Well ladies and gentlemen it is with great regret that I write this. My dear friend, father figure, mentor and voice teacher finally succumbed to cancer on July 30th. I just found out today as he was in Italy when it happened. Luigi Veccia taught me more about life than he did about voice and I have to say, it is thanks to him that I sing today. If you like the way I sing, I am here to tell you it solely because of this great man that I sing today. When I came to him about 9 or 10 years ago, I was green and in many ways still a child. With his speeches about love, life and of course vocal technique, somewhere in between all of this I became a man. Luigi was a great man who had a profound effect on me and everyone who came in contact with him. I will miss him dearly as will Nannette, the love he left behind, and also his students. Sleep well, caro maestro.