The 23-year-old smoky-eyed singer with the big soprano voice is putting off her dreams of the operatic stage a little while longer while she brings to life her version of "Italian folk fusion" with her new CD "The Stranger."

With a BFA in vocal performance from Carnegie Mellon University firmly in her pocket, Christia Chirumbolo felt this would be the perfect time to explore her Italian roots. After visiting the country for the first time in 2000, she has visited yearly and fit in advanced operatic studies in Rome and Lucca as well.

She fell in love with the Italian folk melodies of her grandparents' youth while singing in outdoor cafes and meeting the locals. "To see the expressions on their faces when I sang these old melodies for them, some of them just cried."

This musical exploration led to her returning to Pittsburgh and rounding up her CMU friends to make a recording of Italian classic, folk and originals sung in Italian and English. "There are no women doing this kind of music. You have Patrizio Buanne, but he is going for a more widely international audience, and I am trying to bridge the gap between the Italian and American audiences," she says.

Chirumbolo will start a 24-city concert tour of Italy in mid-June that will take her from Milan to Calabria with a 10-piece Italian orchestra. "In Italy, you have a lot of outdoor festivals honoring the holy saints. I will be playing a lot of them; they are a big deal over there."

This weekend, locals will be able to see the same show with an orchestra made up of her CMU friends. "We will be playing songs from the CD, Italian classics jazz standards covering everything from New York to Naples."

Although her future plans include grad school and a return to the opera stage, for now, this side trip is heaven. "This is the one time in my life where I will be able to explore my musical and familial roots, and it is a real joy."