Musical Prodigies: Robertino Loretti (Italy, 1947- )


Figure 1.--This is the Italian "Baker's Boy" singer, Robertino Loretti, I believe after he began his Danish TV career about 1960. The Danish TV producer insisted that he wear short pants.

Robertino's real name is Roberto Loreti. Robertino was born during 1947 in Rome. He was raised in a large family of eight brothers and sisters. The family had little money. While Robertino was in 5th grade at age 10, his father became got sick. To help out, Robertino got a job as a baker's boy. He had a delivery route with Trastervere's restaurants. He liked to sing traditional folk songs during his deliveries. The people on his route began to notice the beautiful singing, When he delivered bread to a restaurant hosting a wedding, he was asked to sing. He amazed the guests and soon other restaurants all over Rome were asking him to sing.

Parents

We do not know much about Robertino's parents, except that they had little money, at least before his music career began. Apparently his father accompanied for his concert and television appearance during the early phase of his career. His mother stayed hime totake care of his brother's and sisters.

Childhood

Robertino's real name is Roberto Loreti. Robertino was born during 1947 in Rome. He was raised in a large family of eight brothers and sisters. The family had little money. While Robertino was in 5th grade at age 10, his father became got sick. To help out, Robertino got a job as a baker's boy.


Figure 2.--Here Robertino is seen at home with one of his little brothers. I'm not sure when the photograph was taken. Apparentlythe little boy also wanted to be a singer.

Childhood Clothing

WE have little information about the clothes Robertino wore as a boy. Like other Italian boys he commonly wore short pants. We know that at age 13 when he appeared on Danish television that he wanted to wear long pants. I'm not sure if this was because he had begun to wear long pants already in Italy or because he thought that at th beginning of his TV career at age 13 that he was old enough to begin wearing long trousers.

Education

We know little about Robertino's education. We know that through the 5th grade that he attended a regular Italian school. We are not sure if there was a school uniform like a smock. This was very common in Italy at the time.

Music Training

As far as we know Robertino had no formal musical training as a child. We are unsure how he learned to sing so well. Perhaps his father liked to sing. Once his music career bgan, he started to study music.

Early Singing

He had a delivery route with Trastervere's restaurants. He liked to sing traditional folk songs during his deliveries. The people on his route began to notice the beautiful singing, When he delivered bread to a restaurant hosting a wedding, he was asked to sing. He amazed the guests and soon other restaurants all over Rome were asking him to sing.


Figure 3.--This photograph ws taken while Robertino was still going to school in Italy, probably about 1958.

Italian Films

With his reputation as a singer growing, Robertino was soon involved in movies. Some of his films included "Il Ritorno di Don Camillo" with Fernandel and G. Cervi, and "Eroi di Sabbia" with Jeff Cameron and Richard Harris. I'm not sure yet what roles he had in these films.

Opera

Robertino also got involved in opera. He played the lead singer in the choir for a production of "Murder in the Cathedral" by T.S. Eliot, put into music by Ildebrando Pizzetti. It was staged in the Opera Theatre in Vatican City. Pope John XXIII attended as was so moved by Robertino's singing that he insisted on meeting him.


Figure 4.--This is the Italian "Baker's Boy" singer, Robertino Loretti, I believe after he began his Danish TV career about 1960.

Danish Television

Robertino often sang at the Cafe Grand Italia where many foreigners ate. It was here that the Neapolitan actor Toto and the Danish TV director Volmer Sørensen first heard him sing. It was 1960 and Robrtino was 12 years old. Sørensen was vacatioing in Rome with his wife, singer Grethe Sønck. She heard a beautiful voice singing "O Sole Mio" and thus found Robertino singing in an outdoor cafe. Robertino took Sørensen to his parents and weeks later Robertino was in Copenhagen escorted by his father singing on Sørensen’s Danish TV-show, "TV I Tivoli". He was an immediate success! Robertino was excited with all the attention, but was not at all happy that Sørensen had insisted that he wear short pants, presumably to stress his youth in the TV persformances. Robertino was now 13 years old and thought that he should be allowed to wear long pants! The image seen here appears to have been made at about this time (figure 1).

Records

Robertino recorded an album while in Copenhagen with Otto Francker as the musical director. Francker was impressed with Robertino. Looking back Robertino remembers Francker making him work very hard during the recordings. Those first recordings made in Copnhagn, however, played a major role in Robertino's career.

Personal Appearances

The Danish television performances introduced Robertino to music fans throughout northern Europe. He gave concers all over Europe (Sweden, Norway, Finland, Iceland, Belgium, England, Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, Austria). He spent a great deal of time outside of Italy at this time. He would return to Italy during the important hilidays to hug his mother and brothers and sisters. He also participated in many Italian music events such as San Remo Festival, Cantagiro, Festival di Napoli (won in 1966 together with Sergio Bruni), and Disco per l'Estate, Canzonissima. Italians began to refer to him as the new Carruso. Robertino gave performances attended by many famous pople. He sang in France in front of President de Gaulle in a performance that included the best known French singers of the day, Montand, Becaud, Greco and Aznavour. In the Netherlands he sang before the royal family. obertino began to pick up foreign languages and add foreign songs to his original Italian repotoire. He was inclided in performances with the great stars of the era, including Nana Mouskouri, Josephine Baker, Pat Boon, Marlene Dietrich. Audiences aclaimed him. He received a 36 minute ovation in Romania. There were also concert tours outside of Europe. He performed in America, Canada, Russia, Japan, and Australia. He performed on the "Ed Sullivan Show" which in the late 1950s and 60s was the most important talent/variety show on American teevision. (It was Ed Sulivan that intoduced both Elvis Presly and the Beatles to the wider American audience.) While in America he appeard in Carnegie-Hall and Madison Square Garden. During this time he acquired many nicknames: Golden Boy (America), Señor Simpatia (Mexico), Ambassador of Italian Music (Japan), and for some strange reason Mister Jamaica (Russia). Robertino's child career peaked at the heighth of the Cold War. Curiously his biggest fans proved to be the Soviet People. In fact, another nickname was the "Voice of Space". Apparenly Russian Cosmonaut Yuri Gagarin loved his songs and the first woman astronaut Valentina Tereskova and her colleague-husband Valeri Bikowski wanted to listen to Robertino's songs during their space voyage on board "Vostok". Robertino's songs proved enormously popular in Russia and are still extensively broadcast there. Both Kruschev and Yeltsin as well as the Soviet people loved his music. Little did anybody know, least of all Robertino, when he began singing as a baker's boy that he was going to be a living legend in the Soviet Union.





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Created: September 5, 2003
Last updated: September 5, 2003