Mark Vincent is the celebrated winner of 2009 Australia's Got Talent TV program, a reality TV show in which performers in various genres, musical and otherwise, compete for first prise. With his booming operatic tenor, he stunned the judges with his singing talent - a talent made all the more extraordinary by the fact that he's only 15.
Mark began singing when he was only a young boy. His first break came at age 9 when his Grandfather, Bruno Riccio, heard Mark singing along with recordings of Andrea Bocelli at the family's Italian restaurant. Realising he had the makings of a towering talent, Bruno purchased singing lessons for the boy. Soon, after a number of lessons, Vincent had refined his talent enough to begin performing.
His grandfather booked the promising young singer at various venues around Australia such as charity balls, markets, and hospitals. Not only did he sing opera like a pro, he could also give stellar performances in various other popular genres such as swing and musical theatre. Similar to Bocelli, who is also a "crossover" artist, Mark is a multi-talented singer for whom shifting between various musical styles poses no great difficulty.
By the time he was 13, Mark felt he had enough experience to try out for Australia's Got Talent. Encouraged by his family, especially his grandfather, he tried out for the 2007 season of the show. This is where a strange twist of fate occurred that makes his current success all the more dramatic. The producers were greatly impressed by Mark's performance and assured him he would receive a call. He went home excited and filled with anticipation. But as the weeks rolled by, and turned into months, no call came. Mark and his family could only shake their heads in confused disappointment. It just didn't make sense, but there it was. They shelved the idea of the show for the short term.
There was also an even sadder occurrence to be dealt with- Mark's grandfather died shortly after the 2007 audition. This affected the young boy greatly, so much so that he almost wanted to quit singing opera. But, realising that his grandfather would want him to continue, he overcame his grief and kept on practicing his art.
Two years later, Mark and his family decided it couldn't hurt to try again. He had matured and perhaps now the judges would make good on their promise of a call back. When he contacted the show's producers again, they gave him some unexpected news - they had wanted to invite him back in 2007 but had misplaced his audition tape! They were very glad that he had contacted them again and quickly set him up for another audition.
From the beginning of the 2009 season, Mark Vincent was a strong contender. He wowed the show's judges Red Symons, Grant Denyer, Dannii Minogue, and Tom Burlison (as well as the audience) with his first on screen audition, and assured him that he had strong chances of succeeding. That was indeed the case, because he made the finals.
Competing against an even younger singing talent, 12 year old Jal Joshua, Mark Vincent awaited the decision on Grand Final night. Vincent recalls the occasion: "There was a drum role, and my mind is going at a million miles an hour," Grant Denyer says, ‘The winner of Australia's Got Talent is Mark Vincent!' Oh my God, my whole body dropped with relief."
Shortly after the victory, Mark performed on the Australian morning show Sunrise. The show's host David Koch, made a live plea for somebody to give Mark a record deal. Soon after The Northern Irish vocal group The Priests invited Vincent to perform with them at Sydney Entertainment Centre.
The record deal soon followed.
Producer and arranger Chong Lim began working with Mark on his first album, entitled My Dream - Mio Visione. The album is eclectic, just as one would expect considering Vincent's repertoire, and ranges from the classical opera (Nessun Dorma) to popular songs by Sinatra and Leonard Cohen (My Way, and Hallelujah), to the Australian National Anthem.
It seems fair to say that Mark Vincent has a bright and promising career ahead of him. He feels he owes much of his success to his beloved Grandfather. In his own words: "I'll never forget my grandfather. He was the best thing that ever came in my life. He passed away last year, 12 months ago. I didn't really want to go on with my singing career because I was so upset. But then at the end I knew that he wouldn't want me to stop. He would want me to keep going."
It sure is a good thing he did.
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