the year" for '' Sacred Arias'' in 2000. * Two 2000 Classical BRIT Awards for "Best selling classical album" and "Album of the year" for '' Sacred Arias'' in 2000. *

for classical music in 2000. *

award in the "Music & Entertainment" category 2002. * Two World Music Awards, for "World best selling classical artist" and for "Best selling Italian artist" in 2002. * Telegatto award for the soundtrack of the series '' Cuore'' in 2002. * 2002 Classical BRIT Award for " Outstanding Contribution to Music" in 2002. * Two 2003 Classical BRIT Awards for "Best selling classical album" and "Album of the year" for ''

'' in 2003. * Two World Music Awards for "Best Italian Artist" and "World's Best-selling Classical Artist" in 2006. * Telegatto award in platinum for ''Italian music in the world'' in 2008. * World Music Awards for "World's Best-selling Classical Artist" in 2010. * "America Award" of the

Italy–USA Foundation Italy–USA Foundation (Italian: ''Fondazione Italia USA'') is a non-profit non-partisan organization based in Rome, Italy, established to promote friendship between Italians and Americans plus American culture in Italy. Organization The founda ...

in 2012. * "International Artist of the Year in association with Raymond Weil" of the

Classic Brit Awards The Classic BRIT Awards (previously Classical BRIT Awards) are an annual awards ceremony held in the United Kingdom covering aspects of classical and crossover music, and are the equivalent of popular music's Brit Awards. The awards are organi ...

2012. * The Billboard Latin Music Lifetime Achievement Award in 2014. * "

Art, Science and Peace Prize The “Art, Science and Peace Prize” is awarded every three years. It is given to artists and scientists who have worked for peace and the welfare of society and the world. The Prize is accompanied by a sum of money that can vary in each edition ...

" 2015 from PIER FRANCO MARCENARO founder of "Man Center" and "School of Spirituality" for Andrea Bocelli art which elevates the spirit.

Personal life

Bocelli met his first wife, Enrica Cenzatti, while singing at piano bars early in his career. They were married on 27 June 1992. Their first child, son Amos, was born 22 February 1995. Their second son, Matteo, was born on 8 October 1997. The couple separated in 2002. Bocelli lives with his second wife and manager, Veronica Berti. They met in 2002. In September 2011, the couple announced that Berti was expecting her first and Bocelli's third child, a daughter, in the spring. His daughter Virginia was born 21 March 2012. On 12 November 2022, Andrea, Matteo and Virginia (aged 10) sang together at The Royal Albert Hall at the UK Festival of Remembrance. Bocelli married Veronica Berti on 21 March 2014 at the

Sanctuary of Montenero The Shrine of Our Lady of Grace, also known as Sanctuary of Montenero, is a religious complex on the Monte Nero Livorno Hills, in Livorno, central Italy reachable by a funicular. The complex, elevated to the rank of Basilica and maintained by V ...

in the coastal town of Livorno, Italy. The couple live in Forte dei Marmi on the Mediterranean. Bocelli's first wife and two sons live in the couple's previous residence in the same comune, in

Versilia Versilia is a part of Tuscany in the north-western province of Lucca and southern part of Massa-Carrara, and is named after the Versilia river. Known for fashionable Riviera resorts, it consists of numerous clubs that are frequented by local celebr ...

. On 30 April 2000, Bocelli's father, Alessandro Bocelli, died. His mother encouraged him to honor his commitments, and so he sang for Pope John Paul II, in Rome, on 1 May, and immediately returned home for the funeral. At his 5 July performance, filmed for PBS as ''American Dream—Andrea Bocelli's

Concert'', Bocelli dedicated the encore ''Sogno'' (Dream), from his 1999 album ''

Sogno ''Sogno'' ( en, Dream) is the fifth studio album by Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. The album sold 2.5 million copies in the United States,

'', to the memory of his father. Bocelli has enjoyed horseback riding for much of his life. A section of the beach in Jesolo, on the Italian

Adriatic coast The Adriatic Sea () is a body of water separating the Italian Peninsula from the Balkan Peninsula. The Adriatic is the northernmost arm of the Mediterranean Sea, extending from the Strait of Otranto (where it connects to the Ionian Sea) to the ...

