Published: Friday, May 29, 2009
Il Divo: Masters of 'popera'
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Associated Press/KEYSTONE/Eddy Risch
The classical-pop group Il Divo, (from left) Carlos Marin of Spain, David Miller of the United States, Sebastien Izambard of France and Urs Buehler of Switzerland, performs during a concert at the Hallenstadion in Zurich, Switzerland, in 2007.
Is it wrong to be in love with four different guys at the same time?
Women will no doubt be faced with that dilemma when the four hunks known as Il Divo perform at Comcast Arena on Tuesday.
Il Divo packs performance halls by combining the comely good looks of four men in tailored Armani suits with a unique ability to sing pop songs in an operatic style, producing a new musical genre that's been coined "popera."
"It's a funny term and I don't cringe when I hear it," tenor David Miller said. "Everyone wants to find a box to put Il Divo into."
So let's just say Il Divo -- which translates loosely to "the divine" -- is a brilliantly successful combination that's earned the singers three world tours with more than 25 million albums sold. Urban Dictionary says the group broke Led Zeppelin's record of selling that many albums without releasing a single. And Zeppelin was never called "the Jonas Brothers for moms."
What does Miller think of such a label? If a person could blush over the phone, Miller was close to doing that.
"Four guys coming out and dressed in suits and looking smart elicits a certain response in people," Miller said from a New York recording studio, then adding a practical note: "The Jonas Brothers are huge right now, and if that's the category we're being put in, than that's great."
Truly, it's difficult to categorize Il Divo, who sound operatic but don't do opera.
"It's really this weird in-between world kind of thing," Miller said.
For their Everett performance, Il Divo will appear on a redesigned stage built with two catwalks that meet in the center so that the singers are closer to the audience and can -- hold on, ladies -- shake people's hands.
For its 90-minute show, the four plan to sing lots of their classics and some songs off their new album, "The Promise," such as "Hallelujah," "Angelina" and "Adagio," while including some surprise songs that die-hard fans haven't heard before, Miller said.
Il Divo's yearlong tour to 81 cities and 32 countries is to support "The Promise," which debuted at No. 1 in nine countries, their biggest opening first week sales ever in the United States, according to their publicist. Their chart-topping success has been fueled with an exotic sizzle since Il Divo is a melting pot group of model-lovely singers representing several cultures. Besides American-born Miller, there's baritone Carlos Marin of Spain -- whose eyebrows seem to take on a life of their own when he sings -- pop singer Sebastien Izambard of France and tenor Urs Buhler of Switzerland.
Miller is the most classically trained of the bunch. He was about to make his New York Metropolitan opera debut when he was asked to join Il Divo. At 35, Miller said he's at the prime age to return to opera, but he won't leave Il Divo anytime soon.
Opera's not going anywhere, and rarely does an opera audience scream after a performance or throw flowers and gifts onstage.
"Our shows get the adrenaline moving and get the happy feelings coming out in everybody," Miller said. "You can't help but stand up and scream."
Theresa Goffredo: 425-339-3424, goffredo@heraldnet.com.
Women will no doubt be faced with that dilemma when the four hunks known as Il Divo perform at Comcast Arena on Tuesday.
Il Divo packs performance halls by combining the comely good looks of four men in tailored Armani suits with a unique ability to sing pop songs in an operatic style, producing a new musical genre that's been coined "popera."
"It's a funny term and I don't cringe when I hear it," tenor David Miller said. "Everyone wants to find a box to put Il Divo into."
So let's just say Il Divo -- which translates loosely to "the divine" -- is a brilliantly successful combination that's earned the singers three world tours with more than 25 million albums sold. Urban Dictionary says the group broke Led Zeppelin's record of selling that many albums without releasing a single. And Zeppelin was never called "the Jonas Brothers for moms."
What does Miller think of such a label? If a person could blush over the phone, Miller was close to doing that.
"Four guys coming out and dressed in suits and looking smart elicits a certain response in people," Miller said from a New York recording studio, then adding a practical note: "The Jonas Brothers are huge right now, and if that's the category we're being put in, than that's great."
Truly, it's difficult to categorize Il Divo, who sound operatic but don't do opera.
"It's really this weird in-between world kind of thing," Miller said.
For their Everett performance, Il Divo will appear on a redesigned stage built with two catwalks that meet in the center so that the singers are closer to the audience and can -- hold on, ladies -- shake people's hands.
For its 90-minute show, the four plan to sing lots of their classics and some songs off their new album, "The Promise," such as "Hallelujah," "Angelina" and "Adagio," while including some surprise songs that die-hard fans haven't heard before, Miller said.
Il Divo's yearlong tour to 81 cities and 32 countries is to support "The Promise," which debuted at No. 1 in nine countries, their biggest opening first week sales ever in the United States, according to their publicist. Their chart-topping success has been fueled with an exotic sizzle since Il Divo is a melting pot group of model-lovely singers representing several cultures. Besides American-born Miller, there's baritone Carlos Marin of Spain -- whose eyebrows seem to take on a life of their own when he sings -- pop singer Sebastien Izambard of France and tenor Urs Buhler of Switzerland.
Miller is the most classically trained of the bunch. He was about to make his New York Metropolitan opera debut when he was asked to join Il Divo. At 35, Miller said he's at the prime age to return to opera, but he won't leave Il Divo anytime soon.
Opera's not going anywhere, and rarely does an opera audience scream after a performance or throw flowers and gifts onstage.
"Our shows get the adrenaline moving and get the happy feelings coming out in everybody," Miller said. "You can't help but stand up and scream."
Theresa Goffredo: 425-339-3424, goffredo@heraldnet.com.
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