On Saturday, Oct. 17, the Blackstone River Theatre presents internationally acclaimed Tuscan vocalist Emiliano Loconsolo and his ensemble in a program that will explore over 1,000 years of Italian popular songs. The evening, called “Italian Songbook: 1,000 of Life and Legends,” celebrates love, laughter and loss through a chronological anthology of tarantellas, madrigals, canzoni popolari and ballads, all sung in their original dialects.
Hailing from Pisa, Italy, Loconsolo is a specialist in the music of folk artist Roberto Murolo, and considered one of the most authentic interpreters of Italian Canzone Popolare performing in the U.S. today.
The 35-year-old Loconsolo hopes this program will give the audience a broader perspective on Italian music.”Over time the experience of Italian music in the United States has been largely reduced to recordings made by Mario Lanza and Frank Sinatra, both of whom I love and admire, but just one part of a greater Italian musical heritage,” he said.
Loconsolo is an accomplished jazz, folk and classical singer. His diverse background makes him one of the few vocalists capable of singing a program with such a broad span of techniques and style. In the jazz world his expansive vocal range has garnered him praise. He has collaborated with some of the best jazz artists in Europe including Stefano “Cocco” Cantini, Stefano Bollani, Paolino Dalla Porta and Massimo Manzi. Loconsolo has performed at the famous Capolinea club in Milan, the Lucca Jazz Festival in Tuscany, Break in Jazz in Milan and the prestigious Umbria Jazz Winter Festival in Orvieto.
While studying at the New England Conservatory in Boston, Loconsolo lived in Rhode Island and performed several years ago on the Verizon Jazz Stage at Waterfire Providence. Locally, he has performed at the Bank of America Pavilion, Sculler’s jazz club and the Harvard Club.
The Blackstone River Theatre is located at 549 Broad Street in Cumberland. Tickets are $12 in advance or $15 on the day of the performance.
The Johnston Sun Rise (USA), October 16, 2009