, was named after Bocelli on 11 August 2003. In October 2013 Bocelli bought a second home in

North Miami Beach North Miami Beach (commonly referred to as NMB) is a city in Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. Originally named "Fulford-by-the-Sea" in 1926 after Captain William H. Fulford of the U.S. Coast Guard, the city was renamed "North Miami Be ...

. Bocelli is a self-declared fan of Italian football club Inter 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".

Teatro del Silenzio

In 2006, Bocelli convinced the municipality of his hometown

to build an outdoor theatre, the "

". He serves as its honorary president and performs for one night only, every July; the rest of the year, the theatre doesn't operate. Since its opening in 2006, Bocelli has held 12 concerts, every July, with guests including Plácido Domingo,

Katherine Jenkins Katherine Maria Jenkins (born 29 June 1980) is a Welsh singer. She is a mezzo-soprano and performs operatic arias, popular songs, musical theatre, and hymns.Zucchero Adelmo Fornaciari (; born 25 September 1955), more commonly known by his stage name Zucchero Fornaciari or simply Zucchero (), is an Italian singer, musician and songwriter. His stage name is the Italian word for "sugar", as his elementary teach ...

, and Elisa. Bocelli's guests have also included instrumentalists Lang Lang, Chris Botti, and Kenny G. The 2007 concert was released on CD and DVD in 2008.

Discography

Studio albums

* ''

Il Mare Calmo della Sera ''Il mare calmo della sera'' is the debut album by Italian tenor singer Andrea Bocelli, following his win of the Sanremo Festival in 1994, singing his first single and the leading single of the album of the same name. It was certified Gold in the ...

'' (1994) * '' Bocelli'' (1995) * ''

'' (1996/1997) * '' Aria: The Opera Album'' (1998) * ''

Sogno ''Sogno'' ( en, Dream) is the fifth studio album by Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli. The album sold 2.5 million copies in the United States,

'' (1999) * '' Sacred Arias'' (1999) * '' Verdi'' (2000) * '' Cieli di Toscana'' (2001) * ''

'' (2002) * ''

Andrea Andrea is a given name which is common worldwide for both males and females, cognate to Andreas, Andrej and Andrew. Origin of the name The name derives from the Greek word ἀνήρ (''anēr''), genitive ἀνδρός (''andrós''), that ref ...

'' (2004) * '' Amore'' (2006) * ''

'' (2008) * '' My Christmas'' (2009) * '' Passione'' (2013) * '' Cinema'' (2015) * '' Sì'' (2018) * ''

'' (2020)

Collaborative albums

* ''A Hymn for the World'' (1997) * ''A Hymn for the World 2: Voices from Heaven'' (1998) * ''

Verdi's Requiem The ''Messa da Requiem'' is a musical setting of the Catholic funeral mass ( Requiem) for four soloists, double choir and orchestra by Giuseppe Verdi. It was composed in memory of Alessandro Manzoni, whom Verdi admired. The first performance, at ...

'' (2000) * '' Carmen: Duets & Arias'' (2010) * ''A Family Christmas'' (2022)

Bibliography

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. The list below is limited to his English language books which are widely available. * Braille edition, ISBN not available. * Large print edition. * * *

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Bocelli, Andrea 1958 births 20th-century Italian male singers 21st-century Italian male singers Blind classical musicians Blind people from Italy Brit Award winners Converts to Roman Catholicism from atheism or agnosticism Crooners Decca Records artists English-language singers from Italy French-language singers of Italy German-language singers of Italy Spanish-language singers of Italy Portuguese-language singers of Italy Italian keyboardists Italian male pianists Italian male singers Italian multi-instrumentalists Italian tenors Italian philanthropists Italian pop singers Italian Roman Catholics Italian songwriters Latin-language singers Living people Musicians from Tuscany Opera crossover singers Order of Merit of Duarte, Sánchez and Mella People from Pisa Sanremo Music Festival winners of the newcomers section Traditional pop music singers Universal Music Group artists University of Pisa alumni World Music Awards winners