Hearts in harmony

Matteo, son of opera and pop icon Andrea Bocelli, has large shoes to fill

- ANJULY MATHAI

From the time Andrea Bocelli’s nanny gave him a record of the famous tenor Franco Corelli, his destiny was set. Music became “an unavoidable need, a way to give lightness to life”. Still, the 63-year-old Italian singing sensation, who is described on Spotify as “the most successful classical artist of all time”, did not have it easy. His family sold farm machinery and made wine for a living. Having learnt to play piano at the age of six, he paid for his music lessons by playing at local bars. At the age of 12, a sporting accident left him completely blind. His music career, “punctuated by disappointments and by doors shut on me”, took offin 1992, when he impressed Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti with the demo tape of his song, ‘Miserere’, which became a huge hit in Europe. Since then, he has recorded 15 albums of pop and classical music, sung for popes, presidents, and royalty, won a Golden Globe and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.