Marco Borsato
Encyclopedia
Marco Borsato is a Dutch
singer. He started performing in Italian
before switching to Dutch
in 1994. He is married to Leontine Ruiters and has three children.
as the son of Roberto Borsato and Mary de Graaf. He has a brother, Armando, and a sister, Sylvana. The family moved to Italy
, where the father started up a restaurant in Garda
. Marco spent a significant amount of time in Italy and speaks fluent Italian. In fact, Marco admitted that his Italian is much better than his Dutch.
When Marco was 12 years old he decided he wanted to be a sushi chef. Marco, though brought up with Italian cuisine, had a great love for raw fish bound in seaweed. When he was older he went to school during the week and he worked in a restaurant during the weekends. During his conscription he was bound to the cavalery, where he was conscripted as a NCO. Success stayed out after Marco Borsato won the Dutch Soundmixshow
on April 6, 1990 with his rendition of Billy Vera
's song "At This Moment." During that time he was indeed working as a chef.
Marco brought out 3 albums with Italian songs, but it wasn't until 1994 that Marco gained popularity after his first Dutch single "Dromen Zijn Bedrog" which reached number one and remained number one for 12 weeks. His second single "Waarom Nou Jij" also reached the first place in the Dutch "Top 40."
Many of his songs are actually Dutch covers or adaptations of Italian songs, (for example by Riccardo Fogli
, Giorgia
, Riccardo Cocciante
, Claudio Baglioni
, Marco Masini
and Zucchero
). In particular, he had quite a success with an adaptation of Margherita by Riccardo Cocciante. Because the majority of Marco's songs are originally written in Italian he has recently decided to compose songs in Dutch, after which he has become far more popular.
In 2009 Marco nearly went bankrupt when his company The Entertainment Group was caught up in a web of debt. Though this is probably not a result of Marco's choice to compose dutch songs, it could have to do with the economic crisis.
Marco married his wife Leontine Ruiters and they have 3 children together Luca (1998), Senna (2001 en Jada (2002).
, which helps children in (post-)conflict areas to cope with their war experiences.
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
singer. He started performing in Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
before switching to Dutch
Dutch language
Dutch is a West Germanic language and the native language of the majority of the population of the Netherlands, Belgium, and Suriname, the three member states of the Dutch Language Union. Most speakers live in the European Union, where it is a first language for about 23 million and a second...
in 1994. He is married to Leontine Ruiters and has three children.
Biography
Marco was born in the Wilhelmina Hospital in AlkmaarAlkmaar
Alkmaar is a municipality and a city in the Netherlands, in the province of Noord Holland. Alkmaar is well known for its traditional cheese market. For tourists, it is a popular cultural destination.-History:...
as the son of Roberto Borsato and Mary de Graaf. He has a brother, Armando, and a sister, Sylvana. The family moved to Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, where the father started up a restaurant in Garda
Garda (Italian commune)
Garda is a comune on the shore of Lake Garda, in the province of Verona, region of Veneto, Northeastern Italy.It is one of the more characteristic towns on the east Coast of the homonymous biggest lake in Italy: the Lake of Garda....
. Marco spent a significant amount of time in Italy and speaks fluent Italian. In fact, Marco admitted that his Italian is much better than his Dutch.
When Marco was 12 years old he decided he wanted to be a sushi chef. Marco, though brought up with Italian cuisine, had a great love for raw fish bound in seaweed. When he was older he went to school during the week and he worked in a restaurant during the weekends. During his conscription he was bound to the cavalery, where he was conscripted as a NCO. Success stayed out after Marco Borsato won the Dutch Soundmixshow
Soundmixshow
Soundmixshow is the original Dutch version of Stars In Their Eyes; it was hosted by Henny Huisman, as a live-vocals version of the increasingly obsolete Playback Show...
on April 6, 1990 with his rendition of Billy Vera
Billy Vera
Billy Vera is an American singer, actor, writer and music historian.-Life and career:Vera was born in Riverside, California. He began his singing career in 1962 as a member of the Resolutions. He went on to write several songs throughout the early 1960s, writing for the likes of Barbara Lewis,...
's song "At This Moment." During that time he was indeed working as a chef.
Marco brought out 3 albums with Italian songs, but it wasn't until 1994 that Marco gained popularity after his first Dutch single "Dromen Zijn Bedrog" which reached number one and remained number one for 12 weeks. His second single "Waarom Nou Jij" also reached the first place in the Dutch "Top 40."
