The son of an Italian tenor and an American soprano, Gianluca Sciarpelletti grew up in the presence of some of the world’s greatest musicians – listening to and ‘inhaling’ the performances of family friends such as Luigi Ricci, Licia Albanese, Mario Filippeschi, Anita Cerquetti, and great American tenor Richard Tucker, – inspiring his great passion for classical music. It was, however, the renowned conductor Franco Ferrara who first launched Gianluca’s musical education at the age of 6 by teaching him how to play the violin.
He continued his violin studies at the Conservatory of Music ‘Licinio Refice’ Frosinone, but later switched to Voice, studying first under the tutelage of his parents, and then at the National Conservatory Santa Cecilia in Rome where he graduated with highest honors, receiving a diploma in Voice, and a post graduate degree in Advanced Musical and Artistic Formation (A.F.A.M.).
While at the Conservatory, he participated in the Master Classes of Estonian baritone Mati Palm and famed Italian tenor Giuseppe Sabbatini, as well as studying Theatre Arts with Italian film director, actor and screenwriter, Ugo Gregoretti. He further studied with the legendary lyric tenor Nicola Martinucci at the International Academy of Lyrical Opera G. Verdi, Terni. At the invitation of David Holloway, then Chairman of the Voice Department at the Chicago College of Performing Art, Roosevelt University, Gianluca attended the Master Class of the great mezzo- soprano Regina Resnik. “The extraordinary and artistic quality” of his singing so impressed Ms. Resnik and the other docenti that they asked him to assist in teaching Voice and Italian operatic repertoire.
An Italian opera critic once wrote of him, “He excels for his powerful stage presence and for his very distinct and classic vocality. Possessing a voice of higher pitch rich in harmony and characterized by a lyric, heroic tone, one is struck by his ability to convey and instill emotions thanks to the richness of color and nuance as he performs the grand repertoire of classical Opera.” Gianluca made his debut as ‘Riccardo’ in Un Ballo In Maschera under the direction of Gabriella Ravazzi, founder and director of ‘Spazio Musica’- an Italian government supported academic institution offering a forum for musical workshop and international stage competition. His current repertoire includes already debuted operas like Rigoletto, La Traviata, Il Trovatore, Aida, Madame Butterfly, La Boheme, Tosca, Turandot, Cavalleria Rusticana, Carmen, Pagliacci and Otello. The combination of his stature (at 6’6″) and his beautiful, lyrical voice bring the same compelling force to his classical concert performances, including those of sacred music held in some of the most spectacular basilicas of the world. In Rome, he performed a world premiere composed and directed by Andrea Morricone at the Basilica di Santa Maria Sopra Minerva, and was invited to sing Verdi’s Requiem under the direction of Tomomi Nishimoto at the Basilica Papale San Paolo fuori le Mura, in occasion of the “XIII Festival Internazionale di Musica e Arte Sacra Roma e Vaticano” dedicated to Pope Paul VI.
A recipient of several international awards, Gianluca has sung in Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Spanish and Russian, appearing on stage both in his native Italy – Teatro dell’Opera di Roma, Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Eur Palazzo dei Congressi, Teatro Unione di Viterbo, Teatro Mancinelli di Orvieto, and abroad including – Lincoln Center in New York, Chicago Ruggles Hall, the Opera City Concert Hall, Tokyo, Japan, the Forest Theatre, Tassaloniki Greece, Royal Albert Hall, London, England, National and Presidential theatre Pyongyang north Korea, the Beijing Poly Theatre, China, Shenzhen Concert Hall, Shanghai Concert Hall, Shaanxi Performing Art Center, National Moravian-Silesian Theatre Ostrava e Slezé Divadlo Theatre, Opava Czech Republic.
He was also honored to perform the Aida at the opening of the Beijing Music Festival with soprano Hui He and mezzo soprano Ildiko’ Komlosi, under the baton of Yu Long – Artistic Director and Chief Conductor of the China Philharmonic Orchestra, Music Director of the Shanghai Symphony, and founder of the BMF. This was followed by an invitation from the talented and dynamic Lu Jia – Chief Conductor of the NCPA Orchestra and Principal Conductor of the Macao Orchestra, to perform at a private concert celebrating the opening of the 2014 Opera Season in Macao, China, and he was the ‘Guest Artist’ at the annual BNL TELETHON (supporting scientific research of genetic disease) hosted by Riccardo Cotarella – President of the ‘Union Internationale des Oenologues’ and Chairman of the Scientific Committee of EXPO MILANO 2015 at his Falesco Estate Winery in Umbria, Italy. A generous philanthropist, he is often invited to charity functions and fundraisers.
Gianluca has participated in recordings of first performances and concerts including “Petite Messe Solemnelle” by Rossini, and “Requiem” by Verdi broadcast by RAI International TV. In addition to his singing career, he is deeply involved in education and he holds the position of vice president of the AME (European Musical Academy).
He holds a Doctorate degree in Political Science from the University of Siena, Italy. Gianluca is of American/Italian dual citizenship.