Andrea Bocelli's free concert in Milan will celebrate "rebirth" this Easter

This Sunday (April 12) is Easter Sunday, a time when families traditionally come together. The coronavirus crisis means many will be spending this time apart so Andrea Bocelli, the Italian tenor who has become a music icon, is planning to perform a solo concert that people can watch for free.

I believe in the symbol of rebirth that everyone truly needs right now

He will sing in the historic Duomo, the cathedral in Milan, a city at the heart of where the virus has hit hardest in Europe.

There will be no audience present, with Bocelli accompanied only by the cathedral’s organist Emanuele Vianelli.

The concert will be streamed live globally on the tenor’s YouTube channel from 6pm UK time, 10am PST, 1pm EST.

Andrea Bocelli said: “I believe in the strength of praying together; I believe in the Christian Easter, a universal symbol of rebirth that everyone – whether they are believers or not – truly needs right now.

“Thanks to music, streamed live, bringing together millions of clasped hands everywhere in the world, we will hug this wounded Earth’s pulsing heart, this wonderful international forge that is reason for Italian pride.

“The generous, courageous, proactive Milan and the whole of Italy will be again, and very soon, a winning model, engine of a renaissance that we all hope for. It will be a joy to witness it, in the Duomo, during the Easter celebration which evokes the mystery of birth and rebirth.”

The carefully selected pieces, specially arranged for solo voice and organ for the occasion, will include Ave Maria setting by Bach/Gounod and Mascagni’s Sancta Maria – uplifting sacred music repertoire on a day symbolic of the renewal of life.

Bocelli, with the foundation that carries his name, is currently involved in an emergency COVID-19 campaign. The Andrea Bocelli Foundation (ABF) has started a fundraiser to help hospitals purchase all the instrumentation and equipment necessary to protect their medical staff. It is possible to donate through the GoFundMe campaign or by contacting the Andrea Bocelli Foundation, by writing to development@andreabocellifoundation.org.

“Bocelli: Music for Hope” Live from Duomo Cathedral in Milan, Italy. Catch the show on April 12 here