Alfie Boe reveals his musical inspiration: his local ice cream van

23 September 2014, 21:38 | Updated: 24 September 2014, 09:47

Where did Alfie Boe's love of Neapolitan songs come from? The star tenor chats with Classic FM's Jane Jones.

Could it be that we have an ice cream van to thank for Alfie Boe's singing success? While many performers take to the stage after hearing the world's greatest musicians on recordings, or live in concert, Alfie has revealed his unlikely inspiration for learning the famous Neapolitan songs which make up his latest album.

"The initial song that I heard was O Sole Mio but it wasn't on a record," he told Classic FM's Jane Jones. "it wasn't on the radio...It was played by the local ice cream van in my neighbourhood. It's the theme tune for one Cornetto!"

"So whenever I sing these songs I always feel like Im going to get an ice cream at the end of it!"

Alfie also talked about his dislike of labels in music. "I've always wanted to be just a singer of music," he said. "My musical tastes are very varied. I love Elvis, I love Sinatra...Music is in my blood, it's in my body."

"Music is just one big world."