If Lucio Dalla were an angel: "He bewitched me when I was 8. I'll sing to you what he would say today."

In that place in the heart where the wind always blows, Lucio Dalla kept the secrets behind his songs. And it is on that mystery, on those thrilling feelings, on that night train where happiness travels, that tomorrow evening at the Sforza Castle, a gentle soul of our singer-songwriter Renzo Rubino will focus his attention. He will star, along with journalist Gino Castaldo, in "Cosa direbbe Lucio," a journey into the life and art of the little man like this under the moonlight of the Cortile delle Armi.

Renzo, why Dalla?

"Because he's my favorite singer-songwriter, the first one I ever saw live, in Martina Franca. I must have been eight years old or so. Last January, Antonio Palazzo, the maestro who conducted that concert, called me to ask if I'd like to pay homage to Dalla on the same stage and with the same orchestra that accompanied him then. Of course, I said yes."

Then what happened?

"Immersed in the preparatory work for Porto Rubino (the Festival del Mare he's been organizing since 2019 in the ports of Puglia, ed.), I took that experience as a sort of vacation. Then, however, the dates went from one to two, and from two to three, and so we decided to build a show around it. In addition to the songs, enhanced by new arrangements, there are anecdotes, memories, and marginal notes from someone who knew Dalla well and was even a friend, Castaldo."

In a show like this, every song is important, but some are perhaps more important than others. Which ones?

"For me, there are a couple I hadn't listened to in a long time, and this show allowed me to rediscover them. I'm talking about "Felicità" and "Se io fossi un angelo." Two songs that, perhaps because of the times we're living in, perhaps for personal reasons, I feel particularly close to me, along with "Henna."

Dalla used to say that in everything we do we should try to find our own little moments of freedom. What are yours?

Spending time on a boat with a good book and Norberto, my dog, is one of the things that comes closest to my idea of freedom. In my work, I experience something similar, choosing the projects I want to pursue completely independently, freeing myself from the dictates of industry or mainstream music. Just think that in 2014, after a seven-year hiatus, I recorded an album with a local band. For me, music is about feelings, words, and emotions—elements that, when combined, become something. You can't decide feelings at a table; otherwise, the song becomes a kind of arranged marriage.

What will his next album be like?

"Singer-songwriter. Eleven songs. I wrote it three years ago and then put it aside to settle. Then there's the opera I've been working on for a long time. It's coming, although I don't know when yet."

Is there an anecdote about Castaldo that particularly amuses you?

"Gino once took me aside to confide in me: 'I was in New York with Lucio when he recorded 'DallAmeriCaruso,' but I don't remember a thing.' He says he always has to dig into the past, because he's someone who lives so much in the present that he has no memory. Which I really enjoy."