Il Divo: Live Performance Brings Down the House at AOL Sessions

Il Divo: Live Performance Brings Down the House at AOL Sessions


From AOL Blog dated Dec 2nd 2011

This past November marked the triumphant return of classical crossover group Il Divo, with the release of their album, 'Wicked Game.' The quartet, made up of Urs Bühler, Sébastien Izambard, David Miller and Carlos Marín, have never sounded better -- and we should know! The group stopped by AOL Music's New York studios to record a performance for Sessions, a live concert we're happy to share with you today.

After the guys sang their hearts out on stage, we had a chance to sit down and chat about the excitement surrounding the new album. The group didn't hold back as we discussed the finer details of the 'Wicked Game' CD, what they're planning to pack for their upcoming world tour and the rapper they'd love to do a surprising duet with!

You chose the Chris Issac song "Wicked Game" as the title track of your new CD. Why that song -- what about it spoke to you?

Sebastian: It was actually an idea from our record company that one, although most of the others songs there's a lot of teamwork actually done on the album, but it's a song that they suggested we should do. And I remember at first when I heard the demo, I was really pessimistic, I wasn't very sure this was going to work -- because the song is so well known by Chris Isaac himself. And actually when we suggested, well when our record company said, well we should try this song, he wasn't very keen, Chris Isaac for us. So, we record the song and his mother actually is Italian, and she said you know what, if they sing it in Italian you should allow them to do it. And we sang it in Italian, and it actually happened to be the best language for us anyways on the song. It's amazing and it's one of my favorites. So and it be a really smashing song for us but also the first track that gives us the direction of the album and really is amazing arrangements around the song and the voices I think are spectacular.

Your entire song catalog is so diverse. How do you choose the songs that make a CD?

David: Well I think that we start with a very large base of songs and probably pick 20 to 30 songs and just start trying them in the studio. And what we end up with on the album is just the top ten of those 30 songs that seem to fit together and that sound the best and that represent what we want the direction of Il Divo to be.

Have you ever gotten personal props from an artist you've covered?

Sebastian: Yeah, Frank Sinatra. No, I'm just kidding! Actually Toni Braxton. I remember we sang with her at the World Cup competition and she said she really loved the version of "Unbreak My Heart" we did. That was really nice, because of course it was such a big hit -- so it's always difficult to do a song that everybody knows and you think well are you going to be a competitor to the person who did originally. But when we sing a song we just try to make it our own and not think about who's done it before.

Is there are song that didn't make this album that you'd love to cover?

Urs: Doing a collaboration with Eminem for example and he would just rap the verses and we would sing a big operatic chorus -- do something like that. I think that would be very interesting. I have no idea how our audience would react to it but it would be certainly fun to do.

David: I think this album is a little bit more directional than our previous albums, kind of heading down the road of movie music. There's several songs on there that the music has been used in movies, 'Time to Say Goodbye,' 'Don't Cry for Me Argentina,' 'Come What May' from 'Moulin Rouge' -- and it's just been kind of a coincidence that all of these songs do happen to be in movies ... but that kind of base of songs led to a new way of scoring the music underneath for us. I think this direction is really, really good for us, so I actually would like to do an official album of all movie songs. You know, big melodies and big anthemic songs like, you know, the theme from Titanic, 'My Heart Will Go On,' you know stuff like that, where it's big and ballsy.

Let's talk your upcoming world tour. You guys are visiting some amazing cities! What do you pack for something like that?

Carlos: Well we pack a lot of underwear that's for sure.

Sebastian: Do they get dirty often?

Carlos: What?

Sebastian: You said you pack a lot of underwear. I said what?

Carlos: So, well yeah, we have to pack a lot. I mean obviously for next year we have a huge tour again, it's going to be around one year again of being out of the house, wives, well in my case not a wife. I am single, I always say it, but I just need to find a moment to say it. And yeah that's what it is. It's quite difficult to put everything you want because obviously you can't have such an overweight.

Sebastian: For me I'm really looking forward to it actually, because I have kids and they're 3 ½ years, going to be 4 years old. It's going to be fabulous and I'm planning hopefully to get on a tour bus and get the family in and then we can stop, go to the zoo, visit more cities and get to know America better than trying to go in an airport and go the next venue and so you don't really see anything. And the bus I think we'll really give me a chance to get to know America better.

Any one particular city you just can't wait to perform in?

Urs: All of them. All of them certainly. New York is every time very, very, very exciting. Because in New York it's just I don't know, if I can make it there I can make it everywhere isn't it?

This group has played so many great venues in your career, but what would you say is your most unforgettable concert?

Carlos: I think it would be at Madison Square Garden [with] Barbra Streisand. When we made the tour with [her] it was amazing. I mean obviously we had so many famous actors and so many people around. It was just fantastic.

David: That was a cool one.

Carlos: That was cool.

Sebastian, you've said in the past that your special connection with the audience is Il Divo's key strength. How do you keep that connection so strong during performances?

Sebastian: I think it's [important] to remember that when you're on that stage, it's not a chore. It's a special moment to be able to perform in front of people. But secondly, some of our fans have traveled around the world and some of them have taken probably mortgages to follow you everywhere -- it's quite scary sometimes. But they're so giving. I think the way to really keep [the connection] with our fans, is to give them back what they give us, because they are such an amazing support. They're always there ... no matter what. We've taken three years out of the public in order to make an amazing record because we didn't want to repeat ourselves ... the fans are still there. They're still waiting for us to come out and perform on stage.

Your group was put together by 'X-Factor' creator Simon Cowell. Have you been watching the new season in the U.S.?

Sebastian: I do. I think the performers are amazing!

http://blog.music.aol.com/2011/12/02/il-divo-live-performance-at-aol-sessions/