The Book

“Sintomi di Felicità” (“Symptoms of happiness”) is the title of the book written by tenor singer Marco Voleri, published in 2013 by Sperling&Kupfer.
It’s an autobiographic story in which Marco Voleri recalls his experience, not only from an artistic perspective, a journey made of study, reharsals, concerts, auditions and travels, but also from a more human one which brought him face to face with his desease.
From the first steps of his career in the world of opera to the first symptoms of his desease which will turn out to be Multiple Sclerosis.

Marco, born in 1975 and just turned 30, with a thriving career already, made of numerous experiences in the most famous theaters including theater La Scala in Milan, was living an extremely satisfying artistic period and achieving all his goals when one day, suddently, he started to feel unusually tired, numb in the right part of his body and had difficulties walking: it was Multiple Sclerosis’ first manifestations.
It was 2006, July 19th. Everything changed from that day, including dreams, hopes and expectations. A change Marco learns to face with all his determination, in a new path of life.

From initially trying to hide what was going on, in order to avoid the society’s and more importantly the arts world’s prejudice, afraid of not being able to sing anymore, to an inner need to metabolize the desease, accepting it before exposing it to the public, to the willingness of sharing his experience in the world.
Meeting Arnoldo Mosca Mondadori, President of the conservatory Giuseppe Verdi in Milan, will be a turning point. A meeting of souls, a deep empathy between two extremely sensitive individuals who understand each other and who have something to say.
As soon as Marco started to sing, Arnoldo Mosca Mondadori perceived something peculiar and special in his voice, something which needed to be told.
Since then, the decision of writing a book to tell and share his experience of living together with Multiple Sclerosis, because a definitive cure hasn’t been found yet and the medicine to keep it under control is often heavy, like the interferon injections Marco always has to carry with him around the world. This book is meant to be an ode to life and to a never defeated happiness.