High and Low Notes

This week’s featured traveler is Joe Cannon.

Joe Cannon in front of the Colosseum during a tour of the Roman Forum. Photo taken by Ryan Uhlich

Joe is a senior English major at California State Long Beach who studied abroad last semester at John Cabot University in Rome.  Joe often played his guitar at different piazzas throughout the city. Below, he recounts how an impromptu music session with locals helped ease the depression he was feeling while coping with the death of his dad thousands of miles away from home.

The Rut of the Month:

“Sitting on the steps of the baroque fountain, a box of wine splashed the ground in front of me; two leather-bound bums approached me and sat down.  The first acknowledged himself as Jacopo and his friend as Lara.  Jacopo turned to me,

‘You . . . American?’ he said with a thick Italian accent.

‘Yeah, I’m from California.’

‘You . . . understand . . . Eagles . . . Hotel California?’ asked Lara.

‘Sí, Hotel California!’ Jacopo shouted.

These guys wanted a show, something I wasn’t sure I was able to provide.  But I gave it a shot, and when it was over, they cheered.

‘You . . . ok . . . I . . . play?’ Jacopo asked.  I handed him the guitar. ‘This . . . song, is dedicated to . . . my, uh . . . brother . . . who . . . die . . . Friday, last’ he said.  Jacopo strummed the same chord over and over and started ‘singing’ (or melodically shouting random words in Italian).  When he finished, he laughed with tears in his eyes.

‘You guys like Red Hot Chili Peppers?’  I asked.  Lara chuckled and flashed a ‘RHCP’ tattoo on his calf.  ‘This song is for my dad. He died last month.’  It had been the first time I had said it out loud.  And it hit me, the rut that sparked a month-long bender of apathy and depression had ended.

I shook their hands and parted ways, rushing back to my apartment to wash the dirt from my hands.”

This is one of Joe's favorite pictures he took while abroad. It was taken down the street from the Galleria Nazionale d'Arte Antica at Palazzo Barberini.