What were those Italians thinking? How could you let an exciting talent like Beppe Cantarelli slip out of your fingers? Their loss is our gain. I have had the privilege of working with Mr. Cantarelli for a relatively short time, if several months can be considered "relatively short," but what a time it has been. I was asked to work with this talent on a little event in Venice, Italy. The "Bridge of Sighs" concert/event set for September 11, 2002. I didn't know what to expect at our very first meeting. After reading his biography, I already was sold. But then when I met this Artist, my respect grew immensely. This man made me appreciate a great tenor more than those "old three" put together. Beppe is not only a great singer but he writes poetry, composes, orchestrates and conducts. I stood on the stage as Beppe performed at the Molson Amphitheater in Toronto for the Pope's visit to The Americas last July. 30,000 kids reacted as if he was Jimmy Hendrix at Woodstock. Thirty Thousand kids were suddenly on their feet lighting disposable lighters. As a teenager would say, "He Rocked The House."
Mr. Cantarelli is about to take The Trump Tower by storm. Atlantic City and Las Vegas might just not want to let this Italian treasure high tail it back to California. I had the pleasure and the honor to see Beppe's act in several different sets and line-ups: with a simple acoustic guitar and a grand piano, by himself, on a recital at the "Teatro Rossellini," at the Italian Cultural Institute in Los Angeles, California, as well as at a private party at Burt Buckley in Las Vegas, Nevada, and during a very moving recital in his home town of Busseto, at the "Circolo Falstaff," in front of a very sophisticated and highly demanding audience and critics who happened to be there principally for the more worldwide recognized music of an illustrious fellow-citizen of Beppe, Maestro Giuseppe Verdi, and who were nevertheless blown away; at the Molson Amphitheater in Toronto, Canada, with his acoustic guitar, accompanied by an harmonica (Tollak Ollestad) and a soprano (Brenda Strong); with his "Magic Quest" acoustic trio, Beppe on vocals & acoustic guitar, Rene` Camacho on double bass, and Tollak Ollestad on harmonica; and I also had the grand pleasure & excitement to see him on several of his major concerts with The Millennium Choir & Guests where, whether it was a 19th Century Opera House/Theater in Fidenza, Italy (Teatro Magnani) or a XIIIth Century Gothic Cathedral (Duomo di Piacenza, Italy) or an historical Catholic Church in Hollywood, California, with the likes of Nicholas Cage and the Coppola family, Cameron Diaz, Paul Sorvino, Sharon Lawrence, Susan Dey, etc., in attendance (The Christ The King Catholic Church), one can fully appreciate Beppe's talent and musicianship as he conducts the choir and the orchestra, then he performs as a "rock-and-soul-tenor" both by himself at the grand piano and/or acoustic guitar as well as a lead tenor accompanied by the orchestra and the choir, a stunning repertoire of poetry and music all written, composed and orchestrated by Beppe himself.
I have seen thousands of people exposed to his music and his lyrics (he always requests an instantaneous English translation to be implemented in the program of his concerts) with tears in their eyes, and genuinely & deeply moved by what they hear & experience, even if it is the very first time that they listen and witness Beppe's music & creativity! No matter though what's the line-up or the venue, one thing always comes across: the unparalleled fusion that Beppe practically has crafted & "invented," and that shines through his compositions, his own arrangements & orchestrations, and last but not least his own unique vocal performance where, as he often likes to describe it & classify it when asked to by fans and critics, "rock-and-soul-that-meets-classical-crossover." Beppe's music, in his own quote, is "three hundred years of history of music where the two main musical schools of the western world - 'classical' in Europe, and 'blues' and 'jazz' in America - meet and relive, a few centuries later, in the same compositions, on the same stage, and through the fusion of musicians and singers from different cultures and music heritage and education, as 'classical' and 'jazz are the origin of all the other genres and styles of music that we have today. A return to our roots, if you want, through the wonderful & eternal journey of a unique and divine gift to humanity, the 'time-machine' called MUSIC."
Mr. Cantarelli's credits are impeccable. But what those credits can't alert you to is his music. This Man can do anything. Watch for him in September at LA's first ever Feast Of San Gennaro. More importantly, when you read this, just imagine the show in Venice on September 11, a co-production with Italy & the City of Venice through the renowned "Festival of Classical & Baroque Music of the City of Venice," promoting peace through the most universal media, the only one that can overcome the barriers of culture, time and religion: the music.
Now for that bio... a native of Busseto (in Parma County), Italy, Beppe Cantarelli came to America in 1982 at the request of Grammy Award winner Quincy Jones. A successful composer, arranger and producer, Cantarelli has worked with prominent industry recording Artists both here in America as well as in Europe.
From "The ONE Magazine"
by Jody L.Sisson
Las Vegas, August 2002
All Rights Reserved