Wife of Italian old soldier who serenaded her in hospital dies of illness

Stefano Bozzini playing a serenade to his wife on his accordion

Credit: Maurizio Bozzini/Valerio Marangon

An elderly Italian woman who was serenaded in hospital by her husband, a former soldier, has died despite his efforts to keep up her morale.

A video of Stefano Bozzini wearing the distinctive peaked cap of the Alpini, Italy’s elite mountain warfare regiment, and playing the accordion for his wife Carla went viral on social media.

The 81-year-old was not allowed to visit her in hospital because of Covid-19 restrictions.

Instead, he brought along a stool, set it up beneath the window of her ward and played a medley of tunes, including Spanish Eyes by Engelbert Humperdinck.

He also blew a kiss to his wife, to whom he had been married for 47 years.

Despite his valiant efforts, his wife lost her battle with cancer and died at home on Thursday, having been released a few days before from the hospital in Castel San Giovanni, a town in northern Italy.

“Everyone recognised in that serenade true love, the simplicity and immediacy of a universal language,” Patrizia Barbieri, the mayor of nearby Piacenza, wrote on Facebook. “The illness has broken apart their embrace.”

Mr Bozzini played in the courtyard beneath his wife's hospital ward in northern Italy

Credit: Facebook

Mr Bozzini’s serenading was a “gesture of tenderness” that had touched the hearts of many people, she said. “He did everything he could so that his wife would not feel alone, finding the way to overcome whatever obstacle.”

Speaking about the serenade, Mr Bossini told a local newspaper: “It was a sunny day, I would have liked to play longer, for the whole day.”

Although Mr Bozzini’s wife did not die of the coronavirus, thousands of elderly Italians have.

The country is in the grip of the second wave of the pandemic, with several regions designated red zones and under lockdown.

High schools are closed, travel between regions is banned unless for pressing reasons such as work and there is a nighttime curfew.

On Friday, Italy reported another 827 deaths and more than 28,000 new cases.

That compared with 822 deaths and 29,000 new cases on Thursday.  The total death toll is more than 53,000.