In the Warmth of a Candlelit Studio, Andrea Bocelli’s Voice Wrapped Around the Melodies of Christmas, but This Time, the Magic Was Deeper—His Children, Matteo and Virginia, by His Side. Their Voices, Young Yet Timeless, Wove Through His Like Echoes of the Past and Whispers of the Future, a Harmony Born of Love and Faith. Between Takes, Laughter Filled the Air, Stories of Football, Family, and the Unshakable Spirit of the Irish—a People He Admired for Their Passion, Their Song, Their Soul. And as the Final Note Settled Like Snow on a Silent Night, Andrea Knew—This Was More Than Music; This Was Home.

The impeccably groomed trio — complete with miniature Italian greyhound — talk about what the Christmas season means to them and reminisce on the experience of making of their new album together. There’s also a special cameo appearance from a very familiar translator..

When I am ushered into the plush suite of The Merrion Hotel where Andrea Bocelli and his children, Matteo and Virginia, are waiting for me, I have to stifle a giggle. A couple of nights before, I had watched House of Gucci, the feature film on the fashion dynasty, and this morning, in Dublin, it feels as though the movie has come to life.

It is not just that all three are impeccably dressed and groomed, but it is almost as though they have been painstakingly arranged on the sofas in advance of a portrait session from a time-travelling Renaissance painter.

I have worn some of my best clobber for the occasion, and introduced my leather boots to polish, but I still feel distinctly unstylish in the company of such esteemed company, with their tastefully muted threads, many of which appear to have been fashioned out of cashmere. Even Virginia’s miniature Italian greyhound, Ginny, which sits primly on a cushion, looks like it has come from central casting — a dog so perfect and placid that a future as a canine film star is surely in the offing.

“A new festive album, A Family Christmas, is out now and it captures the talents of Matteo and Virginia as well, of course, as their famous father, who is now 64 and has been a household name for the best part of three decades.” Siblings Virginia and Matteo Bocelli. Photo: Giovanni De Sandre

The Tuscan tenor and two of his three children are in Ireland for a pair of concerts at Dublin’s 3Arena. Andrea met his first wife, Enrica, in the early stages of his singing career. They married in 1992 and had two sons, Amos and Matteo. The couple separated in 2002, the year that Bocelli met his second wife, Veronica. She is now his manager and their daughter, Virginia, was born in 2012.

Today, Matteo (25) and Virginia (10) are very much part of the Bocelli live show, and the three are in promotional mode. A new festive album, A Family Christmas, is out now and it captures the talents of Matteo and Virginia as well, of course, as their famous father, who is now 64 and has been a household name for the best part of three decades.

​Matteo, in particular, is buzzing after the reception they received at the 3Arena the night before. “There have been so many concerts with my father, but this audience was particularly warm,” he says. He had not been able to participate in the first Dublin show, having been booked for another event in Italy, but he says the audience participation during the second night made up for it.

“It was my first time in Ireland,” Virginia says, in flawless English spoken with an American accent, perhaps an indication of the amount of time the family spend in their Miami mansion.

“It was very loud and I could feel the energy going into me. And that affected my singing. In a good way.” She pats Ginny’s head. The animal has been listening so attentively to the conversation, cocking its head in the direction of whoever is speaking, that I almost feel like asking it a question.

Andrea was enthused by the shows, even though, for him it’s comparatively rare to play indoors here. “In general, I perform in the open air.” He also says he likes to include Ireland on his touring itinerary. “I really like the personality of Irish people. They’re very open, especially to other cultures. They’re kind and hospitable.” ​

When we meet, it is the end of September, and the weather is uncharacteristically warm. Christmas seems like a long time away. It must have felt even further into the future when the trio recorded the songs over the summer.

Virginia Bocelli practising for the 2022 Australian tour. Photo: Luca Rossetti.

“It was kind of hard to get into the mindset,” Virginia says, “and when we did the filming,” — for the promo videos that accompany a number of the songs — “we decorated the whole house. Everyone was trying to say ‘Merry Christmas’ in order to get into the Christmas mood.”

Matteo found it a little easier to get into the festive spirit. “I’m not the kind of person who needs to have snow outside,” he says, with a smile. “Of course, it would have been easier but when you close your eyes and focus on the message of the songs, I think it’s quite easy to connect with it.”

“I am not an expert in this specific field,” Andrea says, “so I let other musicians do the selection and then present songs to me. I then chose the songs that I like, depending on what suited my voice best.

“There’s one song that I personally selected, Buon Natale, which is a very old song. I knew it because I had heard it sung from one of the greatest baritones in history, Gino Bechi, and I really wanted to include it in my repertoire.”

Bocelli’s English is less perfect than his children’s, but there is a translator at hand to help with the interview. As soon as I enter the room, I recognise her. It’s Manuela Spinelli, who became something of a star in her own right when she was Giovanni Trapattoni’s interpreter during his largely unloved tenure as manager of the Irish football team between 2008 and 2013. Manuela, who has lived in Ireland for most of her adult life and comfortably matches the Bocellis in the sartorial stakes, is happy to prompt Andrea, Matteo and Virginia when their answers become a little muddy.

The subject of Trapattoni comes up when discussion turns to Inter Milan, the club that Bocelli supports. ‘Trap’ was manager of the Nerazzurri in the late 1980s and led the side to a Serie A title in 1989. Bocelli smiles at the memory of winning the Scudetto trophy. Inter have bagged six further titles since then. He notes that many of his happiest moments outside of family and music have been built around Inter Milan’s success.

