Gioconda Veschelli, a global bridge in the world of music

Gioconda Veschelli, the Italian opera queen singer known for her fusion of opera with Indian music has been very active this year 2025. Recently, she has released a new song titled 'Tiki Tiki' in three languages- English, Spanish and Hindi, which caught the attention of all music lovers across the globe. She also continues to collaborate with renowned Indian artists like Zubeen Garg. Gioconda acts and sings with him, which clearly shows her deep connection with Indian music.

Her fans are eager to see if she will accept the offers being offered to her right now, which could introduce her to a wider audience beyond music lovers.

Apart from music and potential TV appearances, Gioconda shares glimpses of her nomadic lifestyle and travels, like her recent trip to Tunisia. It reflects her adventurous spirit and love for exploring new cultures. She remains a powerful figure blending East and West, and continues to inspire many with her music and personality.

Here is a recent interview with Gioconda Vessichelli :

• You are the first singer in the world to create a bridge between Western and Eastern music and culture through your Bollywoopra style? How did you make it possible?

Yes, it was one of the thousands of learnings that my over-creative mind suggested to me and it happened at a special moment in my life. I had come to India for a spiritual journey that led me to take a dip in the holi mother Ganges River. In that very moment, my Ganga Mata Ji gave me the answers to all the questions of my life. So I thought India has gifted me a lot from spiritual point of view and I should gift some part of my creativity to India as per the “do ut des” process of karma.

• You are called the inventor and leader of Bollywood opera genre, what do you have to say about this?

I have introduced opera with Bollywood music for the first time in India . Hence the name “Bollywood Opera”. This is my invention, which is patented in Delhi and I am proud to say that I have received the Indian Mahila Award even though I am not an Indian, just because I have created a cultural bridge between western culture and Indian culture, before me Mother Teresa was also given the same award as a foreigner.

• You have sung in many Bollywood films and also given live performances, what is your experience about Indian listeners and audiences?

Just amazing. Wherever I sang, I got a standing ovation from the audience because Indian audiences are always open minded and curious about new and innovative things…. just like me! Because I have a curious soul inside me. It is the child inside me, who always pushes me towards the unexplored. It is the way to move ahead in life..always keep your eyes and senses open. That is what Indian people do..that is why India is growing so fast and I am sure it will become the most powerful country in the world very soon!

• You have worked with the great artists and singers of India and also with many global singers and musicians. What difference do you find between Indian artists, musicians and other non-Indian artists?

Well, non-Indian artists plan everything months in advance. They are more strict in respecting the time and dates. Indian artists are more spontaneous and less mechanical. Sometimes I used to feel that we are very late in delivering music or projects..because nothing is ready till the last minute. But then in the last minute magic happens. And the result is amazing! I love how Indian artists know every single note by heart even without writing hundreds of pages of music notes...I really feel that there is something different in the DNA of Indian people. Maybe because they do a lot of yoga or eat different types of food...I don't know...but it is very beautiful that Indian children start writing at the age of 3, whereas mostly in the western countries they start writing at the age of 6. When I meet people who can memorize phone numbers...and above all sing a whole concert with thousands of notes without writing  it ...then it seems like they have a computer instead of a human brain.

• You have a sweet voice but at the same time it is passionate and mischievous, what is the real specialty of your voice and style?

My voice is the mirror of my soul..it has so many tones and it is very versatile. My teacher Luciano Pavarotti (the greatest opera singer in the world) used to say that the big can accommodate the small but not vice versa. I started my career as an opera singer (where opera singers sing without a microphone and all live their song with a high pitch technique which makes the voice sound like it is using a microphone) It allows you to pass a huge orchestra of about 50 musical instruments without losing your voice. Just imagine that the duration of an opera is from 3 to 5 hours.

So when you get used to a very tough life, getting up at 4 am and singing live in the theatre, acting while singing at the same time, memorising and coordinating thousands of pages of opera scores while on stage, going 'on one tempo' with the conductor and the orchestra...coordinating all these actions at the same time...it is not an easy thing...but it increases your brain power. That is why when I sing pop and even don't use a mic and I don't have an acting script to follow on stage and there is an orchestra of 5 elements and not 50...it is much more comfortable for me and this kind of mood gives me the possibility to discover new sounds in my voice. Creating your masterpiece with 20 colours is better than being a painter who has only one colour.

• Tell us something about your last concert held some time ago?

It was a lovely surprise for me, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of a career started as a child prodigy, I had 3 tenors in the concert with me and so many beautiful memories are now in my heart as I started the concert singing from the opera "Tosca", the aria "Vissi d'Arte" which sealed the beginning of my career. I won the first International Opera Competition (6 and many more after that) but the first was very special for me as the pianist of the great soprano Maria Callas accompanied me with the piano. He came close to me and said "Your voice reminds me so much of Maria Callas' voice. If now, as a child you can already sing such difficult operas like Tosca, what will you sing when you become an adult?". And actually when I became adult a contemporary composer who was ALIVE and sitting in the audience (what a huge responsibility for the singers during the show!) Composed "Lavinia fuggita"opera ,a very difficult opera which I learned in only 5 days (not months like it happened for my collegues) and I sung it in. Teatro Comunale di Módena, it was aired in Italian government Radio2  as a FIRST worldwide execution..and I was the soprano singer !! That is how my name is in the encyclopedia of opera nowadays ;-)

• You are a born artist and singer, did you ever think of commanding such a place in Bollywood, I mean did you ever think that you will be tagged as the queen of Bollywood music opera fusion?

No, I never thought. Moreover when this happened I was in India to find answers to the questions of my life and I came alone, with a small bag of 5 kgs, carrying only the essentials, in an adventurous mood, no makeup, no big luggage where all the insecurities could be carried and it was in the essentials, not in the unnecessary things, and then the magic happened.

Gioconda's eyes seemed wandering in the past and present. Her beautiful face, bright, curious, passionate almond eyes, ever ready to run in the unknown paths of life. The conversation ended there. With promises to meet again.

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