#translation interview

Here we have, the highlights of this interview:

After ten years together, how can you keep the ego and solo ambitions in check?

Barone: «Fortunately we all come from small towns with a few thousand inhabitants and this has helped us keep our group clear. Then every now and then the spark escapes us, but … ». Ginoble: “The whims are there, especially in times of stress, but we have the strength to look at each other and admit mistakes”.

What makes you argue?

Barone: «Today, for example, this individual (Ignazio, ed) woke up at 11.30 am while we were already in a meeting at 9 am. He didn’t know anything, he says, but why doesn’t he care? He doesn’t have a secretary, I’m a colleague of his … ».

Do you recognize yourself in the image of good boys?

Barone: “We are very responsible and disciplined. Gym, healthy food … This generation, on the other hand, scares me. I am worried about the lyrics of certain songs, too explicit, which do not convey positive examples. Once the messages were “I’m not worthy of you” by Gianni Morandi, “red roses for you” by Massimo Ranieri … I don’t say we should go back to that language, but neither boast of not using condoms or taking drugs “ […] Ginoble: Vasco’s reckless life was true (Vasco is an Italia rocker of the ‘70 who had a turbulent life and wrote a famous song, reckless life, but actually wrote amazing love songs) he had it … Today it is a fashion».

Are fans writing to tell you about their problems?

[…] Barone: "It strikes me that many teenagers, when we take a selfie, stay out of the frame, we only see the eye … I ask:” Why don’t you enter the picture? “. They answer: "No, I’m ugly”. They fear the judgment of others “.

Yet on social media it’s all a show off.

Barone: "Social media is the spectacle of the nothing”.

Than the journalist hints that the good guy image could not work as well as the one of “dark and handsome”, and Gianluca told him that even younger and “losers” girls where knocking on their doors, (so is not like girls don’t like the good guys) and admit that sometimes they opened the doors.

So, gentlemen or womanizer?

Barone: “The only important story I had was recently closed, it lasted seven months …”.

Why did you broke up?

Barone: “I’m not talking about this, but I can say I’m looking for a simple, dynamic, sporty girl … one that when I call her from the other side of the world and ask her what she’s doing, don’t answer me:” I’m bored “”. Ginoble (the only boyfriend of the three): “The ideal woman is elegant, sensitive, intelligent”.

Like your Francesca?

Barone: “At every meeting he makes video calls, in fact why don’t you call her now?” Silence. Ginoble blushes, while showing a picture of a bunch of flowers on the phone.

Are they your gift?

Ginoble: “Yes, for our anniversary, on the 13th of the month, we got together in July.” Boschetto: «They are still at the “mesiversary ”… I, on the other hand, have always been afraid of a relationship, if I am not one hundred percent convinced I prefer to stay one step back. I’m not the type who uses women and hi, in a relationship I always put the feeling».

That’s it. I’ll confess: I didn’t like this last sentence of Ignazio. Someone can jump in relationship more easily but that doesn’t mean he/she is not putting his/her filings in it. Everyone has his character and his way to live love. And surely if a woman gives her consent you are not using her, she makes her choice. But this is just my opinion.

We have been working together for about 8 years but I think that everyone grew up and changed quite a bit. We were still 14 or 15 years old when we debuted [Gianluca was 14; Ignazio 15; Piero 16], but we were asked to grow at a fairly fast rate. In the past, Ignazio was the member who was always joking and was laughing when we were at lunch, but now he is more mature and serious. Of course, he is still a fun and bright person, making an atmosphere better. However, Ignazio is a very touchy person. I know him well, so I can understand how to handle him and how to talk to him, but if you don’t know him well, it might be a bit tough to get along. For example, it is definitely taboo to say to him stuff like “I am a better driver than you.”

At the beginning Gianluca seemed easy to get angry and I thought that it would be pretty frustrating when we grouped together, but at that time he was simply not confident in himself, he just wanted our approval. Of course now he is like a twin to me. I can not compare him with my older brother, but they are part of me and I feel that I am part of them. Either in good time or bad time. Fortunately, I think that we are having much more good times.

