There’s something ethereal about listening to classical crossover soprano Giorgia Fumanti sing. Her voice invites you in, tenderly caressing notes and lingering lovingly over phrases. She once said, “To sing for me is like to pray,” and you can’t help but feel a sense of calm and peacefulness when you hear her.
Giorgia carries that same ambiance even as she tells me she’s been “super busy” despite the lockdown. Like all performers in the entertainment business, her diary has been devastated but she’s foreign ahead despite that. “I’m actually working on my 12th album,” Giorgia shares. “I am going into the studio next week, without any pressure but the desire of creating more beautiful music because I believe our world and the people need more music as I need it a lot.”
Her story began in Italy, her soaring vocals reaching the rafters in a Tuscany church. But despite her aura of tranquility, Giorgia has had to fight hard to follow the music. “It was not easy to follow my path in music because I come from a family where there was no space to be a singer. It was not always very easy, I had many challenges and unfortunately, many discussions about it, which was not pleasant for me because I really wanted to be loved by my parents [for] who I am and who I am – there is music inside of me. It was not easy to follow my path but [it] was necessary for my deep happiness.”
It’s clear this was a painful time for Giorgia. At first, she attempted to please her parents by going to law school but tells us that “I was too destroyed not doing music.” She started doing a little music on the side to start but eventually it “took me away.” Staying true to herself was difficult but she says “I needed to do it for my own best destiny.”
She remembers the experience vividly now that she is a mother to three daughters. “I just pray for them to find their own passion no matter what that will be. I will try to be near them and support them in their talent and suggest them to study, yes, but in the field that they are stronger… in my case to try to be a lawyer when I was an artist was extremely difficult and not in harmony with my nature so that makes things very difficult and I don’t want that for my girls. I just hope I will be able to encourage them in their passion no matter what [it] will be.”
Giorgia honed her own talent at the Music Conservatory of Parma, Italy. When I refer to her wide range and ability to intimately connect with an audience, she responds graciously. Staying true to her unique vocal qualities has been something Giorgia’s worked hard to achieve. “Sometimes teachers are not exactly your best friend, because sometimes they want to teach you but sometimes, they judge too much and they put their own ego.” She explains it simply saying “they are human.” At the beginning of her career people had lots of opinions about who she should sound. “They wanted me to sing like this or like that or more pop or more opera. So to find my own way was a real deep research.” Giorgia does not consider this task finished either. “It’s a journey through a lifetime I believe… Our deeper inner self grows and I believe our voice is the reflection of our inside world. So, I’m still on the journey and it’s a very long research. I have a great teacher now but I also teach myself a lot.”
To list just a few of her accomplishments, Giorgia has performed at the Shanghai World International Expo, Beijing Olympics, sang the national anthem at the NHL All Star Game and also performed at Times Square. She has been accompanied by prestigious orchestras and sung for important people, while garnering a loyal fanbase. Giorgia has been featured in three PBS specials and has a catalog of eleven studio albums.
In our ever-evolving industry where making albums is so expensive and many record deals rarely last beyond someone’s sophomore album, Giorgia’s continuing releases are a rarity and she has learned a lot.
“Many things definitely, especially to trust more in myself and my voice and to be a little more clear about what I like to sing and when I want to sing,” she laughs. “I have the chance to have this beautiful freedom that makes my music still a passion despite [being] a profession too. Sometimes when it’s becomes a profession there is stress involved but it’s definitely important to keep the passion and realize the gift of music even when you do it in a professional way.”
When her career was just getting started Giorgia says she was “giving too much importance to the appreciation of others and trying to reach and please everybody. Today after 17 years in this career, I really try to change the point and start from myself inside and bring out what makes me feel happy and proud of my talent and expression and eventually you sing for your audience, that is very, very important, but without this desire to please and reach and be appreciated.”
Each of the albums she has produced are dear to her heart – despite her critical ear. “I’m very attached to all of them because I put into them all heart and they all represent a different stage of my life. I’m very attached to the albums I recorded when I was pregnant like ‘Magnificat,’ ‘Elysium,’ or ‘Essence.’ I also love the last album ‘Amour’ and ‘Aimons-Nous’ because they reflect my voice of today.”
Although classical crossover is now a popular genre, at the beginning, it was sometimes difficult for Giorgia to communicate the sound she was trying to achieve. “It was almost necessary for me to become a producer because often when I was explaining to the other they were not able to understand,” she laughs good-naturedly. These days, however, Giorgia has found a musical partner she can trust. Stefano Galante has recorded her last four albums. “With him I really can give more, I can be more free. He understands what I like and he respects me a lot.”
Although beautiful music will never go out of style, Giorgia’s ability to evolve and willingness to try new things contributes to her continued relevancy. “I keep all the doors open as long as they respect my nature and that the message of music is of love and kindness.”
She also continues to develop her talent but is not rigid with the process. “These days, I have a great coach who’s in New York and I see him once a year. And I practice but not every day because as I said it’s a journey and discovery through natural development I believe. So, I practice when I feel the need and I keep some silence or resting the other time.”
Her parting words to me seem like a blessing for all singers: “I wish you really to fulfill all your dreams in music, to trust yourself to discover how you can fly with your voice and how music can make us so happy and make our audience so happy.”
Discover more about Giorgia at her Official Website and discover her full catalogue on Spotify
LOVE THE PIECE THAT WAS WRITTEN…MAY YU KEEP THIS JOY FOR MANY MORE YEARS TO COME…I FOR ONE AM YUR SUPER FAN…🙏🌈❤️