MFM tours were my first touring experience in the United States and Canada, something that I’ll never forget and will always bear a special place in my memories. Not only for the concerts, but for sharing travels and stage with many good friends and musicians.

I can’t forget my first impression of DC, as well as the amazing new auditorium in Boston or the unique atmosphere of the Washington Irving High School in NYC. The rehearsals and work were always very deep and heartfelt, each concert brought us closer and closer, which was a great musical feeling. MFM tours weren’t only a fun experience but also a way to really go deeper in the repertoire and, compared to the summer festival in Vermont, to relate it to several audiences and concerts.

I remember how funny it was to feel ‘on the road’ in the US, something that seems almost epic for a European. My companions had to deal with my astonishment of the food area in motorways (being Italian that was quite a cultural shock), but I like to think I brought a somewhat European touch to our time together.

I’m now about to turn 30 years old, and I feel somehow like a son of Marlboro. My first summer there was in 2010, followed by two others, plus two tours and a third coming up.

If it would be only for the time spent around Marlboro festival activities, that would already be a huge influence on my life. Of course, and luckily, it’s much more than this, it was really a turning point of my life, both as a person and a musician.

From the first summer, to the tours, to meeting so many wonderful musicians and friends, as well as someone who has been my partner for two years, Marlboro is, in a way, what made me the young man I am from the boy I was. Since I got there something really changed. Of course there are many things and elements influencing our lives, so much else probably happened on the side too, but thinking back now I can’t not notice how Marlboro was the origin of many processes. Or, at least, I like to think it that way. We are interpreters; each of us ends up having a personal interpretation of life and on our path. I want my own interpretation to keep staying strictly connected to that world of music, friendship, and curiosity I experienced through Marlboro.

I hope there will be many more MFM tours to come. For many of my younger colleagues now participating, it’s an incredible opportunity for audiences around the country to witness the beauty of youth and experienced musicians bonded together by the love of music and the strong experiences lived in Vermont.