Many of his songs are actually Dutch covers or adaptations of Italian songs, (for example by Riccardo Fogli
Riccardo Fogli
Riccardo Fogli is an Italian singer.-Early career:Riccardo Fogli was born on 21 October 1947 in Pontedera. He was fond of music since his childhood. In the 1960s, he became a fan of The Beatles, which also influenced his decision to start his career as a singer.In 1964, at the age of 17, Fogli...
, Giorgia
Giorgia Todrani
Giorgia Todrani, best known as Giorgia is an Italian female singer and song-writer, known for her soulful voice, which is aided by a wide vocal range, high belting register and great vocal abilities. She is one of the most iconic and famous Italian singers. She has released ten studio albums,...
, Riccardo Cocciante
Riccardo Cocciante
Riccardo Cocciante, also known in French-speaking countries as Richard Cocciante , is an Italian singer-songwriter and actor. His oeuvre includes recordings in Italian, French, and Spanish; he has recorded some of his songs in all three languages.He was born in Saigon, French Indochina, now Ho Chi...
, Claudio Baglioni
Claudio Baglioni
Claudio Baglioni is an Italian musician. His various works include the official Anthem for the 2006 Olympic Winter Games in Turin. He has also written for previous sporting events....
, Marco Masini
Marco Masini
Marco Masini is an Italian singer-songwriter- Career :Marco Masini was born on September 18, 1964, the Italian city of Florence. His mother, Anna Maria, sang and played piano, and was an elementary school teacher before she quit the profession to have a life at home with the family...
and Zucchero
Zucchero
Adelmo Fornaciari, Commander , more commonly known by his stage name Zucchero Fornaciari or simply Zucchero /ˈtsukkero/, is an Italian rock singer. His music is largely inspired by gospel, blues and rock music, and alternates between ballads and more rhythmic boogie-like pieces.Zucchero is the...
). In particular, he had quite a success with an adaptation of Margherita by Riccardo Cocciante. Because the majority of Marco's songs are originally written in Italian he has recently decided to compose songs in Dutch, after which he has become far more popular.
In 2009 Marco nearly went bankrupt when his company The Entertainment Group was caught up in a web of debt. Though this is probably not a result of Marco's choice to compose dutch songs, it could have to do with the economic crisis.
Marco married his wife Leontine Ruiters and they have 3 children together Luca (1998), Senna (2001 en Jada (2002).
Other functions
Marco Borsato is an ambassador of the Dutch NGO War ChildWar Child (charity)
War Child is a non-governmental organisation founded in the UK 1993, which focuses on providing assistance to children in areas of conflict and post-conflict. They use their film and entertainment background to raise money for aid agencies operating in former Yugoslavia...
, which helps children in (post-)conflict areas to cope with their war experiences.
Honours
- 2004: Officer of the Order of Orange-NassauOrder of Orange-NassauThe Order of Orange-Nassau is a military and civil order of the Netherlands which was created on 4 April 1892 by the Queen regent Emma of the Netherlands, acting on behalf of her under-age daughter Queen Wilhelmina. The Order is a chivalry order open to "everyone who have earned special merits for...
, for services to Dutch music and his dedication for War Child Netherlands
Awards
- 1996 - 2006: Won a TMF AwardTMF AwardsThe TMF Awards are an annual television awards show broadcast live on TMF .The first Dutch TMF Awards were held in 1995, as a brand extension to the recently launched local Dutch music channel TMF. The show was very small and held in the company cafeteria...
, 11 times for best Dutch singer - 1997: Edison Award, 2 times (Best Singer, Best Single of the Year)
- 1999: Golden HarpGolden HarpThe Golden Harp is awarded annually to Dutch musicians for their entire oeuvre. Golden Harps have been awarded 42 times...
(with John EwbankJohn EwbankJohn Ewbank is a British-Dutch composer, lyricist and record producer.He wrote/produced a record number of eighteen #1 Dutch Top 40 hit singles, of which fourteen were for Marco Borsato, for whom he has been producing and writing since 1994. They sold over four million albums together in the Benelux...
