Timeless harmonies
Classical crossover band Il Divo will be performing in Malaysia in October.
REMEMBER Il Divo? The multinational band comprising Carlos Marin (from Spain), Urs Buhler (Switzerland), Sebastien Izambard (France) and David Miller (America) will be coming to Malaysia for a one night only performace at The Arena Of Stars, Genting Highlands on Oct 7.
The concert is part of its ongoing Timeless World Tour, which kicked off in Mexico this year.
The male quartet, who represent the ultimate voice of classical crossovers, has been together since being formed by media mogul Simon Cowell back in December 2003.
“It is like a wonderful marriage. We have gotten to know each other very well in the process of growing and decision making,” said Izambard in a recent phone interview.
With more than 160 gold and platinum albums in over 33 countries, the band transformed pop music through its ability to infuse opera into songs of different genres.
The ensemble, which began its musical journey in Britain is currently touring its self produced album Timeless, which takes audiences on a timetravelling journey from the 1930s to the modern age.
The concept behind the album was built around a visualised sce nario of travelling through songs in black and white.
“The old days are important to us because of the way that people used to write songs and the powerful meanings that lyrics had in that era, which we found incredibly important,” stated Izambard.
The album includes songs like Charlie Chaplin’s Smile, Angels from Robbie Williams, Richard Marx’s Right Here Waiting and Adele’s Hello, as well as solo songs from each of the band members.
Izambard expressed that Adele’s Hello is always a joy to perform: “It was wonderful that Adele approved our Spanish version of the song, when she typically is very protective of her music. Performing it is a risk every time due to its global status and we are pleasantly delighted to bring a different vocality to it.”
The upcoming concert is also set to feature Il Divo hits such as Regresa A Mí and Mama ,as well as a song from band member Sebastien’s solo album We Came Here To Love, which was released last year.
Timeless is the first album Il Divo has released since leaving Cowell’s label Syco Music, where it was signed to since 2003, and Izambard said that inevitably, the group dynamic changed after that.
In this album, the band is more involved in the creative process and production aspect of making music, with Miller directing the music videos.
“We’re very hopeful for the future; fans should expect some exciting collaborations possibly with Bjork, Beyonce or even Eminem, as well as a heavy metal album perhaps!” said Izambard. Tickets for the Il Divo Timeless Tour are priced from RM146. For tickets and more information, visit www. rwgenting.com or call 03-2718 1118.