Ti lascio una canzone was an Italian musictalent show for aspiring singers aged 7 to 15, all of which were required to cover the most beloved songs in the history of Italian pop music. The songs covered in the program, which represent the true stars of the show, are “golden oldies”. They are symbolically “left” for us, in what amounts to a musical heritage, to be interpreted by the singers of tomorrow, in order to ensure that the melodies and lyrics which have provided the background music to past generations are not lost. The songs are covered by young singing talents, who interpret the best loved songs of Italian pop music during each broadcast. Italian and international singing guests become part of “story” of the evening’s broadcast, enlarging the musical panorama covered by that particular episode. The guests stars perform without taking part in the competition, singing their greatest hits and engaging in duets with the younger singers. The show assembles a large group of children. The young singers are selected from among the leading students of today’s most prestigious music schools. They are assigned songs as solos, duets, and trios; they sing some songs all together as an ensemble. They may also perform with the show's guests. A 30-piece orchestra backs the performances. The show is officially listed as part of "RAI Junior", but the audience includes not only young people but also their parents and grandparents who enjoy hearing these songs. “TLUC” serves as a perfect link in the “musical chain” that connects the great sings of yesteryear with the magnificent voices of the performers of tomorrow. Further enriching the program are anecdotes and little know facts on the songs covered in the competition, revealed by established singers, composers, actors and celebrities from the world of entertainment, with the additional contribution of commentary and filmed pieces from the period.
Broadcast history
The first season was broadcast live from the Teatro Ariston in Sanremo by RAI 1 in five episodes during April and early May 2008. The performers ranged in age from 10–16 years old. Guests included Liza Minnelli, Paul Anka, and Dionne Warwick, as well as numerous Italian singing stars. Winning performance: ensemble singing "Il mio canto libero" by Lucio Battisti. The second season was broadcast live from the Teatro Ariston in Sanremo in nine episodes in April and May 2009. The performers ranged in age from 8–16 years old. This season was where the producer Roberto Cenci put 14- to 15-year-old boys Gianluca Ginoble, Piero Barone, and Ignazio Boschetto together for the first time. This trio would later become IL VOLO, now popular Tenor/Baritone Operatic-Pop singers worldwide. Winning performance: April: Gianluca Ginoble singing "Il mare calmo della sera" by Andrea Bocelli. May: Ensemble singing "I migliori anni della nostra vita" by Renato Zero. The third season was broadcast live from the RAI Auditorium in Naples in nine weekly episodes beginning March 27, 2010. The performers ranged in age from 7–16 years old. Winning performance: ensemble singing "Girotondo intorno al mondo" by Sergio Endrigo. The fourth season began broadcasting live from the RAI Auditorium in Naples on September 10, 2010 and is projected to have 11 episodes, with the last one to be "La Festa". Performers range from 7–15 years old. In July 2015, it was announced that season 8 would be the last.
The program
The format was created by Roberto Cenci. Host: Antonella Clerici. Producers/writers are: Paolo Cucco, Giancarlo De Andreis, Fabrizio Berlincioni, Carlo Pistarino, Cecilia Tanturri, Simone De Rosa, Francesco Valitutti, Beppe Bosin. Photograph director: Ivan Pierri. The orchestra is conducted by Leonardo De Amicis.
The mechanism of the competition
The competition is structured as follows: the home audience votes for their favourite song. The young singers are not competing with each other, but simply performing the songs in the competition. There are no eliminations. The young people who perform the songs are part of the show's regular cast. A winning performance is selected for each week's broadcast. The winners from the different weeks go up against each in a grand finale held during the last broadcast. The winner for the whole season is selected from among these finalists. There is also a Quality Jury that assigns a critics' award to one of the songs competing in each weekly broadcast.
The members of the home audience can vote their favourite cover songs as many times as they want. The song that receives the most votes wins that week’s broadcast and moves on to the final. The critics’ prize, on the other hand, is awarded by the members of the Quality Jury to the song they most admitted, based, first and foremost, on the way in which the young singer interpreted it. Both awards are presented to the performer of the cast who sang the song.
The quality jury and the critics' award
The jury consists of four guests from the different “worlds” of the arts and the entertainment industry. They can be reporters, singers who began their careers at a very young age, actors and professionals in the field of music. Their assigned task is to vote for the best cover, based their judgment on the quality of the performance as well. They are also asked to give opinions on the young talents who perform during the evening. The critics’ award is given to one of the songs during each of the broadcasts.
