Matt Schomburg and his daughter visited Danny Varello and his family in their home in Kings Park, New York. While visiting, Varello’s father Joe asked Schomburg, the Varello brother’s faceoff coach, if he wanted to hear Danny play the piano. Schomburg never knew Varello played, and even remembered saying, “Danny doesn’t play the piano.”

“What can you play?” Schomburg asked Varello.

“I don’t know,” Schomburg remembered Varello replying. “Tell me a song and I’ll play it.”

Moments later, Varello played away, his fingers riding across the black and white keys, the sound of the piano filling the air.

For Varello, now the starting faceoff specialist for No. 12 Syracuse (2-1), music has always been an escape from the stresses of school and sport. This past summer, he picked up painting. For someone that has spent his entire life training to be a lacrosse player, the arts offer a sanctuary from the rigors of life, and also have helped to make him the player he is today.

“He’d get all mad at me if I texted you some of his paintings or recordings of his piano playing,” Joe said. “He’s very gifted.”

Varello never intended to play the piano. His parents never taught him or forced him to take lessons. An old piano that belonged to Varello’s grandmother sat in his living room “collecting dust,” Varello said. It was just a decoration.

Until one day, without any provocation, a bored Varello sat down on the bench and played. His fingers tiptoed the keys.

“I just kind of decided, let me mess around with this,” Varello said. “I kind of just played for fun.”

What began from boredom turned into a hobby and eventually a passion. Varello’s mother, Joann, signed him up for lessons, and soon after Varello was a member of the New York State School Music Association performing in recitals.

“It was pretty intense,” Varello said. “I did (NYSSMA) for four or five years.”

Eventually, though, piano lost priority as his lacrosse career budded into stardom. Piano became a hobby.

“For Danny to have a release, be able to take his mind of stuff, not think about grades, or lacrosse or being recruited,” Schomburg said, “it’s got to be a great release, mentally to go to that place.”

Like Schomburg, very few people who know Varello were aware he plays the piano. Growing up, few of his friends knew, and it was mostly just his family and close family friends that knew of his talent. And even fewer knew that he played in recitals and did NYSSMA. He keeps everything on the “down low,” Varello said. He doesn’t want his teammates knowing he performs in piano recitals.

But Syracuse players found out anyway. The night before a road game, if the team went out to a restaurant, Varello would look to see if it had a piano. And if it did he would play for the audience.

“It’s funny,” Varello said. “I don’t really like performing and I don’t really like playing for people a lot. I think the reason why I get excited about seeing a piano is it’s probably way nicer than the one I have at home.”

During summer 2017, in between his freshman and sophomore year, Varello also picked up painting. He remembered driving by a Michaels craft store and seeing a few canvasses in the window. Like piano, he thought, “Why don’t I give painting a shot?”

Varello paints abstract art, mixing and blending colors in his own style. The first painting that he made was a red and black abstract piece. And he plans on making many more.

“It’s pretty cool,” Varello said. “I’m going to paint a little more over the summer, see if I can get better colors.”

The arts allow him to see lacrosse in different ways, Schomburg said. Varello has always been analytical. He doesn’t have to be told things twice, Schomburg said, and he’s able to self-diagnose himself, Joe added.

The faceoff position is one which can lead to massive frustration, Schomburg said. And when that happens, specialists struggle. The key is thinking about what you can fix, rather than focusing on the loss.

“When you have a faceoff loss,” Schomburg said, “you have to bring information, not frustration. I think (art) helps analytically. He’s able to work through stuff and analyze stuff.”

This past Saturday against Army, Varello struggled mightily at the beginning of the game at the faceoff X. He lost nine of his first 11 attempts and was subbed out for senior faceoff specialist Seth DeLisle. But come overtime, Syracuse head coach John Desko went back to Varello. In the final three overtimes, Varello went three-for-three and helped lead Syracuse in its 11-10 win against then-No. 9 Army.

“He’s so creative,” Schomburg said. “And that helps you to be better at the X. I don’t know anyone else that thinks the way he does.”

Published on February 26, 2018 at 9:55 pm

Contact Matt: mdliberm@syr.edu