God, music and Sassari. Father Giuseppe Magrino , a Franciscan friar of Lucanian origins , moved to the Turrian capital two months after a life dedicated to the pentagram .
"I'm not here to teach - he says from the convent of Santa Maria di Betlem where he resides - but to learn". Director of the Musical Chapel of the Papal Basilica of San Francesco in Assisi, the 66-year-old clergyman is a prolific composer , author among other things of two works dedicated to as many popes: John Paul II , in 2000, with the antiphon "You are Pietro ”and“ To you or Francis ”written in 2013 for Pope Bergoglio .
Among his works there is also an impressionist “Salomè” staged by Dario Argento , the king of horror: “He is a man of faith - explains magrino on Argento - very sensitive. Before the execution he asked me to say a prayer together ”. But he is not the only prominent personality he has met in the art world: “I collaborated with Ennio Morricone , preparing the RAI orchestra called to Assisi to perform his compositions, and with Riccardo Muti ”.
An anecdote about his reputation as a difficult person is linked to the Neapolitan master: "One day he said to me: 'Does it seem to you that it is so unbearable?'". In all these big names, Father Giuseppe finds a common trait: “Simplicity. I have seen it present in so many people of genius ”.
The last thought goes to the city and the island that hosts it: “In Sardinia you are full of beauty and art as well as traditions that consolidate your identity. This is why I say that I have come to learn something more ”.