Sometimes it’s easy to get lost in your own head. That’s when you need someone like Giorgia Fumanti to remind you there’s a certain other organ you could be listening to instead.
On her new single, “Close To Your Heart,” the Italian-born, Montreal-based pop/classical crossover artist urges us all to never stray too far from our emotional core. Her immaculate soprano soaring over lush orchestration, Fumanti lays out the reasons to always heed that most frequently name-dropped yet perennially underestimated of strengths: the power of love.
Love is brave and gives you the power
To overcome your fears
Be close to your heart
Love is kind and brings you compassion
To understand your life
Be close to your heart
And never leave that place in you
“I enjoy the lyrics very much,” she says, “and the melody is a perfect choice for my voice. The lyrics speak about going through life’s experiences—the joys, the sorrows—while remaining ‘close to your heart’ to navigate the journey of a wonderful life here on Earth.”
The words mean a lot to Fumanti, who wrote them to match music penned for her by Grammy-winning composer/keyboardist Jeff Lorber and producer/SRG/ILS Group label CEO Claude Villani. Her journey means a lot, too, and she just signed a worldwide exclusive deal with The SRG-ILS Group, home of UB40, Lalah Hathaway, Chaka Khan Keke Palmer, Ruben Studdard, Gino Vannelli, Saukrates, David Benoit, Jeff Lorber. The SRG-ILS Group has been distributed by Universal Music Group’s Virgin Music division for the past 15 years.
The accompanying music video narrows that journey as well, following Fumanti through the streets and sights of Old Montreal—not far from her adopted home of Sainte-Anne-des-Lacs [Laurentians], Québec.
It’s no accident that the song has an unmistakably cinematic scope: “Close To Your Heart” is a jewel plucked from Fumanti’s latest album, The Cinema Collection Deluxe Edition, an expanded 23-song version of a record she released last year to showcase her stunning interpretations of notable movie themes and soundtrack singles. Its track list of beloved classics like “Over the Rainbow,” “Take My Breath Away” and “Love Is a Many Splendored Thing” has been augmented with four original numbers: “Close To Your Heart”, “Now We Are Free,” which first appeared on her 2021 album, Mystic and “I Have A Dream,” presented as both a solo number and a duet with South African artist Selim Kagee.
Produced and arranged at Steve’s Production Room in Montreal by Fumanti’s longtime collaborator and fellow Italian Canadian Stefano Galante (who also worked on Andrea Bocelli’s classic Romanza album), the ambitious project isn’t her first time recording music from films. Her second album, 2007’s From My Heart, included four Ennio Morricone movie themes. It certainly worked, given that the record climbed into the Top 20 on Billboard’s classical crossover chart and made it to No. 1 in Japan and South Africa.
That was a rewarding experience for Fumanti all the way around, since revisiting music from movies is like reliving the portion of her formative years she spent sitting in cinemas back home.
“The songs remind me a lot of memories from my childhood in Italy,” she says. “[And] they’re a perfect style for my voice, because it’s not opera; it’s not pop; it’s in between, so I can start like a pop singer, but then go high like a soprano.”
What’s even more rewarding is getting to put her own stamp on the material:
“Of course, we did different arrangements; it’s not a copy,” she clarifies.” In every case, “It’s a new version made by me and my producer.”
Embracing the finest musical traditions while charting her own path has been Fumanti’s M.O. from Day One. Born in the medieval village of Fivizzano in Tuscany and raised in Aulla and Monterosso, she studied voice at the prestigious Conservatorio di Musica Arrigo Boito in Parma. Her obvious talent caught the ear of the record industry, so she relocated to Montreal in 2002, whereupon she was signed to a record deal with ISBA and released her debut album, Like a Dream. She went international in 2007 with From My Heart, issued through Manhattan/EMI.
In the ensuing two decades, she’s made a total of 13 albums, netting 25 million lifetime streams, and racking up worldwide sales of over 1.5 million. She’s performed with the world’s top orchestras in some of the most famous venues, from London’s Royal Albert Hall and Greece’s Athens Arena to New York’s Times Square and China’s Beijing Olympics. Musical heavyweights she’s shared the stage with include Michael Bolton, Jose Carreras, Lang Lang and Justin Hayward of the Moody Blues—not to mention regional sensations like France’s Alain Barriere and Greece’s Mario Frangoulis, as well as Italian superstars Zucchero, Lucio Dalla, Albano and Gino Paoli. Along the way, she recorded a duet of “Nessun Dorma” with Luciano Pavarotti, and even had the honor of meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican.
Somehow, Fumanti finds time for a thriving non-musical life as well. A mother of four, she’s also active in yoga, meditation, and reiki.
Her future plans, she says, call for at least one more collection of movie music, if not more. In the meantime, she’s going to keep hewing to the same advice she’s sharing with the world on her deeply felt new track: “Always remember to listen to your heart!”
