English
Sting & Trudie
Abbiamo incontrato Sting e la moglie Trudie Styler, affermata attrice e produttrice, che ci hanno parlato di Toscana, nuovi album, tour mondiali e progetti cinematografici presenti e futuri.
TRUDIE- When you did “discover Italy?- Why did you choose Il Palagio and what was behind your decision to make wine?
“We spent a lot of time in Italy when Sting was writing his ‘Soul Cages’ album, renting the “Villa Salviati” near Pisa, and our daughter Coco was also born in Pisa, so we had really grown to love the region during what was a very joyful and creative time in our lives. But it took another seven years of searching before we finally found Il Palagio. Having seen many grand houses over many visits to Italy, we had almost begun to despair of finding somewhere that would feel right for us. But Il Palagio immediately fitted the bill – we just knew that as a family we could feel at home. We love many areas of Italy, Tuscany is very special to us – stunning natural beauty, world-class culture and history, amazing food and wine, and it seems to have elegance and style everywhere you look.
When we first bought the property we imagined we would have our own great wine to drink, but it has been a long labour of love to get to that point. The very first wine we made from the grapes growing there wasn’t great! But then we replanted the vineyards in stages over three years, in 2001, 2002 and 2003, and were guided by the expertise of the late Alan York who advocated biodynamic viticulture. Now, helped by experts Daniel O’Donnell and Paolo Caciorgna, we are producing excellent estate wines that are scoring highly and gaining a great reputation, particularly our Super Tuscan called “Sister Moon”, as well as the delicious mid-range red, “Message In a Bottle” which we have followed up this year with a white “Message in a Bottle”. As wine lovers this is a really exciting project for us, and we’re thrilled that what we’re making is so well received”.
STING – Sting, your new album has a very intriguing title (“57TH & 9TH). Can you tell us what it means?
“I’ve always enjoyed walking, and I especially like walking to work. 57th & 9th is a busy intersection I would pass through every day on my way to work in the studios in Hell’s Kitchen in New York where I recorded the new album. I do most of my thinking while walking – so walking and the conjuring of stories and songs are intrinsically bound together for me”.
TRUDIE-what new cinematographic projects do you have?
“I have just been at the Berlin International Film Festival with my directorial debut, a movie called Freak Show, based on James St James’ bestselling book. The young Berlinale audiences really responded to the comedy and warmth of the film – it was great to see it play to big audiences. My company Maven Films is also proud to have produced most recently American Honey, as well as Novitiate – both receiving high critical praise”.
STING & TRUDIE – When are you coming back to Tuscany to relax?
“We usually spend time at Il Palagio with our family for a month or so during the summer depending, of course, on everyone’s schedules”.
TRUDIE -Why have you decided to share this paradise with others?
“As the children have grown into adults, with their own busy lives, the time we could spend all together at Il Palagio had reduced over the years, and so it seemed a waste to have this beautiful place with such beautiful guesthouses unoccupied so much of the time. We’ve also seen how every one of our friends who have spent any time there have loved it so much – it’s actually a pleasure to be able to offer that chance to people planning holidays, weddings and other retreats. I know that Paolo and Bina Rossi, brother and sister who were born at Il Palagio and are still there to run the estate and the house, feel the same – they are so happy for people to come and appreciate its special atmosphere”.
