Nathan Pacheco Comes to Chicago's Harris Theatre in Nov 2012; PBS Special Airs Today, 8/23

With two PBS concert specials and a new self-titled Disney Pearl debut album, Nathan Pacheco is headlining a North American tour, which will stop in Chicago at the Harris Theatre for Music and Dance at Millennium Park (205 East Randolph Street) Tuesday, November 13, 2012 at 7 p.m. The PBS special, "Introducing Nathan Pacheco: Live in Concert" airs today, August 23, 2012 on WTTW in Chicago.

Tickets for Nathan Pacheco's Harris Theater performance, which range from $35-$45, go on-sale September 21, 2012 at the Harris Theater for Music and Dance box office located in Millennium Park at 205 E. Randolph Dr., by calling 312-334-7777 or by visiting www.harristheaterchicago.org.

Like Andrea Bocelli and Josh Groban before him, Nathan Pacheco mastered the art of pop/classical crossover. The new album produced by Leo-Z (Josh Groban, Andrea Bocelli, and Tom Hanks' "Electric City"), showcases the passionate vocals Pacheco first revealed with the 2009 Voices project. With "Avatar" set as the premiere focus track, the new album arrives in stores September 18, 2012.

With his technique, Pacheco could go toe-to-toe with the finest operatic tenors. But for Nathan, technique is, well, just a technicality, a tool for conveying emotion. In everything he sings – from Puccini to Leonard Cohen – feeling is all that counts.

His new album showcases Nathan's remarkable versatility. Over the 12 tracks, he sings in four languages and multiple genres, from pop to folk to opera. Few voices can pull off such a feat, but Nathan makes it look easy and sound beautiful. "All my efforts to master technique are for the sole purpose of connecting with people," he says. "That's what I go for every time. The more control I have, the more freedom I have to express what I feel."

From the opening track, "Avatar," which he co-wrote, Nathan shows his hand: warm, passionate vocals conveying tales of love, hope and glory. "I love singing songs that are just beautiful," he says. "Some, like 'Avatar,' are completely pop and have nothing to do with opera. Others focus on the classical side of singing. There's no scientific formula: I just find great songs I can connect with."

With his opera background, Italian comes naturally to Nathan, as is clear in power ballads like "Infinito Amore," "Caruso," and "La Scelta." Says Nathan, "For 15 years I've been singing in Italian. There's something about the language that lends itself to my style. It allows my voice to soar."

Keeping things Mediterranean, Nathan sings "Perdona" and "Oyela," both performed in Spanish, as well as the lilting "Que L'Amour," sung in French. And for good measure, Nathan does a soaring rendition of "Now We Are Free," from the 2001 Oscar-winning film, "Gladiator."

The Washington, D.C. native grew up listening to classic American pop, showing his affinity on a stunning reworking of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah," as well as on co-penned originals "Unbreakable," the folk-flavored "Tears From Heaven" and "Don't Cry." Says Nathan, "I love writing as much as I love singing."

And for true opera fans, Nathan sings Puccini's timeless "Nessun Dorma," but with the daringly contemporary orchestration. As much as he respects tradition, Nathan remains a forward-looking musical visionary eager to do music his way.

Growing up near the nation's capital, Nathan developed a love for music as a child. His mother, a piano teacher, started Nathan early on with piano and violin lessons. Though basketball was his focus for a while, by high school he was a serious student of voice. "Classical was familiar because of the home I was raised in," he recalls. "But then, as now, I listened to a wide variety of music that reaches me, whether Beethoven or Dave Matthews Band."

There were other artists he loved: The Three Tenors, Andrea Bocelli and Josh Groban, each pioneers in pop-classical fusion. During his vocal studies at BYU he contemplated a similar path. After a mission to Brazil (the ancestral home of his grandfather) and a study-abroad program in Italy, Nathan rolled the dice and met with producer Ric Wake, who sought talented singers for a new project.

Recalls Nathan, "Ric said 'We're taking Yanni's songs and putting lyrics to them. I want you to write lyrics and sing at the audition." That's precisely what he did, and once Yanni discovered Nathan's voice and songwriting skills, they signed the singer up for the Voices project. He and three other singers wrote, recorded and ultimately performed 80 concerts across the U.S., Canada and Mexico.

That whirlwind led Nathan to sign with Disney Pearl. Once he and Italian-born multi-platinum composer/producer/songwriter Leo-Z joined forces, it was just a matter of picking the right songs. The new album was then recorded in Los Angeles and at London's famed Air Lyndhurst Studios with The London Philharmonia Orchestra.

Last Christmas, Disney Pearl released the single "O' Holy Night," a duet with Welsh multi-platinum mezzo-soprano Katherine Jenkins. Eager to get back to live performing, Nathan then joined Jenkins on a sold-out 25-city U.K. tour with the London Symphony Orchestra. In December 2011, Nathan also performed his first headlining concert dates at L.A.'s Geffen Playhouse, where he premiered songs from the new album in a special program in tribute to mentor Gil Cates.

Nathan appears in two all-new PBS concert specials, taped at Santa Monica's Broad Theater, "Introducing Nathan Pacheco: Live In Concert" airing beginning in August, 2012, and "Nathan Pacheco: Christmas" airs in December. He'll have plenty of opportunities to sing live once the new album ships, as he will embark on his first headlining tour in November.

Now living in Nashville, Nathan hopes fans enjoy listening to his music "as much as I love singing, because," as he says, "I don't think I'm going to be able to stop any time soon."

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