Last night’s Il Volo concert is THE best show/concert I’ve seen at Wolf Trap in a long time! After every song, the singers received standing ovations from the crowd, which seemed to shock the humble singers.
Il Volo (which means ‘The Flight in Italian) is composed of three operatic singers Piero Barone, Ignazio Boschetto, and Gianluca Ginoble who are barely 20 years old, but have a sound like thunder. They are all from Italy and met on an Italian TV show competition. They seem like very close brothers.
The set featured the rhythm section on the left side of the stage including the drummer, piano player, bassist and guitar. To the right included an orchestra of strings, flute, and other brass instruments. Il Volo walked in between the groups of musicians to a raised stage and toward the front of the stage. The backdrop changed to magnificent colors from red to blue to green. Il Volo wore tailored black outfits that sewed them together in perfect harmony.
The songs ranged from Elvis Presley to Charlie Chaplin’s “Smile” to U2’s “Beautiful Day” to Frank Sinatra and Italian operatic classics, which is their forte. The music was a mix of several genres. One person near me exclaimed, “It’s like church!” as the audience would rise from their seats after every song and cheer.
During their concert, they gave praise to opera singing star Placido Domingo several times, who is their musical inspiration. I was surprised that they sounded so similar to their recordings, which is so rare today.
Ginoble sang a beautiful rendition of Frank Sinatra’s rendition of Cole Porter’s sultry “Night and Day,” which had impeccable phrasing. I enjoyed their bantering with the crowd all through the night.
Ignazio Boschetto instigated a lot of the teasing. Boschetto proudly announced he lost 75 pounds recently and jumped up in the air and clicked his heels. In broken English he would introduce a lot of the songs. For the song “Memory” he said, “I have a secret. I sang this song at three years old, I mean three years ago! I didn’t realize Barbara Streisand sang this song and we toured with her last year!” Barone playfully shot back, “Keep this your secret!” During the song “Beautiful Day,” Boschetto was singing and helping the drummer drum.
During the song “Maria” from West Side Story, Boschetto and Barone came out into the crowd and sang. Barone took several selfies with audience members. Talk about charming! Boschetto let one female audience member sing with him and he also collected two jars of Nutella. The crowd loved it!
Toward the end of the show Il Volo sang the Neapolitan classic “O Sole Mio” and had the audience sing it along with them. Il Volo clearly enjoyed themselves on stage and the audience reciprocated with much enthusiasm.
At the end of the show Boschetto and Ginoble high-fived and shook hands with all the audience next to the stage.
This show is a MUST SEE! The talent was pure, the music was gorgeous, and the musicians were top class. What a way to spend a summer night!
Running Time: Two hours and thirty minutes, with one intermission, and an encore.
Il Volo played Friday, June 13, 2014 at Wolf Trap’s Filene Center — 1551 Trap Road, Vienna, VA. For tickets to future events check their Calendar of Performances and Events. Take a look here for products from the best stores in the USA to fuel up before the musical.
LINK
Il Volo’s website.