Alessandro Giacomo Brustenghi, OFM (born 21 April 1978), better known as Friar Alessandro, is an Italian

Franciscan The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

friar and a

tenor A tenor is a type of male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the countertenor and baritone voice types. It is the highest male chest voice type. Composers typically write music for this voice in the range from the second B below m ...

singer of religious music. He is also the first

religious brother A religious brother (abbreviated Br. or Bro. as a title) is a laity, lay male member of a religious institute or religious order who commits himself to following Christ in consecrated life, usually by the vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. E ...

to land an exclusive record contract with a major record label, in this case

Universal Music Universal Music Group N.V. (often abbreviated as UMG and referred to as Universal Music Group or Universal Music) is a Dutch– American multinational music corporation under Dutch law. UMG's corporate headquarters are located in Hilversum ...

.Toute la culture: Un moine franciscain peut-il devenir une star?
Friar Alessandro's debut album is called ''Voice from Assisi'' (in Italian'' La voce da Assisi'' or in French ''La voix d'Assise''). It was released on 15 October 2012. The initial single is a double-A side release, the tracks "

Panis Angelicus (Latin for "Bread of Angels" or "Angelic Bread") is the penultimate stanza of the hymn "" written by Saint Thomas Aquinas for the feast of Corpus Christi as part of a complete liturgy of the feast, including prayers for the Mass and the Liturgy o ...

" and " Sancta Maria". The first is the penultimate

strophe A strophe () is a poetic term originally referring to the first part of the ode in Ancient Greek tragedy, followed by the antistrophe and epode. The term has been extended to also mean a structural division of a poem containing stanzas of var ...

of the hymn ''

Sacris solemniis "''Sacris solemniis''" is a hymn written by St. Thomas Aquinas (1225–1274) for the feast of Corpus Christi (also known as the Solemnity of the Holy Body and Blood of Christ). The strophe of Sacris solemniis that begins with the words "''Panis ...

'' written by Saint

Thomas Aquinas Thomas Aquinas ( ; ; – 7 March 1274) was an Italian Dominican Order, Dominican friar and Catholic priest, priest, the foremost Scholasticism, Scholastic thinker, as well as one of the most influential philosophers and theologians in the W ...

for the

Feast of Corpus Christi The Feast of Corpus Christi (), also known as the Solemnity of the Most Holy Body and Blood of Christ, is a liturgical solemnity celebrating the real presence of Christ in the Eucharist; the feast is observed by the Latin Church, in addition to ...

and the second is from ''

Cavalleria rusticana ''Cavalleria rusticana'' (; ) is an opera in one act by Pietro Mascagni to an Italian libretto by Giovanni Targioni-Tozzetti and Guido Menasci, adapted from an 1880 Cavalleria rusticana (short story), short story of the same name and subsequent ...

''.

Biography

Alessandro Brustenghi was born in

Perugia Perugia ( , ; ; ) is the capital city of Umbria in central Italy, crossed by the River Tiber. The city is located about north of Rome and southeast of Florence. It covers a high hilltop and part of the valleys around the area. It has 162,467 ...

, Italy. He started playing music at the age of 9, with a desire to be a percussionist. He started learning to play the piano and organ at 14. He also took part in choirs, but never as a lead singer. At 21, he joined the

Franciscan order The Franciscans are a group of related organizations in the Catholic Church, founded or inspired by the Italian saint Francis of Assisi. They include three independent Religious institute, religious orders for men (the Order of Friars Minor bei ...

and sang at the

Basilica of Santa Maria degli Angeli The Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels () is a papal minor basilica situated in the plain at the foot of the hill of Assisi, Italy, in the ''frazione'' of Santa Maria degli Angeli. The basilica was constructed in the Mannerist style between ...

Assisi Assisi (, also ; ; from ; Central Italian: ''Ascesi'') is a town and comune of Italy in the Province of Perugia in the Umbria region, on the western flank of Monte Subasio. It is generally regarded as the birthplace of the Latin poet Prope ...

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

where he worked as a

joiner Joinery is a part of woodworking that involves joining pieces of wood, engineered lumber, or synthetic substitutes (such as laminate), to produce more complex items. Some woodworking joints employ mechanical fasteners, bindings, or adhesives, ...

carpenter Carpentry is a skilled trade and a craft in which the primary work performed is the cutting, shaping and installation of building materials during the construction of buildings, ships, timber bridges, concrete formwork, etc. Carpenter ...

. The friars first noticed his beautiful

voice when he had to pass a vocal exam to enter the ministry.The Arts Desk: Friar Alessandro, The Voice of Assisi
/ref> Some of his recordings were introduced to Mike Hedges (producer to U2,

Dido Dido ( ; , ), also known as Elissa ( , ), was the legendary founder and first queen of the Phoenician city-state of Carthage (located in Tunisia), in 814 BC. In most accounts, she was the queen of the Phoenician city-state of Tyre (located ...

The Cure The Cure are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Crawley in 1976 by Robert Smith (musician), Robert Smith (vocals, guitar) and Lol Tolhurst (drums). The band's current line-up comprises Smith, Perry Bamonte (guitar and keyboards), Reev ...

Manic Street Preachers Manic Street Preachers, also known simply as the Manics, are a Wales, Welsh Rock music, rock band formed in Blackwood, Caerphilly, in 1986. The band consists of Nicky Wire (bass guitar, lyrics) and cousins James Dean Bradfield (lead vocals, le ...

amongst others) who, after hearing his voice, offered him to produce an album of sacred music, both traditional and contemporary, in

Abbey Road Studios Abbey Road Studios (formerly EMI Recording Studios) is a music recording studio at 3 Abbey Road, London, Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of ...

. To record the album, Friar Alessandro had to take a plane to London. This was the first time he traveled by air. In accordance with his religious vows, he does not travel far or accept monetary compensation to promote his album. He instead donates his share of proceeds to the

Order of Friars Minor The Order of Friars Minor (commonly called the Franciscans, the Franciscan Order, or the Seraphic Order; Post-nominal letters, postnominal abbreviation OFM) is a Mendicant orders, mendicant Catholic religious order, founded in 1209 by Francis ...

, his Roman Catholic religious community around the world.

Discography

Albums

Singles

*2012: "

" / " Sancta Maria"

References

External links

Friar Alessandro English website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alessandro, Friar Italian tenors 1978 births Italian Friars Minor Living people People from Assisi 21st-century Italian male singers Carpenters