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A Choir in Rome
The Singing Priest
Before the Beatles arrival in America
forever changed the way we perceive rock and roll, the number
one record album across the land was the "The Singing Nun,"
with "Dominique" as the lead hit. Times have certainly changed
over the past four decades, but the deep feeling for music
and the sensuality of sound still occupy the hearts and souls
of some of the men and women who make up the ranks of the
Catholic Church. One such man is Aldo Settepani, who heads
a small choir in the church of San Lorenzo in Damaso, on the
Corso Vitttorio Emanuele II in Rome. What sets Monsignore
Aldo -- now in his seventies and retired from the Vatican
court of marriage annulments -- apart is his love of American
jazz. Possessing a beautiful voice, and the ability to play
just about every popular song from the thirties and forties
on the keyboard, Monsignore Aldo channels his enormous spirituality
through the making and playing of music. A songwriter as well
as singer, he starts every day with rousing renditions of
traditional religious spirituals, which are obviously a source
of his infectious smile and wicked sense of humor.
Singing in his choir is a joy.
He is gently corrective but never overbearing. He laces his
mastery of the notes with political comments that always fall
on the side of unity, harmony, and the sharing the common
aspirations of all of us, regardless of race, creed, nationality,
or religion. To Monsignore Aldo, we are all God's children,
and activities like making music serve to lift our spirits
to higher callings -- like having fun and getting to know
one another as brothers and sisters. I knew I liked Monsignore
Aldo just a few minutes after we met, having un caffe' standing
next to each other in a bar in centro, his eyes all a' twinkle
at the fact that I was from America, a place he would love
to visit but has never seen. And my instinct has been proven
right. Merely being in his presence is enough for me, but
then you hear his voice, and suddenly you realize that there
are other presences as well.
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Saluti,
Alan Epstein | | | | |
