It is with surprise that my first entry on my music section is for a classical composer.  Having been brought up on a diet of rock and disco/dance music and many styles in-between I always shunned classical music as old fashioned and fusty.

However over the past 8 years or so the composer Ludovico Einaudi has wound his way into my heart and possibly into the psyche of the general public at large.   My journey began with my son’s piano lessons – suddenly he began practicing music that made my ears prick up – very simple, minimalistic pieces – he perfected 3 pieces and whilst he was playing them it brought tears to my eyes as I was thinking he would be away at university soon and I would miss him playing.  The following mothers day he brought me the album ‘Una Mattina‘

which I would play from time to time and after a while it caught the ears of hubby – we then bought some of his other albums Divenire, Nightbook, Islands.  Soon the whole family was loving his music; my daughter had it playing during her wedding breakfast meal.  We began recognizing some of his work on television commercials – his track Primavera was used for the Santander advert a few years back and more recently a track from one of his newer albums In a Time Lapse was the backdrop for a British Airways advert.

To give some information about his background he was born in November 1955 in Turin, Italy.  It is hard to classify his genre of music but it has been described as Neoclassical new-age music, minimalist, meditative and contemporary classical music.  After training at the Conservatorio, Milan he began his career as a classical composer and soon began incorporating other styles and genres including pop, rock world and folk music.  He collaborated with the theatre and dance world in the 1980s and 90s and from the mid-90s he began composing film soundtracks which include the score for the 2002 TV serial Doctor Zhivago and in 2010 the music for the trailer of Black Swan.  His music is also featured in the This is England TV dramas as well as Derek which was directed by Ricky Gervais.  Einaudi released his first solo piano album Le Onde in 1996 which enjoyed mainstream success particularly in Italy and the UK.  In 2001 he released I Giorni and that particular track was featured in a BBC promotion for arts and culture programmes and also in recent years was played on Radio 1 after Greg James championed the track for helping him with his university studies.  After multiple plays it reached number 32 in the UK singles chart in June 2011.  In 2006 Divenire was released (which means “to become” in English).  It was recorded by the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra with Einaudi as the piano master.  Shortly after its release Einaudi went on a UK tour and the album topped the iTunes classical chart.  I have to admit that I think this is my favourite album of his.  One of the tracks “Fly” was used as theme music to popular TV drama series Doctor Foster last year.  Proctor & Gamble used an excerpt from “Divenire” for their TV commercial for the Olympics in 2012.

His next album to be released by Nightbook in 2009 when he took a slightly different direction incorporating synthesized sounds alongside his solo piano playing.  In 2013 he released In a Time Lapse which now includes a more orchestral feel and his newest album Elements released in October 2015 which again comprises of piano, electronic and orchestra.

 

We have been lucky enough to see him in concert twice – the first time we had seats near to the front at the Barbican Centre in the summer of 2013 when he was touring In a Time Lapse.  It was an amazing experience to watch him and his small orchestra playing and my eyes kept diverting to watch where each sound was coming from; there was a huge circular drum on stage and one member was switching from guitar to violin to triangle!  When we had the opportunity to see him in concert again in March this year we jumped at the chance – this time he was touring his newest album Elements.  This was equally as fascinating – there is so much to watch on the stage and now when I listen to the album I can visualize how the music is being played – I found the percussionist to be mesmerizing!

If you get a chance I would urge you to take a listen to his music.  It is perfect for those moments when you want to just chill and escape from the frenetic pace of modern life.  When we have had friends round they have asked about the beautiful music we are playing.  Once you become acquainted you will be able to spot his music anywhere – it has a very distinctive style -I don’t watch much TV but in the past week it has been played on the BAFTAs and Britain’s Got Talent; it was all over the X Factor last year and I have even heard it on Top Gear and Match of the Day!