Northern Rivers Symphony Orchestra is proud to present a very special concert featuring a mother and son duo, Patricia Bellasi and Marco Bellasi.
Originally from Australia, Patricia was a primary music teacher but decided early on that her first love was singing, and after being inspired by Italian opera and singers such as Renata Tebaldi, she decided to travel to Italy. Whilst there, she did an audition at the Florentine conservatorium and was accepted in the class of Madame Desderi, who later became an international star. After five years of intense study and work, she completed her degree with the highest marks and then won a competition to enter the chorus at Maggio Musicale. She later worked full-time at La Scala opera theatre in Milan for 24 years whilst raising her son. Patricia now lives in Coolangatta with her husband Massimo, and she also enjoyed performing in Aida on the Beach in 2017 with Opera Australia.
Patricia will join on stage with her son, prize-winning conductor Marco Bellasi. Marco graduated in conducting at Milan Conservatoire ‘Giuseppe Verdi’ in 2007 and recently finished his appoinment as a Junior-Fellow conductor at the Royal Northern College of Music in Manchester, U.K. He has worked with several prominent orchestras including the BBC, Tasmanian and Melbourne Symphony Orchestras and Manchester Camerata. He is currently the musical director of the Oldham Symphony Orchestra in England.
The NRSO is delighted to welcome our first international guest conductor Marco Bellasi, and we look forward to showcasing a stunning aria, overture to The Force of Destiny by Verdi, featuring the conductor’s mum, soprano Patricia Bellasi. Later in the program, we see our very own NRSO musicians Karen Ruprecht and Neil Heymink display their talent in the Concerto for Two Bassoons by Johann Baptist Vanhal. “A Touch of Italy” is on Sunday 28th July 2019, 2.30pm at Tweed Heads Civic Centre. For tickets please visit nrso.com.au.