Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli to be supported by Mzansi orchestras when he returns to SA in 2025

Renowned Italian tenor Andrea Bocelli will be supported by South African orchestras when he brings his 30th Anniversary tour to South Africa in 2025.

The Symphony Choir of Johannesburg and the Johannesburg Festival Orchestra will join Andrea Bocelli at the SunBet Arena, Time Square.  

For his performance in Cape Town, Bocelli will be joined by The Philharmonia Choir of Cape Town and the Cape Town Philharmonic Orchestra.

The Johannesburg Philharmonic Orchestra recently shared the stage with Mzansi songstress Lira on Mother’s Day, ahead of her anticipated show at Bassline this weekend.

Three decades

Bocelli’s tour is in celebration of his three decades in music.

The concerts will be in April 2025, where he will perform at Pretoria’s SunBet Arena before making his way to Cape Town’s DHL stadium, where he will perform the largest outdoor classical concert in Cape Town.

“One of the finest classical artists of our generation, Andrea Bocelli will take you on an exceptional musical journey alongside a special guest artist, a soprano, a magnificent 60-piece choir, and a majestic 69-piece orchestra,” averred the statement from Big Concerts.

This won’t be Bocelli’s first visit to the country. In 2019 had two live concerts in Johannesburg and Cape Town.

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The horse lover

Bocelli’s rose to fame in the early 90s after winning the newcomers’ section of the 44th Sanremo Music Festival performing Il mare calmo della sera.

Since then the visually impaired artist has recorded 15 solo studio albums of both pop and classical music, three greatest hits albums, and nine complete operas, selling over 75 million records worldwide.

The singer has a strong affection for horses, which he’s had since childhood. His grandfather’s last wish was to give him a horse.  

“A few days after his death, my father fulfilled his wish and I got Stella, my first little horse. I was ten and it was love at first sight.”

“As a child, my horse was my bicycle, and then, growing up, my horse was my motorcycle… They have always been part of my life,” he once shared.

“I have tamed horses since I was a kid. Back then, because of my inexperience, I sometimes became unseated, but I was stubborn and eventually I got the better of it and achieved the goals I had set for myself.”

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