In the previous installment (which can be found here), Thomas Pasatieri spoke of his father – but he was hardly the only influential figure in the inimitable composer’s life. Here, Mr. Pasatieri talks about his stalwart mother and the incredible story of his initial foray into the world of music.

RF: What are your father’s and mother’s names?

TP: Maria, and his real was Carmelo, but they called him “Thomas.” So, she never knew that his name was Carmelo until they were married and she had to sign the [marriage certificate] – she said: Who’s Carmelo? They always called him “Thomas.” So she named me after him – but not his real name. She named me after the name that he was known by. Isn’t that something?

RF: Yes.

TP: She was a great lady, too. Don’t get me wrong – it wasn’t just my father. I loved my mother, too. She was wonderful.

RF: She sounds very supportive, actually.

TP: She was a very, very strong woman and she was very supportive. She was very much ahead of her time. She believed in women’s rights 30 years before. She was staunch – she really believed in the power of women. I have two sisters and she brought up my sisters to be strong, independent women. So, she was great, too. But they weren’t musicians. She was a dressmaker, my mom.

RF: Let me ask you a question: You said that music was not a big part of your childhood. How did you start composing?

TP: It was a miracle. What happened was: For the first nine years of my life, there was absolutely no music. And then one day, I was walking home from school – past a house – and there was a sign that said “Vera Wells’ Piano Instruction.” I walked in, and Mrs. Wells was there giving piano lessons. I said that I wanted to take piano lessons. I was only nine-years-old. She said: Well, you’ll have to talk to your parents and everything. I went back to my parents and said that I want to talk piano lessons. So they said I can. They bought a piano, and I started to take lessons with Mrs. Wells, but I started to be able to play right away – after two weeks, three weeks – I started to be able to play. After the first year, I gave a concert. See – Mrs. Wells never told me that that was unusual. I didn’t know that that was different from anybody else. So it was all natural for me, and that’s what happened.

RF: That’s a remarkable story. Thank you so much for your time.

TP: My pleasure.

Photo by Ellen Appel.

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