譯/莊蕙嘉
There was a buzz as some two dozen concertgoers in silk scarves and sparkling jewels arrived with the help of wheelchairs, walkers and canes, and took their seats in the ornate, hardwood-floor concert hall of Milan's Rest Home for Musicians, known as Casa Verdi, which is run by the Giuseppe Verdi Foundation.
A hush fell, as two musicians in evening dress took up their positions behind two golden harps. The room filled with shimmering music by Debussy. The audience was rapt.
一陣嘈雜，廿多位參加音樂會的來賓，披著絲質圍巾，穿戴閃亮珠寶，在輪椅、助行器和拐杖的協助下，進入米蘭「音樂家安養院」華麗、鋪設硬木地板的表演廳就坐，這間安養院俗稱「威爾第之家」，由威爾第基金會經營。
騷動漸息，兩名著晚禮服的音樂家在兩座金色豎琴後就定位，表演廳內迴盪悠揚的德布西樂聲，聽眾如癡如醉。
位於義大利米蘭的「威爾第之家」，是專門讓年長音樂家入住的安養院。 美聯社
位於義大利米蘭的「威爾第之家」，是專門讓年長音樂家入住的安養院。 美聯社
"Bravo," murmured Luisa Mandelli, a soprano who sang with Maria Callas at La Scala in Milan. Then she cocked her head in dismay: Two seats away, a nattily-dressed tenor in a black suit and tie had begun snoring gently. "He's 98," whispered Mandelli, who is 95. She leaned over and slapped her former colleague's knee.
Mandelli is one of 60 older musicians living in Casa Verdi, a sumptuous neo-Gothic mansion built in central Milan by Verdi. Completed in 1899, the building was created as a sanctuary for musicians who found themselves poverty-stricken in old age, "Old singers not favored by fortune, or who, when they were young, did not possess the virtue of saving," as Verdi wrote in a letter at the time.
曾是女高音的路易莎．曼德利小聲說著：「太棒了！」她曾和瑪麗亞．卡拉絲在米蘭的史卡拉歌劇院同台演出。接著她失望地轉過頭，隔著兩個座位，一名整齊穿著黑色西裝、打領帶的男高音已微微發出鼾聲。95歲的曼德利悄聲說：「他已經98歲了。」她靠過去，拍了拍這位前同事的膝頭。
威爾第在米蘭市中心打造了這棟華麗的哥德復興式建築「威爾第之家」，曼德利是居住於此的60位年長音樂家之一。這棟建築完工於1899年，為年老時受貧困所苦的音樂家提供一個棲身之所。當時威爾第在一封信中寫道：「不受命運眷顧的年老歌手，或是年輕時沒有儲蓄美德的那些人。」
Nowadays, pensions and social security have reduced the economic necessity of a refuge like this, said Roberto Ruozi, president of the Giuseppe Verdi Foundation, which uses investments made with the royalties from the composer's operas to fund the rest home. Residents pay on a sliding scale, according to their means.
Nonetheless, Casa Verdi is inundated each year with applications from composers, conductors, singers, orchestral players, music teachers and anyone else who has "exercised the art of music as a profession," as the foundation's website puts it. Once applicants establish their professional bona fides, Casa Verdi's board makes choices based on who they think will be a good fit.
威爾第基金會會長羅貝多．羅濟說，時至今日，退休金和社會安全制度已使這類庇護所經濟上的必要性減少，基金會運用威爾第歌劇作品的版稅收入投資，以提供安養院資金。入住者依財力強弱支付各不相同的費用。
不過，基金會的網站顯示，威爾第之家每年都收到蜂擁而來的申請，包括作曲家、指揮、歌手、管弦樂手、音樂教師和任何「以音樂藝術為職業的人」。申請者提出可信的專業資歷後，威爾第之家的董事會便會做出決定，接納他們認為適合的人。
The successful applicants get to spend their last years in a place where, in addition to room, board and medical treatment, they have access to concerts, music rooms, 15 pianos, a large organ, harps, drum sets and the company of their peers.
"Now, the majority of our clients are not in very bad economic condition, but wish to continue to play, and be involved with, music," Ruozi said. Casa Verdi's talented clientele have the same needs as other old people, with some exceptions, he added: "First, they need music. Second, they want to be treated not as common guests, but as special guests — as a star." Ruozi sighed. "We have 60 old musicians and 60 stars."
申請成功者可以在此度過人生最後時光，除了食宿和醫療照護，他們還能參加音樂會，使用音樂室、15架鋼琴、一架大管風琴、豎琴和爵士鼓，再加上同儕的陪伴。
羅濟說：「現在，我們大多數客戶經濟狀況都不算太差，但希望能繼續演奏並接觸音樂。」威爾第之家才華洋溢的客戶們和其他長者有一樣的需求，但也有些特別之處。他補充道：「首先，他們需要音樂。第二，他們不想被當作普通客人對待，而是特別的客人－如同明星一般。」羅濟嘆道：「我們有60位年長音樂家和60位明星。」
※說文解字看新聞
本文介紹義大利米蘭一家專收年長音樂家的安養院，文中有多個詞彙源自義大利語和拉丁語。
casa是義大利文，意為house，即指「房屋」，因此文中的Casa Verdi就譯為「威爾第之家」，這個字如今也當作英語來使用。
觀賞音樂會時，我們常聽到觀眾喊「bravo」，這也是義大利語，意為well done（太棒了），表達喝采之意。因為許多歌劇都是用義大利語寫的，文中提到的威爾第正是寫出「茶花女」、「阿依達」的義大利知名作曲家，所以觀眾用bravo喝采也就成為流行。
soprano（女高音）和tenor（男高音）字源皆是拉丁語。soprano源自supra，意為above/high（在...之上/高）之意，ano是名詞字尾，合起來就是「能唱高音的人」。tenor源自tenere，意為to hold（維持），引申為「能唱特定音域的人」。
bona fides本身就是拉丁語，意為good faith（善意），形容詞為bona fide（真正的、善意的）。這個字在法律方面，例如簽訂合約時，表示當事人會誠實地對待彼此的一種信念。在本文，這個字意指，年長的音樂家為了申請進入養老院，要真誠表達出身為音樂家的專業形象，也就是提出「資歷證明」。