We always support each other. Of course, we also do a lot of quarrels. It may be an argument rather than a fight. But everyone is an adult, not an idiot, so we discuss it properly and draw solutions. Since we are together everyday and we are like living together, we have to know how to quell the fight properly.

Il Volo at Roxy Bar, May 3rd 2018. With Red Ronnie, live (and still visible) on Red Ronnie’s facebook page. Since it’s extremely long, I’m translating it divided into pieces (for all parts here)

Part 4/? More fans, the boys singing Spanish, Le Cirque, Ignazio’s hair… and other things

GG: “I see there’s a friend of mine who’s calling”

RR: “answer”

GG: “She lives in Argentina”

PB: “Can’t you just send her a private message?!”

GG (in Spanish): “Hi, can you hear me?”

Fan: “Hi!”

GG (in Italian): “I don’t see you.”

RR (in Spanish): “I don’t see you”

GG: She speaks Italian.

PB (in Spanish): “If you don’t open the video we can’t see you”

IB, to the camera: help.

GG: “Don’t be shy”

PB losing patience: “It’s being good talking with you. Bye” and ended the call. Then to GG “call her by yourself” and pass the computer back to Alice.

GG, pouting “I wanted to say hi”

RR: “we can call her again. Now, some questions (in Spanish) When are you coming in Argentina?”

IB: “what?”

RR (in italian): When are you going to Argentina?

IB: “ah… boh”

GG: “surely… In Italian or in Spanish?”

RR: “Well the question was-”

PB: “When the next tour will start. We still don’t know when the next tour will start.”

GG (in Spanish): And when the new single will be out we are going to be there for promotion.”

RR read some greetings from other Latinas

PB, sounding surprised like he never thought about it: “Ah, because they are awake at this hour!”

GG: “of course”

PB, watching Alice and RR: “ah… smart move.”

GG, amused: “It didn’t take a genius”

IB shaking his head in a “I have no words” meaning

RR, amused, to PB: “I would have guessed something like this from Ignazio, not you”

IB: “Why me!”

Piero laughs and gives the five to Ronnie, who then gives the five to Gianluca too. Piero turn to Gian and gives the five to him too.

IB starts playing the guitar and sings “vita spericolata” by Vasco Rossi, that says “we will meet at Roxy Bar”, because that’s the name of the program. Gianluca and Piero start to sing with him too. When no one of them can remember the words they go on singing “nannan na nan naaanna”, Gian even gesturing to Ignà like saying “yes, these are the words”

GG: “Ok, let’s continue”

RR read some comment in Spanish, from Mexico Perù ecc.

RR: “Guys in America you are really famous! If I was you I would try to do an album of Latin music, If I was you”

GG, laugh. Ignazio and Alice follow him.

PB, like just out of his world: “If you were us…?”

RR: “If I was you I would try to do an album of Latin music. Because with your voices, mixed with the warm of Latin music-”

PB smirking: “with just the music?” [in the sense he would like to mix with Latin girls too…at least is what I read on his face]

GG, smiling but ignoring him: “As we were saying, in our album we sing in Spanish too. Famous songs, but also our songs.”

RR: “Of course”

GG: “Do you remember ‘El reloj’? Or also…-”

PB start singing ‘Historia de un amor’

RR: “Of course!”

PB: and then we did an homage to this prince of Mexican music, José José”

GG: “Do you know him?”

RR: “no.”

GG thinks how to explain it and then says: “He’s like our Celentano, let’s put it this way. But for a problem with his vocal cords, he lost his voice. So, it was a loss because, without voice, he couldn’t gift people with other emotions. But he’s still alive and we had the honor to sing one of his most famous songs at Latin Billboard.”

RR: “And what’s this song name? How is it? And, you did win a billboard, didn’t you?”

GG: “Yes, we won a billboard and we got a Grammy nomination in 2011… no, 2012”

PB: “What we did, this tribute for José José was the year before, and the next year we got a nomination for best group or duo, and we won that.”

RR, reading fans comments, this one in English “Even if I don’t understand what you are saying I’m loving every word.”

GG: “This is the Italian accents, the Italian charm.”

They send kisses to her.

Ronnie read some other comments among which one from Mexico that says that she went to 2 concert and never hear “El Reloj”, so Ronnie asks again to sing the song, and Piero start. Gian follows him. Then Ignazio.

