Andrea Bocelli Nov.7 tickets nearly sold out

By Inga Lukaviciute

Tickets for the world famous Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli concert at the Save Mart Center are almost gone.

Bocelli, one of the biggest-selling classical artists, will launch his U.S. tour in Fresno with an inaugural concert at the Save Mart Center on Nov. 7 at 8 p.m.

“ The tickets are almost sold out. We only have a few single $56 tickets left and some tickets behind the stage,” said Nancy Hudelson, staff at Fresno Grand Opera.

The Fresno Grand Opera representatives have been trying for the past four to five years to get Bocelli perform in Fresno, Hudelson said.

Bocelli has been invited to perform at Selland Arena several times, but because of unsatisfactory seat availability there, he declined, Hudelson said. The opening of the Save Mart Center and a larger number of seating available were the reasons Bocelli has agreed to come to perform in Fresno, Hudelson said.

“ We are thrilled to be presenting Mr. Bocelli in the first concert in the new Save Mart Center,” said Ronald Eichman, the Fresno Grand Opera general director.

Bocelli enters his U.S. concert tour with the newly released Sacred Arias Special Edition CD/DVD. His media relations officer, Aimee Gautreau, said Bocelli’s concert would introduce his fans to a few new songs. Songs “Agnus Dei” and “I Believe” are among them.

Bocelli will sing in seven concerts during his tour: three in California (Fresno, Oakland, Palm Springs), and one each in Nevada (Las Vegas), New York (Madison Square Garden), New Jersey (Atlantic City) and Rhode Island (Providence), Gautreau said.

Bocelli was born in 1958 in Lajatico, Italy. Since childhood he’s had a passion for music. Bocelli’s life-long ambition was to become a great tenor as he learned operas by ear and heart, Gautreau said. As a teenager Bocelli won a number of singing competitions. He attended Pisa (Italy) university where he studied law, while playing and performing at local piano bars. Later Bocelli got accepted into Italian opera masters Franco Corelli’s class.

According to the information provided by Gautreu, Bocelli’s worldwide recognition came in 1992 after recording a duet, “Miserere,” together with Italian rock star Zucchero. Since then Bocelli has sung in a number of concerts and released a number of CDs.

In 2000 Bocelli performed at the Statue of Liberty in N.Y, as well as singing in the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Sidney, Australia. In the past couple of years he has performed for President Bush and the Queen of the United Kingdom.