Fra Noi Embrace Your Inner Italian
De Vincentis credits his High School best friend for his love for opera and introducing him to the Golden Age of singing. De Vincentis recalls performing from a young age in musical theatre and was later introduced to his best friend’s father and vocal coach: Carl Lawrenz.
“I owe a lot of my love of classical musical to Carl.” states De Vincentis, who graduated from DePaul University in 2002 with a degree in finance, accounting, and marketing. While taking the practical career route, he still pays attention to his voice. De Vincentis is classically trained in oratorio and opera as a Bass-Baritone. And during his time at De Paul, his love affair with opera brought him to competitions and performances. He played the title role in the musical “Sweeney Todd” and Seneca in “L’Incoronazione di Poppea,” among many others.
“I would pay to play Sweeney Todd again,” he says enthusiastically. “It was a wonderful opportunity and great role.” What’s more, the Chicago Tribune and Sun Times hailed De Vincentis as “both vocally and comically perfect” for his role as Private Willis in Light Opera Works production of “Iolanthe” in 2008. De Vincentis has also performed with the Chicago Symphony Chorus for three years and his most memorable experience was singing at Ravinia. During his college years, he won top state honors in the National Association of Teachers of Singing competition at Millikin University in 2002.
De Vincentis will always pledge a strong allegiance to opera, though his rigorous work schedule makes it tough to tackle full productions: He arrives for work at 6 a.m. “I love my job; it’s really my life,” he states. But he has a game plan to marry his vocation and avocation: “I think I can combine my performance history, my love of the arts and technical understanding with my desire and know-how on a financial basis in the form of charity.”
De Vincentis makes room for ad hoc performances and continues to keep his voice in impeccable condition. On weekends, he works in the studio with his vocal coach. “I typically practice on Saturdays for 3 to 4 hours,” he says.
Recently, De Vincentis was invited to serve on the Guild Board at the Lyric Opera. “It was the right mix for me,” he notes. While planning for a day when he’ll perform and work to benefit the performing arts, De Vincentis is knee deep in a strategic planning period with board members. “There are several really nice events that the Guild puts together,” he says, adding that the Guild leads backstage tours of the Opera.
De Vincentis is also a member and part of the Luminarts Cultural Foundation at the Union League Club of Chicago; the former supports Chicago artists, writers, and musicians. He also serves on the Athletic committee at the Union League and on the Finance Advisory Board at De Paul University.
The son of Frank and Angela De Vincentis, the younger Frank’s grandparents hail from Bari. De Vincentis is a Senior Vice President and partner with the Chicago Group at Morgan Stanley Wealth Management. In addition to being the lead portfolio manager on several proprietary investment solutions, he serves as a coach to financial advisors during their first years. He started at the firm in 2004; “My career is a great balance between the science of economics, finance, and accounting combined with the art of helping people.”
To that end, De Vincentis has balanced career aspirations with his opera fascination. If practice does in fact make perfect, then De Vincentis is an ideal inspiration to everyone. Meanwhile, he’s hitting all the right notes: His journey involving charity in the performing arts has just entered its first act.