GG: “now must enter some people with the sombrero”

Ignazio mimicking some Mexican instruments

RR, to the camera: “But you haven’t see the scene from here. [The camera was on Piero when he starts singing] Piero started singing, Gianluca followed him, and Ignazio was doing his things like always. So, Piero, like I suppose he always does, brought him back, like ‘you are one of the three’ and so he started singing” [I didn’t get the impression he was so behind so I suppose Ronnie just wanted to mess with him]

Ignazio plays two notes on the guitar staying silent.

PB to IB: “do it again!”

Ignazio does those notes again

Piero and Gianluca watch each other, singing those note and smiling, as if they remember them.

PB to GG: “what is it?”

Ignazio touch the cord again

PB to IB: “stay still!”

Gianluca does again those two notes

PB to IB: “do it again!”

IB perplex and amused: “stay still and do it again he says”

GG: “It came on my mind too but..” saying that he can’t put his finger on it.

Piero tries again, but Gianluca stop him end gesturing to Ronnie says “Ok, but now we can’t..” [spend the time like this, I suppose]

Ronnie pass them the computer again, presenting them another fan. They talk to her, guessing her region. She says they have seen her in Taormina [honey they see so many fans!]. Ignazio guess it right, Calabria, and then start making fun of her accent, practically invisible accent, saying the name of all the Calabrese dishes. Gianluca and Piero start laughing and Ignazio stops them ‘cause the girl start speaking again.

IB: “what?”

Gian is laughing so hard that he leans on Piero

Fan: “In Taormina I give to Gianluca a Toy Story T-shirt!”

Piero and Ignazio hit him, saying that he should remember her. [he actually remember most fans, he can’t remember them all!]

GG: “Toy Story t-shirt! Because you know Woody is my favorite!”

Fan: “Do you remember it?”

PB: “Ignazio too is a big fan of Woody… Woody Allen”

IB: “Great saxophonist!”

Gianluca and Piero laugh.

GG to IB: “can we say it?”

IB: “no”

PB: “come on Ignà, is not-“

IB: “no! You’ll make me look ignorant!”

GG: “is not ignorant”

PB to IB: “Why? Is a funny thing” [the original word is ‘simpatica’ which is more like delightful than ridiculous, so I’m not sure with the translation… basically the meaning was that he doesn’t have to be ashamed]

IB: “no!”  

GG to Ronnie: “he was little.”

IB: “no, and here we have [say the fan name…the wrong one] waiting” she correct him.

Piero start telling it anyways

PB: “He passed an evening in New York, in this famous restaurant Le Cirque-”

IB: “I said no!”

GG: “you were little”

PB: “No, ok, stop because if he’s offended he ruins the whole evening”

RR: “what did you do?”

IB: “Le cirque, there were jugglers and nothing”

GG: “But Ignà, you were little so it was justifiable-”

IB: “no”

RR: “You didn’t recognize him?”

IB: “Is not like” gesturing for saying that we don’t have to speak about that.

RR: “but-“

IB to RR: “Do you still want the jukebox?”

RR: “you already broke it!”

IB: “well I…” gesturing like saying he can do worst.

PB to fan: “Here it, When was your last Il Volo concert?”

She answers and the boys remember it was very windy that evening. Ignazio make fan of her accent again.

GG suddenly: “But who’s there? Your mum? Who is it? I see an arm.”

Fan: “oh well… It’s  my brother who’s filming me” gesturing for saying ‘ignore it’

GG: “well it doesn’t happen everyday to-”

PB indicating Ignazio: “to speak with a fellow countryman”

GG to fan: “can I ask you something?”

Fan: “tell me!”

GG: “Did you see that Ignazio changed his hairstyle? Do you like these curls?”

Camera zoom on Ignazio

Fan: “I like them very much”

PB: “good girl”

Fan: “Now he looks like Lorenzo Fragola”

Piero laughs so much that he leans on Gianluca, hugs him and pats him on the shoulder.

IB: “No, no! a scissors! A scissors!”

