Italian pianist Ludovico Einaudi has worked in many musical areas over the years, producing music for theatres, movie directors and ballet companies, as well as releasing solo albums notable for their sophisticated restraint and elegant minimalism. Divenire - Einaudi's seventh studio album – is a slight diversion in that it's the first time the composer has collaborated with a full orchestra: the Royal Liverpool Philharmonic to be exact. Einaudi's compelling piano pieces are still at the core of Divenire and remain as mesmerising as ever, but the orchestral embellishments lend his work a richer, more sweeping ambience. Divenire also sees Einaudi experiment with electronics, though these are used sparingly; primarily as textural devices. While not as minimal as earlier works, Divenire does not embrace the epic, preferring instead to ebb and flow gently between pared-down piano pieces and the fuller, more emotive sentiments of "Primavera," or the 11-minute opus, "Oltremare." Representing yet another stage in a formidably progressive career, Divenire sees Ludovico Einadi at the height of his imaginative powers. --Danny McKenna
Customer Reviews:
Avg. Customer Rating: 4.0 / 5.0
Oh please Somebody ought to say something less gushing. If you like music, like piano playing, etc, spend at least a bit of your budget on some Mozart or Liszt. Please. Learn what can be done if you learn to play - and to listen. This is very nice elevator music. I hope no-one ever makes me sit through a whole album of this. I expect his mother thought he was very good.
Stunning Music From A Talented Composer This album is my first exposure to Einaudi, but it has made me a fan of his brilliant work. The depth captured in the music through the use of an extremely minimal style is simply awe-inspiring. Never did I think that so few notes can invoke such intense feelings. Thus far I have listened to this album a dozen times in a row and get the same chills when I first heard it. After listening to this album, I was able to find his older compilations and am glad to say that I am equally impressed. Kudos... more info
Cracking. Two of the tracks will blow you away. The rest of the album flows excellently - and fairly calmly, with some brilliant ideas from the man.
Ludovico's really gone full-tilt with the elements on this one, and the use of electronic loops could have truly gone overboard... and to be honest, would probably have created a great sound all the same earning new fans from the ambient market: but he's not forgotten that the piano is what it's all about.
The strings are a fairly obvious addition, but... more info
Relaxing and charming classical-lite I can see why this CD is popular with fans but irritates critics. While not setting out to challenge, it does what it aims to very well, which is to entertain with sweetly melancholic and meditative music. It's quite elegantly simple and catchy - yet on the whole manages to stay away from the banal. It reminds me of the music of Enya or Windham Hill, but played mainly on piano. Thankfully the piano is sensitively and well-played, avoiding Richard Clayderman-style clunkiness. I enjoy this CD for background... more info
