Torino Festival features Lou Reed

It was a real festival of entertainment. The Piazza Castello was the Medals Plaza of the Olympic Winter Games and, aside from the award ceremonies, every night it hosted a show with the best stars of the international music scene and the most promising artists in Piemonte.

The great Italian tenor, Andrea Bocelli, kicked off the festival, followed by Kelly Clarkson, Ennio Morricone, Gianni Morandi, Duran Duran, Jamiroquai, Anastacia, Italian Paolo Conte, Whitney Houston, Nek, Canadian rocker Avril Lavigne and Ricky Martin.

The series of concerts were closed by Lou Reed, Max Pezzali and Riccardo Cocciante on February 25th.

Lou Reed’s concert was the preview of a European tour that will see him performing 11 of his 14 dates in Italian theatres and concert halls. His powerful band included virtuoso bassist Rob Wasserman, Tony Thunder Smith, Fernando Saunders, and Mike Rathke. They set off a “symphonic-electronic” concert; after opening with “Paranoia”, other songs were “Street Hassle”, “Sword”, “Kennedy”, a very interesting version of “Red Joystick” and “Power and Glory”. His Tai Chi master arrived on stage to the notes of “Who Am I”, showing some moves from his discipline, and finally he closed his concert with “Mystic Child”. An encore of “Sweet Jane” drove the audience totally wild.

After the glory of the Velvet Underground and a crisis which made him leave the group, he became a solo artists and released his first memorable albums “Transformer”, “Rock & Roll Animal”, “Berlin”, and “Street Hassle”.

Today Lou Reed also plays music to poetry, paying tribute to literary artists like Edgar Allan Poe, and exhibits photographic works of art. The New York rock star also has a passion for Tai Chi for which he creates accompanying music. Lou Reed turns 64 next week.

Roberto De Luca, art director of the event, said it was designed to bring together the internationalism of the Olympic Winter Games with the city of Torino, to cater to all the audiences and promote the best artists on the local scene.

Italian artists featured during the “Torino Festival” were Lou Dalfin, Linea 77, Yo Yo Mundi, ATPC, Mambassa, and Discoinferno.

The Councillor of the Olympic Winter Games, Elda Tessore, remarked “it is the first time that a show of this calibre has been held in Italy for two weeks in a row”.

The tickets for each show were free of charge. From February 11th to 25th, the piazza was secured with 36 metal detectors. The first concerts at 6:30, the award ceremonies between 8 and 9, and finally the celebration, the day’s key event with live music.

Tenor Ben Heppner, sang the Canadian national anthem and Elisa performed during the grand finale in the Closing Ceremony. The real stars of the evening, the athletes, made their entrance to the backdrop of "Volare," "That's Amore," and other classics.

Another official moment was the extinguishing of the Olympic Cauldron, with Andrea Bocelli on the stage. Then, the grand finale with the aurora borealis, the pyrotechnical fountains, the live performances of Ricky Martin and Elisa and some awesome fireworks.

http://www.avrillavigne.com/home.php
http://www.morandimania.it/
http://www.andreabocelli.com/
http://www.anastacia.com/
http://www.jamiroquai.com/
http://www.rickymartin.com/
http://www.duranduran.com/
http://www.loureed.it/
http://www.concerto.net/conte/
http://www.kellyclarkson.it/


Related Tags: The Piazza Castello, Andrea Bocelli, Kelly Clarkson, Ennio Morricone, Gianni Morandi, Duran Duran, Jamiroquai, Anastacia, Italian Paolo Conte, Whitney Houston, Nek, Avril Lavigne, Ricky Martin., Lou Reed, Max Pezzali, Riccardo Cocciante, Music, Torino