To the 20. For the first time, davide pusterla from the italian partner community uggiate-trevano will be in adelsdorf in august to give the adelsdorfer and aischer organists a break.
As part of his political studies, the 42-year-old had to learn another language besides english. At that time he decided in favor of german. "Since I was able to establish closer contact through the partnership with adelsdorf, this came at just the right time for me, he said. "At the signing of the partnership in 1998 in uggiate, i asked the president of the adelsdorf partnership committee how and where i could learn german in the summer. She had the idea that I should combine my organ playing with my studies and so I have been representing the organists every year since then. So I caught two pigeons with one bean (an italian proverb – we say "two birds with one stone").
Praise for the hospitality
From the beginning pusterla was very enthusiastic about the friendly, nice people and the beautiful environment here. I never felt homesick! "I felt immediately accepted in adelsdorf and not like a foreigner", he says. The northern italians are much more closed and don’t like to let strangers into their homes. "For me the german hospitality was something completely new."
But he has also become fond of german beer – or rather, french beer. "I had my first experience with beer on sundays at the early morning pint after church at annelies’ "gasthof zur post", he remembers. "I drank a bit too much, because the guys from the table invited me and were happy that I liked it so much," he says, he laughs. "After that I had to sleep a round first. I think the germans were born with beer in their bodies!", he finds. "I like the beer very much and always like to take a few crates of neuhauser beer home with me at the end of the day!" Even a visit to one of the many cellars is almost as important to him as playing the organ.
Grateful for the interludes
Davide enjoys playing the organ in the three churches of the parish community and also in the old people’s home. "It is good to give people beautiful music", he finds. In italy only the songs are accompanied by the organ in the service and so he can pralude (make interludes) to his heart’s content here. "I am happy to share my italian music with the people of adelsdorf. But also your music is very nice, like bach, mozart and trade…", he emphasizes. He is enthusiastic about the newly restored strebel organ. "The sound and the many new possibilities – simply fantastico!"
The italian guest naturally likes to take part in the organization of the village life. This already starts with the aischer kirchweih, which he always attends with his host family. "I feel almost as much a part of it as your road signs", he laughs.
Davide always manages to make every service a festive experience with his wonderful playing. Since it is better to learn a foreign language in a family, he lived for the first years with the mauer family "jutta is my german mamma" – and later he spent a week each with a different host family: the macher family, the ort family, the blum family and the vollner family. They all like to take it up again and again.
"Music is my life"
Until a few years ago he also stayed with gertrude schafer, the soprano from adelsdorf who died all too soon. "I miss her very much!", he betrays. "We made a lot of music together." His real job has of course to do with music. At the scala in milan he collaborates in music projects that prepare videos and dvds of rough operas for children. In uggiate-trevano and in ronago he plays the organ and leads some choruses.
"Music is my life!", he reveals with shining eyes. He is not only needed at the organ, he is also very much in demand as a substitute bass player in rough choruses. Only recently he was in pisa in the opera choir when andrea boccelli was on stage. "My greatest wish is to get a job as organist and choir director in germany, preferably in franconia."