Sunday 18th July 2021
Omar and the VW Beetle “Lino”
Music nomad lives his dream
Von Andrea Affaticati, Castelluccio di Norcia
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Omar has fulfilled his dream: He drives through Italy in an originally converted VW Beetle called Lino and makes music – in rather unusual places. ntv.de met “il Pianista sul Maggiolone” while hiking in the middle of nature.
Mid-June, Piani di Castelluccio, a plateau that stretches between the regions of Umbria and Marche. Castelluccio di Norcia is one of the municipalities in central Italy that was hit by several devastating earthquakes in August and October 2016. Like all other affected towns, Castelluccio still has open wounds. That is why the association “Cammino delle Terre Mutate” organized a multi-day trekking in solidarity along the earthquake crater, as it does every year.
And the contrast couldn’t be greater: Since the historic core of the place, which is still in ruins, there is the sea of colors that extends over the plateau surrounded by the mountains of the Monti Sibillini National Park. As far as the eye can see, red poppies, yellow mustard blossoms and blue cornflowers that catch the eye.
And while hiking through this natural splendor, the sound of a piano suddenly sounds. In the distance you can see a lanky young man who is sitting in front of the side door of a bright red VW and is playing on the piano. They are Omar and Lino, the “Pianista sul Maggiolone”, the pianist with the beetle. Omar is an open-minded, if a little shy, 27-year-old with a beard, his brown hair tied in a bun. Lino is a Super Beetle built in 1973, “the first of these models”, as Omar Conti, the young man’s full name, proudly says on ntv.de. The piano he plays is digital and hangs on one of the car windows.
Music in the blood
Anyone who does not know Omar’s story or his dream would think that here, in the middle of the plateau, where there is no soul apart from the occasional hikers passing by, is a rather unusual place for a meeting. But that’s not true, because, as Omar says, “this is exactly what I dreamed of for a long time. To roam like a nomad with a car and musical instruments through Italy and wherever the scene of nature beckons me to stop and play.” Namely piano or cello and preferably film music by Ennio Morricone and Ludovico Einaudi. Or his own compositions.
Omar reports that he was born with a passion for music. “My mother told me that she put Bach and Vivaldi on me from day one.” One day, when he was around ten years old, he found his mother’s guitar. He started to pick on her and taught himself to play. He did the same years later with the piano and the cello. Omar has music in his blood and he plays fantastically well. Also the cello. His isn’t just any old one, it’s a French copy from 1844. Unaffordable for his wallet, that’s why he just borrowed it. “Music is the constant in my life, it gives me peace and quiet, I feel at home with it. Hence the fixed idea that my work must also have to do with music”, Omar continues.
Then came the idea of traveling in a vintage Beetle. His studies in transport design fit in perfectly. And suddenly his passions came together like pieces of a puzzle. Three years ago he started a crowdfunding project with which he recorded his first CD “TLEN” and began the conversion of the VW Beetle. The following summer, the two went on their first two-week tour. Lino was not as professionally converted back then as it is now, but at least it was enough for the time being to “bring the music into the wide world”, as Omar himself says. And it went great, also in terms of “income”.
Then came the pandemic, which fueled his longing for the big wide world. At the same time, it gave him the time to finish his doctoral thesis and to continue working on Lino’s renovation.
You can see with the naked eye how much work and ingenuity the redesign took when you take a closer look at the car. A small solar system is attached to the bonnet, which is used for the piano and the sound amplifiers in the front of the luggage compartment. In addition to the platform for music performances, Lino also has to be a home for Omar, hence the accurate interior. Depending on the time of day or night, the not really spacious interior can be transformed – either into a living room with a kitchenette or into a bedroom.
Parents perplexed
In the beginning, his parents were not exactly delighted with his nomadic plans. Nonetheless, they supported him. After all, you’re only young once. His father helped him with the construction of the electrical system, “without his help I would not have been able to do it.” And the grandmother kept encouraging him not to give up his dream.
Since the beginning of June, Omar and Lino have been on their way again. “We’ll be staying here in the central Apennines until the end of July,” says Omar. He himself comes from the Marche, more precisely from Fossombrone near Urbino. “Then we continue towards the Dolomites, there we will spend August”. Music in the tranquility of the Alps has been very popular for several years, so nothing stands in the way of their success in the middle of the Alps. Not least because they cannot be overlooked. “But it is especially the Germans who greet us enthusiastically. They think Lino is super cool,” says Omar. In September it goes south to Apulia.
Omar is inspired by the surroundings. Like recently, when a herd of horses passed him and he played music by Ennio Morricone. So if you are hiking through the Dolomites this August, you should keep an eye out for the Omar and Lino. It is quite possible that the sound of a piano or cello can be heard from somewhere in the distance.
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