Belissimo!

The Embassy of Italy and the Italian Cultural Institute in Jakarta are honoured to host a long-awaited concert

The late Luciano Pavarotti was no stranger to a spotlight and an adoring crowd, as evidenced from the hundreds of hours he spent performing around the globe. Pavarotti’s passion for music during his long journey resulted in hundreds of gold and platinum records, and he brought together many different kinds of music lovers to enjoy his signature pop-operatic notes.

In celebration of the 70th anniversary of the diplomatic bilateral relations between Indonesia and Italy, Pavarotti’s powerful presence was once again felt in November 2019 during The Luciano Pavarotti Foundation & Anggun In Concert held at the Aula Simfonia Jakarta. Anggun, one of Indonesia’s brightest stars, sang alongside a video of the maestro’s impressive performance of Lucio Dalla’s “Caruso”, also one of her biggest hits, “Snow in Sahara”, and a stunning duet of Mack Gordon’s famed “At Last” with Lorenzo Licitra.

Furthermore, celebrated opera singers who had trained with the Luciano Pavarotti Foundation, such as Giulia Mazzola and Giuseppe Infantino, filled the concert hall with exuberant arias as a tribute to Giuseppe Verdi, from “La donna è mobile” to “Sempre libera degg’io”, and the popular “Libiamo”. There were also special tributes to Giacomo Puccini sung beautifully by Giulia and Matteo Desole, including famous arias from his operatic songs “Che gelida manina”, “Si mi chiamano Mimi” and “O soave fanciulla.” Matteo and Giuseppe also enlivened the mood with famous Italian songs, such as “Mamma” and “Mattinata”.

The performances were directed by famed conductor Eunice Tong Holden and accompanied by a captivating piano performance from maestro Paolo Andreoli. Moreover, it was all thanks to the Director of the Luciano Pavarotti Foundation, Nicoletta Mantovani Pavarotti, the wife of Luciano, for her contribution to the impressive event. To the applause and delight of the late Italian maestro’s fans, the night’s concert truly brought his spirit and love for music. It was no surprise, then, that with such huge enthusiasm from Jakarta’s fine society, tickets were sold out a week after the announcement.