GG: “what no? don’t say that. We greet Lorenzo, we say hi! He’s a friend and we were at Sanremo together in 2015”

RR: “No, you know what? You looks like one of those maritime pines” [a tall plant with hemispherical foliage just on the top]

IB: “You are provoking me on purpose this evening?!” but he’s smiling [was ‘ce l’hai con me’ literally ‘you have it with me’, but that’s meaning of it]

RR actually laugh all amused and happy with himself

PB: “come on, stop bringing Ignazio on”

RR: “Oh, yes, you are right, now stop”

Fan: “Are you coming to Calabria Again?”

GG: “Maybe on next tour-”

PB: “Ignazio goes in Sicily ‘via Reggio’ so surely” [joke about the mistake Ignazio did with the fan from Viareggio, understanding it like ‘via Reggio’ so ‘passing from Reggio’. To note he just said to leave Ignazio alone LOL]

RR laugh, Gianluca ignore them reassuring the fan about their presence in Calabria on next tour. She says she would love them to be in Cosenza, her city, and Ignazio says he guessed from her accent that she was from there [obviously joking]

 Sorry for the surely numerous mistakes, English is not my language

Sorry also for the time it took to post this, I had some problem on the computer, where translation and video are.

End of part 4…. to be continued. For all parts here: https://ilvolofandom.tumblr.com/search/ilvoloroxybartranslation

PS: I think we can guess the tale about Ignazio and if I’m right it was indeed, like Gian said, justifiable: Le Cirque is a restaurant, but  every kid, at least here, know the cirque du soleil as the Cirque… he probably thought it was that kind of Cirque. A circus. Also, if I’m not mistaken they already shared this story in some old interview but I can’t remember exactly at this moment.

[Gian, we know you have no shame about what you did when little…it’s al in the book]

Q: Do you have anything you would like to do anyway this time? Or are you satisfied with the current situation? It seems that you already have done whatever you could want to do.

Gianluca: I have no satisfaction at all. So I always think I want to do more. Even if I start a new project, in my mind I always think about the next project. I don't want to do it because I have to do it, for fame and success, I simply like singing and I hope to continue singing in the future if possible. I want to create something new all the time.

We would like to do flexible vocals that other singers cannot, and we want to show our personalities more and more in the future. We are still young, so I think there are plenty of time to do it.

Q: Are you inspired by groups like Il Divo?

Ig: No. Il Divo is totally different from us. They are much older and they do not feel like singing a wide range of sounds. They do not write their original songs like us. We can sing from rock to classical, opera, pop so there is a wider range of sounds than them. We do not want to sing only operatic songs, we want to mix more various sounds, because we are too young to do only opera and because we like other music as well. Also, the three of us are friends, instead they are four male artists who are usually doing different activities and they are gathered only when they perform as Il Divo. I think that is quite different from us. Of course I like what they are doing and I think they are wonderful artists, but we will not be modeled or inspired by them.

Ignazio Boschetto for inrock.co.jp November -Translation by Mami Takada for IlVoloJapan Facebook

Il Volo at Roxy Bar, May 3rd 2018. With Red Ronnie, live (and still visible) on Red Ronnie’s facebook page. Since it’s extremely long, I’m translating it divided into pieces (for all parts here)

Part 2/? Finally starting, lucky fans, wrong questions… a mysterious message.

Sorry for the surely numerous mistakes, English is not my language.

After the jukebox disaster, Ignazio sit down. …Actually, he watch Gianluca, near the empty chair and asks (because the three chair are close to each other) “How am I suppose to sit here?”

GG watch him perplex and lift Ignazo’s chair so he can sit.

IB “Ok, I can do it myself” take the chair and sit.

Piero tries some piece of “Io non so parlar d’amore” on the guitar and the guys follow him a little, but he doesn’t know all the note for it. The desk is full of random rare CD and Gianluca find something amusing and shows it to Piero and Ignazio. We can hear Ignazio’s laugh but we don’t know what it was. Piero put the guitar down, but Ignazio asks to have it instead, and so start playing softly.

In the meantime Red Ronnie is still arguing with technology, but saying that we are ready.

Red Ronnie “we already have a girl connected”

GG: “We already are 1100, seen?”

