ROME (dpa) — Pope Benedict XVI, a fan of Mozart and Bach, is still without his
piano as movers have been unable to fit it through the windows of
his papal apartment, it was reported Wednesday [April 27].
According to the Italian news agency ANSA, Joseph Ratzinger's piano should have been moved two evenings ago, but attempts to carry it up the stairs and through the windows of his new quarters at the Vatican failed.
Movers are now considering dismantling the instrument and reassembling it inside its new location.
The German-born pontiff moved out of his flat in Rome's Piazza della Città Leonina shortly after his election last week.
Ratzinger, who apparently uses the piano to relax at times of stress, reportedly used to irk his neighbours by playing Mozart, Bach and Palestrina a little too loudly, according to German weekly Der Spiegel.
According to ANSA, the pope made a surprise visit to his old flat on April 20, a day after his election, especially to play his favourite music.
The pope is currently staying in a room at Santa Marta, the
Vatican guesthouse used by cardinals during the conclave, and will
not be expected to move into his new papal apartment until the
weekend, ANSA said.