) - 2000: Hitkrant Award, for the song Binnen ("Inside")
- 2000: Honorary Award for Best Album (Luid en duidelijk ("Loud and Clear")) and Best Singer
- 2001: Edison Award (Best Singer)
Albums
| Year | Album | Chart positions | Dutch certification (sales) |
Belgian certification (sales) |
|
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NL Netherlands The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders... |
BEL Belgium Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many... |
||||
| 1990 | Emozioni | 48 | NR | NR | |
| 1991 | Sento | - | NR | NR | |
| 1992 | Giorno per giorno | - | NR | NR | |
| 1994 | Marco | 2 | 2 | 2x Platinum (200,000) |
Gold (25,000) |
| 1995 | Als geen ander Als geen ander Als geen ander is the fifth album by Dutch singer Marco Borsato, released in 1995 by Polydor.-Track listing:# Vrij Zijn # Zonder Jou # De Wens # Ik Leef Niet Meer voor Jou # Kom Maar bij Mij # Niemand... |
1 | 1 | 4x Platinum (360,000) |
Gold (25,000) |
| 1997 | De waarheid | 1 | 1 | 6x Platinum (540,000) |
1x Platinum (50,000) |
| 1998 | De bestemming | 1 | 1 | 5x Platinum (450,000) |
Gold (25,00) |
| 2000 | Luid en duidelijk | 1 | 1 | 5x Platinum (400,000) |
Gold (25,00) |
| 2002 | Onderweg | 1 | 1 | 3x Platinum (280,000) |
3x Platinum (150,000) |
| 2002 | Onderweg: Live in De Kuip | 1 | 2 | Platinum (80,000) |
|
| 2004 | Zien | 1 | 1 | 4x Platinum (320,000) |
|
| 2004 | Zien: Live in de Kuip 2004 (CD/DVD) | 1 | 1 | Platinum (80,000) |
|
| 2006 | Symphonica in Rosso(CD/DVD) | 1 | 1 | 4x Platinum (280,000) |
Gold (15,000) |
| 2008 | Wit Licht | 1 | 1 | 3x Platinum (180,000) |
Platinum (30,000) |
| 2010 | Dromen Durven Delen | 1 | - | 4x Platinum |
|
| Total | 42x Platinum (3,170,000) |
5x Platinum + 5x Gold (345,000) |
|||
- Note: In January 2006, the Dutch music association changed the status of Gold and Platinum. From 2006 on, a Platinum album is acquired with 70,000 sales (formerly 80,000).
Singles
| Year | Single | Chart positions | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| NL Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 is a weekly music chart, which started as the "Veronica Top 40", because the offshore radio station Radio Veronica was the first to introduce it. It remained "The Veronica Top 40" until 1974, when the station was forced to stop broadcasting... |
BEL Ultratop 50 Ultratop 50 singles, often just Ultratop 50, is the weekly chart of fifty best-selling singles in Flanders, Belgium, and is produced and published by the Ultratop organization. The chart has existed since March 31, 1995... |
|||
| 1990 | "Emozione / At This Moment" | 4 | - | Emozioni |
| 1990 | "Una donna cosi" | 29 | - | Emozioni |
| 1991 | "Sento" | 43 | - | Sento |
| 1992 | "Un po' bambino" | 37 | - | Giorno per giorno |
| 1994 | "Dromen zijn bedrog" | 1 | 41 | Marco |
| 1994 | "Waarom nou jij" | 1 | 4 | Marco |
| 1995 | "Je hoeft niet naar huis vannacht" | 9 | 19 | Als geen ander |
| 1995 | "You've Got a Friend" (with René Froger René Froger René Froger is a Dutch singer.He was born and spent his first years in the Jordaan, a neighbourhood in Amsterdam. His father, Bolle Jan, had a cafe that Froger started performing in. He began with Ted de Braak and Mini en Maxi and in 1987 he released his first single, Love Leave Me... and Ruth Jacott Ruth Jacott Ruth Jacott is a Dutch singer, originally from Suriname.Jacott transitioned from musical theatre to popular music in 1993, when she represented the Netherlands at the Eurovision Song Contest 1993. Her song, "Vrede" , was one of the favorites to win, and ended up ranking sixth out of 25 at Millstreet... ) |
3 | - | - |
| 1995 | "Kom maar bij mij" | 20 | 48 | Als geen ander |
| 1996 | "Ik leef niet meer voor jou" | 8 | 17 | Als geen ander |
| 1996 | "Vrij zijn / Margherita" | 3 | - | Als geen ander |
| 1996 | "De waarheid" | 2 | 29 | De waarheid |