RR: “Yes! Seen. We also are on Optimagazine, in home page. And on twitter l’ # to talk to us is #ilvoloroxybar”

Ignazio is tuning the guitar.

RR to Alice “Then I’ll leave the computer to you because I have to handle this three here, they are challenging. Here we are.” To the girl connected “Serena, here are Il volo, they are all yours” he move the pc so the boys can look at it.

They all greet her.

PB “how are you? Before seeing us you were better, isn’t it?”

Fan “Yes”

Laugh

GG: “thanks”

PB: “It’s a pleasure to speak with you”

Fan, emotional “I didn’t expect it….”

GG: “But I remember you and your accent! [she has a Venetian accent] Because you came to Roseto this summer, didn’t you?”

Fan: “yes”

IB: “What do you do in Roseto” tone and gesture meaning that there’s nothing to do there.

GG: “We seen each other there, on the beach, didn’t we?”

Fan: “yes”

GG: “I remember, you and also your mother-“ In that the mother get I front of the camera to say hi and disappear again.

PB (joking): “I understand from your accent that you are Sicilian like me”

Fan (joking): “yes”

Silence

PB shocked: “You are Sicilian?!”

Fan: “No! I was joking. I’m from Padova”

They make fun of her accent a little

PB: “How old are you… no wait… do I have [watching Ignazio] to throw something to Ignazio to make him stop to play?” because he had continued to play while she was talking.

IB: “you two are egoist because you are not framing me”

GG and PB: “you are framed.”

Fan: “you are framed.”

They talk a bit about her.

RR to her: “Ask something to them”

Fan: “When will the new album be out?”

All the boys: “EEEHHHH!”

GG: “Not even us know it”

PB: “We are working… but soon you will know something. Now we can’t say anything for contractual issues. But soon you will know and see” [it was May 3rd 2018]

RR read some message in foreign language from twitter… and his pronunciation is immediately corrected by Gianluca first and then also Piero and Ignazio.

RR: “Hola amore”

PB to Ronnie “They are writing to you. Hola amore was for you”

RR “Eh, likewise. No, it’s for you three brats” he take the pc back but Piero stops him “let us say goodbye”

GG “Hi honey, I’ll see you soon at the beach”

PB “no. We’ll see you soon at a concert, not in Roseto!”

The fan’s mom appear again “Hi Gianluca, we’ll see you soon this summer!”

PB: “Eh, lady, don’t worry Ignazio and I are going to just take a coffie, don’t worry.”

IB, sitting away from the pc: “Godbye madame” Gianluca move the pc so to frame Ignazio again

Fan: “Bye Ignazio!”

IB “Bye”

PB “Ciao amore.”

RR give the pc to Alice

RR to the boys “They will all make this question: the new album… what about it?”

PB: “Let’s not speak about the new album, please”

RR: “Il Volo doesn’t speak about the album?!”

GG: “even because soon they will know.”

RR “How soon?”

GG: “Soon”

RR “Meaning?”

GG “ehm….” he watch Piero “Meaning?”

PB “Soon the single will be out. It’s a little experiment we have done in our career. Many people will be surprised… but…”

GG “Many people will be surprised… maybe the oldest ones will feel a bit deluded.”

RR: “Why?”

GG “This is a good clue.”

IB: “No, why deluded?”

GG: “because it’s a genre-“

PB “Deluded, no….”

Piero take a vibrating phone from the desk and show it to Gianluca. Gianluca read something and put it screen-down on the desk, smiling…

RR “Who is it?”

Piero and Ignazio start laughing. Red Ronnie tries to snatch it from the desk but Gian stops him while Piero chant “no no no no…” Gian put the phone in his pocket.

PB: “Anyway… we were saying… Maybe the granny will feel deluded, but maybe no-“

GG “Maybe it’s not the right word…but..”

PB “But we tell you we are working on the new project and it will take some time before the next project”

RR read some foreign message. One of the name is Minna… and Ignazio goes down laughing because in Sicilian the “Minne” are the “tits” and minna sound like the singular of it.

One of the questions is about the new album so Piero repeat in Spanish what he just said in Italian. And then… “And now let’s speak about something else.”

End of part 2…. to be continued (for all parts here)