BRAVO! Northville student excelling as an opera vocalist

Northville High School junior Anthony Gennaro III is excelling in a music genre that probably isn’t blasting through most of his peers’ Airpods.

Gennaro, whose family moved to Northville from Indiana when he was in middle school, is earning widespread praise as an opera vocalist.

“It’s a lot like being an athlete,” Gennaro said. “Singing opera requires daily practice, vocal exercises and being able to perform in front of large crowds. It’s important to learn to breathe from your stomach.”

Unlike athletes, opera requires vocalists to learn multiple languages — Italian is especially vital — which is something he enjoys almost as much as singing, he admitted.

He’s performed on opera’s biggest stages

Only 16, Gennaro recently performed “Lungi dal Caro Bene” by Giuseppe Sarti at Carnegie Hall in New York City after winning first place in the Golden Classical Music Awards International Competition.

His resume also includes several other honors, including taking home gold prize awards in the World Grand Prix International Music Contests in the Young Artist and Baroque divisions.

Gennaro, the son of Anthony and Christina Gennaro, was awarded a scholarship from the Tuesday Musicale of Detroit Student League competition and the CSMusic All-State awards.

Later this month, Gennaro is scheduled to compete in the second round of the CS Music Vocal Competition in Chicago.

Ready to perform in Italy this summer

To top it all off, the high school intern for Detroit’s Rackham Choir is headed to Italy this summer to perform in Opera Lucca’s Le Nozze di Figaro.

“My mom signed me up for singing lessons when I was very young and I’ve loved it since Day 1,” he said. “When I lived in Indiana, I joined the Indianapolis Children’s Choir.

“My love for the genre really took off once I watched my first live opera.”

Gennaro said males’ voices change — either higher or lower — until they are 24, which involves the vocalists to adapt.

Learning languages is key

In addition to English, Gennaro can speak Spanish and is becoming more adept at Italian by the day.

“Probably my favorite thing about opera is I get to tell a story while I’m singing,” he said. “And it’s always nice to hear the audience show their approval once the performance is done.”

Gennaro said his family and friends’ support of his unique endeavor has been important to his success.

A vocalist for life

“I want to study vocal performance in college, although I’m unsure of where I’m going at this point since I’m only a junior,” he said. “When most people think of opera, they think of New York City, but there are operas all over the country.

He said Josh Groben is among his favorite singers.

While Groben is known mostly for his contemporary romantic ballads, he is classically trained (like Gennaro) and performs opera and classical songs in Italian Spanish and French.

When he’s not studying, singing or spending time with family and friends, Gennaro enjoys producing short films.

Ed Wright can be reached at 734-664-4657 or edwright@socialhousenews.com.