Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli is scheduled to make his third visit to Taiwan in May on the first leg of his 2011 Asia Tour, the concert’s organizer announced yesterday.
The world-renowned artist will give two concerts at the Taipei Arena on May 17 and May 18, Niu Hsiao-hua (牛效華), head of the Management of New Arts, said at a press conference.
To allow fans from all over the country to attend Bocelli’s performances, Niu said the company has signed an agreement with the Taiwan High Speed Rail Corp to offer special tickets for people who take the high-speed train to Taipei to attend the concerts.
Further details, including the names of guest performers and the setlist, will be announced at the end of this month, Niu added.
Bocelli emerged as a vocal phenomenon in the 1990s, going from piano bar singer to internationally renowned tenor. He is one of the most successful performing artists of all time, selling more than 65 million albums around the world.
With one of the most unique voices in the world, his expressed goal is “to communicate with the listener, to touch his heart in the same way I was touched as a child by my favorite singers who made me dream.”
In recent years, Bocelli has straddled the realms of both classical and popular music, winning an impressive array of awards, including a Golden Globe for Best Song, as well as Grammy and Academy Award nominations.
Last year, he was awarded a star on Hollywood’s Walk of Fame.
His first concert in then-Taichung City three years ago drew an audience of almost 20,000, while his shows last year were sellouts, with each one attended by about 11,000 people, Niu said.
In other news, the agent of Taiwanese illustrator Jimmy Liao (幾米) said yesterday that a special exhibition in Beijing featuring the work of Liao and 14 other artists was a major success and has given greater visibility to Taiwan’s cultural and creative industries.
The author-illustrator, known popularly as “Jimmy,” began his career with depictions of the lives of ordinary people trying to cope in a modern urban world. His illustrations have become hugely popular in Taiwan, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Singapore and many other Asian markets over the last 10 years.
Liao’s agent, Lee Yu-san (李雨珊) said the first major exhibition of the artist’s work in Beijing from Dec. 17 to Jan. 7 was a success, as it drew about 30,000 visitors and attracted the attention of museum curators in several Chinese cities.
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