Spinella, the tenor of illusions: a rare phenomenon in teh world of entertainment
When you think of a singer who creates magic with his music, the first thought to come to mind would be a romantic singer such as Sinatra or Al Martino.
There certainly is magic in music, we all know this to be true. It’s there when we hear a recording of Mario Lanza singing his romantic songs in a way that makes us believe he was singing only to us.
When Sinatra phrased a lyric, it was with the purpose and passion of a man releasing his inner most thoughts. And to the listener, it was magic, a magic that had us believing that life, for those few musical moments, was just as wonderful as the fairy tale love stories we all grew up on.
It’s taken a long while before someone with the talent of a great tenor and the skills of a magician finally came up with the idea of combining the two creative illusions - music and magic - into one spectacular performance.
The tenor's name is Joseph Spinella and he has been working and investing in this unique idea for several years, an idea that is so different and entertaining I doubt anyone has seen it, is like before.
It is called, "Metamorpho" and features the most loved Italian songs –traditional Neapolitan, “popera” and opera arias - while this unique tenor simultaneously astounds you with his voice and elaborate illusions and slight of hand. This newest endeavor, “The Tenor of Illusions”, performs a fusion of great Italian music with a “ David Copperfield ” style of magic that enhances the performance of every song.
Spinella started doing magic when he was six years old. He perfected his art in the slight of hand tricks and one night included a few of these tricks in his singing act. The reaction from his audience was immediate and overwhelming... they loved it! It was then that he formulated the idea for his current show, "Metamorpho", combining his two loves magic and music. The magic and illusions for this show were especially designed by Spinella himself and are all custom made.
His show, "Metamorpho", began touring this fall of 2011. A CD of music from the show is on sale at: SpinellaTenorOfIllusions.com
Spinella’s voice is a full-bodied sound of power that sends out a deep feeling of emo- tions. The production is a colorful one with an abundance of varied costumes, expert lighting, and stage effects. This is a show that is appropriate for all cultures and all ages, with the tenors main goal to expose the beauty of classical music to the younger generation. Spinella takes each song and tells the story behind it.
As life is an illusion and love is often fleeting, so is the illusion that follows the story behind many of the romantic arias and Neapolitan songs. For example, in Rondine al Nido, the song talks about the swallow who flies from her nest, never to return. Spinella creates an illusion with 'animatronic' birds in a cage, which later disappears. So the story behind the song relates to the illusion in his show.
Spinella is a graduate of the Manhattan School of Music in New York City, with a major in voice. He has participated in Master Classes with Birgit Nielsen, Eleanor Steber, and Regina Resnik. Spinelli’s tenor voice has been described as “a solid Metropolitan Opera level performer, and was also similarly praised by the PRINCETON review music critic. The Maestro Paul Nadler discovered Joseph. Later Joseph was invited to work with Metropolitan Opera coaches in NYC. This began his regular sessions with Joan Dorneman, vocal coach for some 30 years of the legendary great Luciano Pavarotti.
Perhaps it is because of Dorneman that Joseph is often compared to Pavarotti. Indeed he is considered the worlds premiere Pavarotti impersonator, most impressively because he requires no technical dubbing to achieve his vocal range.
Joseph has made numerous appearances, including most notably with “The Three World Tenors,” the Israeli Philharmonic under the baton of Zubin Mehta, and the Sarasota Opera. Other guest appearances include the Lake Placid Sinfonietta, the Princeton Symphony Orchestra, and the Charlotte Symphony Orchestra. He has also appeared as a guest soloist with the Anna Maria Island Orchestra, the Sarasota Pops, and the Sarasota Concert Band. He sang for the 1996 local Olympic Torch ceremony and created a CD, “Sparks of Fire,” to commemorate the 2000 Olympics.
Joseph Spinella’s talents and experience reach beyond singing, choral conducting, and theater. Since the age of six, Joseph has been playing drums. It led to becoming a percussionist with the Sarasota Orchestra, the Florida Symphonic Band, and a guest soloist with the United States Navy Band. He also performed special engagements with Emmet Kelly, the Flying Wallendas, and Ringling Brothers circus leader, Merle Evans.
While this incredibly talented young man concentrates on his “popera” and magic tour, you can catch up with his recordings and appearances by going to his website: http://www.spinellatenorofillusions.com or his facebook page: Spinella Tenor. Spinella will be appearing at Bianca's Restaurant where he goes twice a month. New Year's Eve he will be giving three concerts at Naples Tomato , which is in Naples, Florida.