| 1997 | "Wereld zonder jou" (duet with Trijntje Oosterhuis Trijntje Oosterhuis Judith Katrijntje "Trijntje" Oosterhuis is a Dutch pop and jazz singer.-Early life:Judith Katrijntje Oosterhuis was born on 5 February 1973, in Amsterdam, the Netherlands... ) |
3 | - | De waarheid |
| 1998 | "De bestemming" | 1 | 12 | De bestemming |
| 1998 | "Het water / De speeltuin" | 10 | - | De bestemming |
| 1999 | "Binnen" | 1 | 38 | Luid en duidelijk |
| 2000 | "Wat is mijn hart" | 16 | - | Luid en duidelijk |
| 2001 | "Lopen op het water" (duet with Sita Sita (singer) Sita Vermeulen , known by the mononym Sita, is a Dutch pop singer. She rose to fame in the early 2000s as part of pop group K-otic. After the band disbanded in 2003, she had a brief solo career before turning to television, where she would be featured primarily on children's television and was a... ) |
1 | 1 | Onderweg |
| 2002 | "Zij" | 11 | 12 | Onderweg |
| 2003 | "Afscheid nemen bestaat niet" | 1 | 1 | Zien |
| 2004 | "Voorbij" (duet with Do Dominique van Hulst Dominique Rijpma van Hulst is a Dutch singer known by her stage name Do . She is best known for singing the vocals of DJ Sammy's worldwide top 10 hit in 2002-2003, "Heaven", a cover of the 1980s hit by Bryan Adams.... ) |
1 | 2 | Zien |
| 2004 | "Wat zou je doen?" (duet with Ali B) | 1 | - | Zien: Live in de Kuip |
| 2004 | "Laat me gaan" (only released in Belgium Belgium Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many... )http://www.marcoborsato.nl/readonbio.php?content_id=429&categoryid=4 |
- | 29 | Zien |
| 2006 | "Because We Believe" (duet with Andrea Bocelli Andrea Bocelli Andrea Bocelli, is an Italian tenor, multi-instrumentalist and classical crossover artist. Born with poor eyesight, he became blind at the age of twelve following a soccer accident.... ) |
1 | 4 | Amore |
| 2006 | "Rood" Rood (Song) Rood is a single by Dutch artist Marco Borsato from his album Symphonica in Rosso. The song was written and produced by John Ewbank. It reached the number-one position in both the Dutch charts and the Flemish Ultratop 50.... |
1 | 1 | Symphonica in Rosso |
| 2006 | "Everytime I Think of You Everytime I Think of You "Every Time I Think of You" is a the title of a song written by Jack Conrad and Ray Kennedy which was a Top 20 hit single for the Babys in 1979.... " (duet with Lucie Silvas Lucie Silvas Lucie Silvas is a British singer-songwriter.- Early life :... ) |
1 | The Same Side The Same Side -Chart performance:... |
|
| 2008 | "Wit Licht" | 1 | 3 | Wit Licht |
| 2008 | "Stop de Tijd" | 1 | 3 | Wit Licht |
| 2008 | "Dochters" | 1 | 23 | Wit Licht |
| 2010 | "Schouder aan Schouder" (with Guus Meeuwis Guus Meeuwis Gustaaf Stephanus Modestus "Guus" Meeuwis is a Dutch singer and songwriter. As part of the band Vagant, he scored several hits in the Netherlands and Flanders during the '90s and first decade of the 2000s.-Biography:... ) |
2 | - | Dromen Durven Delen |
| 2010 | "Waterkant" | 9 | 50 | Dromen Durven Delen |
| 2010 | "Kerstmis" | 11 | -* | Dromen Durven Delen |
| 2011 | "Dichtbij" | 29 | -* | - |
| 2011 | "Kom maar op" | 29 | -* | - |
| 2011 | "One Thousand Voices One Thousand Voices "One Thousand Voices" is a single by the coaches of the Dutch television programme The Voice of Holland. The song was released on 16 September 2011. The song was written by Tjeerd Oosterhuis, Klaus Derendorf, Hiten Bharadia and Alfred Tuohey and was produced by Oosterhuis and Derendorf.It reached... " (as The Voice of Holland The Voice of Holland The Voice of Holland is a Dutch reality singing competition, created by media tycoon John de Mol, and currently airing on RTL4 in the Netherlands. Hosted by Martijn Krabbé and Wendy van Dijk it is currently the number 1 show in the Netherlands, with increasing ratings from 1.6 to 3.0 million viewers... ) |
1 | - | - |
External links
- Borsato.nl Official PC website
- Borsato.mobi Official Mobile website
- Borsatoweblog.nl Official Borsato weblog website
- War Child Netherlands website
- War Child International website