Bologna, September 11, 2026 – On via Paolo Fabbri a bouquet of flowers still rests, placed at the foot of the three entrance steps. At number 43, hanging from the cornice, is the scarf of love and farewell: “Words are not enough, but yours will remain forever. Goodbye Francesco.”
And while more than a month after his passing the Maestrone is still honored for hours by the procession of his people, behind the tall dark wooden door the house at via Paolo Fabbri 43 has changed owner. Or owneress.
The symbol of Francesco Guccini’s life in Bologna has passed to the universal heir named in the Maestrone’s last will: his wife Raffaella Zuccari, who will now have the task of carrying Guccini’s legacy into the future. Starting precisely from that ground-floor house with barred windows and inside which the Maestro’s memorabilia are jealously kept. From endless collections of vinyl records to entire shelves overflowing with books, the Red Locomotive in reduced scale and then those walls: covered with cartoons, caricatures, and sketches often depicting Guccini himself, protagonist of feats and ironic scenes.
The Maestrone’s fans dream together
And now, about the future of that house, the hub of Guccini’s cult, the Maestrone’s fans dream together. “This place holds an important piece of memory for an entire generation. It’s not up to us to say how it should be enhanced, but maybe an idea similar to that for Via del Campo 29 (the emporium-museum dedicated to De André in Genoa, ed.) or Dalla’s house also here in Bologna…”, ventures a group of people who came from Turin to the capital of Emilia-Romagna to pay tribute to Guccini’s house. And it is precisely the house-museum formula that most stimulates the imagination of those who love the Maestrone.
“Celebrating such a great poet”
“It could become a place where the celebration of such a great poet can be carried forward” hopes Simona Corrà, who came to Bologna from Milan to observe the outside of via Paolo Fabbri 43. “He was passionate about books, it would be nice if it also became a place to display the entire source of his knowledge. I hope the city of Bologna steps in to work on a solution of this kind,” add two people from Turin, Elena Pacca and Stefano Nuceto.
But what matters most to the Maestro’s people is “that his most important legacy, his music, remains immortal.” Guccini, after all, already knew what to do with his songs: “I return to play at my place: I throw a party, with cats and poets, here at dawn at via Fabbri 43!”.