If Andrea is passionate about the club, Matteo is positively obsessed. He talks so animatedly about football that the interview is in danger of turning into a one-track discussion. I mention the Irish teenager, Kevin Zefi, who is plying his trade with Inter’s youth team and Matteo makes note of the name. Virginia looks bored. She clearly doesn’t relish visits to the San Siro stadium, home to both Inter and their fierce city rivals, AC Milan. ​

The title of the album, A Family Christmas, doesn’t just indicate that this isn’t an Andrea Bocelli solo offering. He also wants to convey the idea that Christmas should be an especially important time for families. The religious aspect of the festive period should not be forgotten, he insists.

“For me, and I hope for my children, Christmas has a strictly religious significance. It was the day that Jesus, our saviour, was born so, as a family, we go to Mass first thing in the morning. And then, there’s the more playful, or lighter, side of the day.”

Virginia is certainly on message. “The days leading up to it are about friends, but then it’s about family, and it’s very intimate.”

​Then, she bursts into a smile. She’s thinking of one of the great Italian traditions, which takes place on January 6 every year. “It’s the witch — La Befana — and at the fireplace she puts a stocking and if you are good she gives you candy, caramel, chocolate. But if you are bad, she gives you coal. One time, I remember, she gave me this, like, fake coal. But you could eat it. For a while I thought I had been bad, but it was just a joke.”

“You have to put into the performance everything you feel inside. You have to feel that emotion. Otherwise, you will never be able to transmit that to the listener.” Italian operatic tenor Andrea Bocelli with his wife Veronica and their daughter Virginia. Photo: Yazzan Photography.

Although she looks no older than 10, when she speaks, Virginia sounds like a confident, even worldly teenager. She has had to grow up in the public eye but she already seems entirely at home with the media duties she has undertaken this year.

It is clear that Matteo is protective of her and, time and again, he reaches out to hold her hand. After our interview, she says she will work on her homework, with help from her mother. As with children all over the world, the prospect of homework does not seem to fill her with joy. A portion of the school year is spent, not in a classroom, but learning remotely. Having Ginny by her side certainly helps with all that time away from home.

Andrea says it means the world to him that Matteo and Virginia get to tour with him. He knows that the offspring of famous people can be harshly judged, especially if they choose to pursue the same discipline.

Andrea Bocelli got his big break at 34, when in 1992 he submitted a tape to the Italian rock star Zucchero, who had initiated an open audition for tenors. Zucchero was so enamoured with what he heard that he put Bocelli in touch with Luciano Pavarotti, then at the pinnacle of his global fame.

Two years later, Bocelli won the Sanremo Music Festival — sometimes called the Italian Song Festival — and signed a multi-album record deal. Thus far, he has sold in the region of 80 million albums, and when he plays concerts, venues like the 3Arena are about as intimate as it gets.

​From the start, many of his admirers were enamoured with the story of his disability and how he has overcome adversity. He was born visually impaired, with congenital glaucoma, and at the age of 12, he lost his sight completely, having suffered a brain haemorrhage as a result of an accident while playing football.

His blindness has not stopped unkind critics from using his disability as a stick to beat him or his fan base with. One UK music journalist, some years ago, was moved to note that Bocelli’s music was a case of “the blind leading the deaf”.

He has spoken about his blindness in the past, but prefers not to go there now. Prior to this interview, Life is warned not to bring it up as it would result in “termination of interview” and we are also told he will not answer questions about his first marriage or about politics.

When we meet, one of the big global news stories is the rise of the far-right movement in Italy, and the election of Giorgia Meloni, the country’s first female prime minister. Much of Meloni’s appeal among voters is her insistence that family comes first; and although he does not discuss politics, it’s a sentiment that seems to chime with Bocelli.

“The Holy Father,” he says, “has given us a very important message and it’s to highlight the central role of the family and this album is a precise message to rediscover family values which are fundamental, especially at a time when the family and the idea of families has come under attack from all sides.

“It is important that Virginia and Matteo take part in giving this message because they are the future. They represent what’s going to happen tomorrow and they can set an example for their peers. Particularly for Matteo as an adult. It’s an act of consciousness, or responsibility, on his part.”

​I ask Matteo if he feels pressure to fulfil his father’s wishes. “I was thinking recently how life changes when you are growing up and leaving school and going into the world of adults. Responsibility grows. You know this is part of life. In my position, if you feel you can [be a role model] you bring that message to as many people as you can. No one is perfect, but you always try to do your best.”

He believes it is important to have complete faith in the subject matter of any song, if it is to sound authentic to an audience. “You have to put into the performance everything you feel inside. You have to feel that emotion. Otherwise, you will never be able to transmit that to the listener.”

I ask Andrea when he first realised his children had the requisite talent to sing professionally. There’s no hesitation. “When I saw the reaction of the audience because, ultimately, that’s the only feedback that matters.”

“Talent,” Virginia pipes up, “can only bring you so far.” Matteo nods in agreement. “I was watching an interview with Ed Sheeran and he said the same thing. He’s right. But if you work hard and you don’t have talent, you will only get so far.

“You have to combine the two,” he adds, “the talent and the hard work. Otherwise, and it doesn’t matter who you are, any success that comes will not last.”