Quarantined Italians Sing On Their Balconies Together

With the unprecedented nature and threat of the coronavirus, many countries have imposed quarantines and “social distancing” to help slow the rate of infection. To bring hope to those around them, quarantined Italians came out on their balconies to sing together.

The song that the people in this video are singing is the Italian national anthem called ‘Il Canto degli Italiani’. It was written in 1847 by a 20-year-old student named Goffredo Mameli, and the theme throughout the lyrics is unity. How appropriate since this is what we see happening in this video.

When Felice Bologna, a teacher and musician, started to play this song on his keyboard, over 300 people in the surrounding area stepped out onto their balconies to sing it together. And many of them recorded the song on their phones while they were in awe of what was happening.

“It was an amazing moment,” said Felice. It must feel amazing that he can use his gift of music during this time to bring people together.

The way that the music and voices fill the air in this moment is so beautiful. And many other videos have come out of Italy of people doing the same thing, using music to bring people together, despite distance. It is incredibly inspiring and is filling the world with hope.

During times of stress and illness, being deprived of social connection can make people feel even worse. And such radical changes to everyday life can come with consequences to people’s mental health and immune system. But these Italians show us that despite not being able to leave their homes, there are ways to still reach out to one another when you are seeking human connection. Whether it be through song or music, or through a video call or written letter, we can still show up for one another during these hard times.