Anyone upset that they won't be able to hear hymns performed by their local church choirs on Easter Sunday due to the coronavirus pandemic can rest easy, because acclaimed opera singer Andrea Bocelli will perform a live streamed concert from the Duomo Cathedral in Milan, Italy for Easter Sunday.
The 61 year old tenor was invited by the city of Milan and the Duomo Cathedral to perform a special concert on Easter Sunday called, "Andrea Bocelli: Music For Hope." Sugar Music, Universal Music Group, and YouTube are also partners, according to Variety.
With Easter masses moving online due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Bocelli wrote about the Christian holiday as a symbol of rebirth that's more important this year more than ever. "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," Bocelli said in a statement.
Bocelli said that besides uniting the world through prayer and song, he believes that concert will also be a symbol of Italy's resilience amidst the coronavirus pandemic. "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," he said. "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."
Milan Mayor Giuseppe Sala said that he hoped that Bocelli's performance would provide a salve to the issues that the world has faced in the past few weeks, and even though Easter will be very different for Christians, the performance could provide some warmth. "This year, Easter will be very different for all of us. The joyous serenity that usually comes with this day has been greatly troubled by the pandemic we are experiencing. I am sure that the extraordinary voice of Bocelli will be the embrace we are missing these days, a strong, special hug, capable of warming the heart of Milan, Italy and the world," Sala said in a statement, according to Variety.
The singer's foundation has also begun a GoFundMe to help provide equipment to hospital workers.
The concert will begin at 7 p.m. CET in Milan. Fans in the U.K. can watch at 6 p.m. U.S. fans can watch the performance at 1 p.m. ET and 10 a.m. PT.
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