Andrea Bocelli’s Career Celebrated On New Multi-Disc Set ‘The Classical Collection’
The new box includes six discs of the star’s greatest studio classical albums plus a new collection of rarities and unreleased outtakes.
A new multi-disc collection is set to celebrate the career of transcendent tenor Andrea Bocelli. Released on 10 August by Sugar/Decca/UMe, the seven-disc The Classical Collection includes six discs of Bocelli’s greatest studio classical albums plus a new collection of rarities and heretofore unreleased outtakes. The new collection offers all 7 albums each in its own digipak, presented in a deluxe matte black outer box featuring hot-foiled gold.
Kicking off The Classical Collection is Bocelli’s first classical recording, 1997’s Viaggio Italiano, undertaken with the Moscow Radio Symphony Orchestra. Aria – The Opera Album came next in April 1998, featuring the Orchestra of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino as directed by Gianandrea Noseda, with its contents spanning Bocelli’s inherent mastery of material from Puccini to Schubert, and Verdi to Donizetti. On the cusp of the new millennium came Bocelli’s November 1999 recording of Sacred Arias with the Orchestra and Choir of the National Academy of Saint Cecilia, as conducted by Myung-Whun Chung. Sacred Arias remains one of the tenor’s most shining artistic productions – and it also has the distinction of being the best-selling classical album ever released by a solo artist, with over 5 million copies sold to date.
Under the baton of Zubin Mehta, the start of the millennium welcomed the release of Verdi in September 2000. Then, in November 2002, Bocelli combined his energies with those of Lorin Maazel, with whom he undertook a very special project: Sentimento, a collection of romantic pieces from composers such as Tosti, Denza, and Gastaldon. Sentimento was arranged for orchestra by Maazel, who also accompanied Bocelli on violin. The Sentimento project was an enormous success, earning Bocelli a double nomination at the 2003 Classical Brit Awards, where he won both Album of the Year and Best-Selling Classical Album of the Year.
Meanwhile, November 2008 saw the contents of a new album, Incanto, serve as a deeply personal tribute to many of the Neapolitan songs from Bocelli’s youth. Finally, this collection’s Rarities disc is an undeniable treat that no true Bocelli fan will want to miss hearing.
Andrea Bocelli has gone on to become one of the world’s most renowned singers, performing at major international events including the Olympic Games and the World Cup, as well as his own sell-out arena shows. He has a Golden Globe, 7 Classical BRITs and 7 World Music Awards under his belt, plus a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
The Classical Collection is out now and can be bought here.
UK English
