Friendly cousins another benefit of our sweet life in the Valdinievole

Simone Corrieri and David Del Terra.

Among the reasons Lucy and I chose Montecarlo as our home base in Italy, the opportunity to meet distant cousins was surely high on the list. Since both of my dad’s parents were from Montecarlo, I have numerous cousins here on both sides of the family. Many I have met only once or twice, but two who have gone out of their way to make us feel more at home are Claudio Del Terra and his son David.

Simone performs songs from his first music album at the Medieval Risto Bar in Pescia April 29.

Claudio has invited us to his home in the past, and he and David sometimes stop by our home while they are out riding their bicycles together.

Claudio

Neither of them speaks much English, which is fine with us, as we need plenty of practice making conversation in Italian. Claudio is the son of the late Gianfranco Del Terra and Marta Michelotti.
Claudio’s grandmother was Rina Spadoni, a first cousin of my dad, though he never had the chance to meet her. If you are trying to figure out the relationships, Marta is my second cousin, so Claudio is my second cousin once removed.

David's mystery novel

Claudio and his brother Marco are both urban police officers. Claudio’s son, David, is a multi-talented young man who has studied music, philosophy, and religion, and he currently teaches philosophy and religion. We first met him when he was 13; watching him develop and mature over the years has been enjoyable. A couple of years ago, he dropped by and gave me a mystery novel he had co-written, “Un Ingombrante Segreto.” I didn’t realize at first that he was a co-author, because the book was the joint product of a writing class he had taken with seven other students, and thus his name did not appear on the cover. However, I have since read and enjoyed it very much. It is set partly in Montecarlo, and it tells the tale of two convicts who become friends in prison. When one is released, he investigates the other’s crime and uncovers “an unwieldy secret,” which is how the title of the book could be translated.

Moderator Franco Donatini interviews Simone.

Now David has added to his curriculum vitae his collaboration for writing the music for the title song on the recently released music album of Lucca poet Simone Corrieri, “Squallido Paradiso.” Lucy and I had the privilege of attending a presentation of the album at a coffee bar in Pescia last week. Corrieri had previously published a book of his poetry, and this is his first effort at combining poetry and music. We listened as Corrieri explained the background of the songs and then performed them, with David accompanying on electric piano, along with several other musicians who had contributed to the album. Afterwards, Corrieri signed the inside jacket of the CD we purchased from him. We now listen to the songs in our home and think back on the pleasant evening when we watched David play and met Corrieri and the other contributing musicians.