MIL:
La Notte Bianca della Musica - When Milan Sheds Sleep for Song

The humid Milanese air hangs thick with the scent of tram brakes and spilt Aperol when it happens - the moment the city collectively decides sleep is overrated. At precisely 11:03 PM, as the last stragglers leave the Galleria's Prada boutique, a cellist in the Piazza Affari begins playing Bach's Cello Suite No. 1. Her bow glows with bioluminescent algae. This is how the Milano Summer Festival begins.

Night One: The Castle Awakens
The stones of Castello Sforzesco haven't trembled like this since the Viscontis ruled Milan. Sting walks onstage trailed by 47 violinists, their instruments strung with cables that pulse light across the castle's battlements. As the first chords of "Englishman in New York" ring out, 20,000 phone screens ignite like fireflies. A group of elderly Milanese women in couture tracksuits nod approvingly - this isn't their first musical rodeo.

3:17 AM - San Lorenzo's Secret
You find yourself in the Columns' shadow, where a DJ in a cassock is mixing Gregorian chants with techno. The crowd sways - architecture students from the Politecnico, Japanese tourists still dressed for La Scala, a group of off-duty waiters from Savini. A man offers you a cannoli filled with pistachio gelato. You accept because when in Milan at 3 AM...

The Morning After
At Caffè Cova, the barista doesn't ask what you want. He simply slides a triple espresso and a brioche filled with zabaione cream across the marble counter. Your hands still vibrate from the bass at Blue Note Milano. The couple next to you - she in a ballgown, he in cycling shorts - are comparing set lists. Outside, crews sweep up champagne corks while the city prepares to do it all again tonight.

"We don't lose sleep over music. We replace sleep with music." - La Repubblica