Third Year's the Charm

Speaking of Papal Pilgrimages, today marks the third anniversary of Benedict's inauguration as the Holy Father. The President of the Italian Republic, Giorgio Napolitano, a.k.a. guy in charge of the country I'm currently living in, hosted an honorary symphony tonight for the Holy Father at the Hall of Paul VI.

It was my first time in the hall--all the other Vatican events I've been at with the Pope have been in the Basilica or the Piazza. The Swiss Guards looked at my red pass and indicated which entrance to go in. The orchestra and choir were from Milan, with tonight's pieces being drawn from Berio, Brahms and Beethoven, apparently being sponsored by the letter 'B'.

Brahms piece was the Schicksalslied op. 54 which everybody had to say 10 times fast before they would play it--actually, not so, and we all read the Italian title anyways, which was Il Canto del Destino, a grand name, and whose lines translated from the German spoke about the Elesian Fields, which always sounds attractive.

Beethoven's work was his 7th symphony, which was of course lively and fun. The president shared a few words beforehand, and the cameras kept panning back to him and the Holy Father during the concert, who was successfully able to stay awake after having just arrived back from the States. Then Pope Benedict shared a few words afterwards--Zenit includes his reference to the "spiritual value of musical art, called in a particular way to instill hope in the human spirit wounded by the earthly experience."