Written by Sarah McRuvie
In a world of incessant labelling and deciphering of genres, it is almost strange listening to the stripped back sounds of a man and his piano. That said, Bruno Bavota can still be placed in the modern classical sphere. His minimalistic approach and pop influenced melodies simulate that of Ludovico Einaudi.
If you are someone in complete adoration of Ludovico Einaudi, this album could tear you in two conflicting directions. The first is that your fondness of ambient, introspective music, will make that connection to Einaudi for all the right reasons, and you’ll fall head over heels like you did with ‘Divenire’. However, the second is that you will actually be disappointed that the music already exists, it blends in, doesn’t stand out, and it’s all a little safe.
Yet, the difficulty here is that his music is pleasing on the ear; it's beautifully crafted, simmering with emotion and subtly unobtrusive. But is that what we want from a record? He certainly doesn’t stand against the post-classical composers, such as Olafur Arnalds and Nils Frahm. But his music has an emotional undercurrent, the bare bones of what these composers build from.
The other problem is that the specific recording technique and production is shoddy; and that’s not just a personal dislike of the mike placement (it actually clips throughout...).
La Casa Sulla Luna doesn’t (at first) appear special, but with each listen is more and more rewarding. Track three, ‘Il dito si muove sul vetro appannato’, is a highlight, where the string countermelodies flirt with the piano. Each section rises, the string parts are added to the soft piano and they playfully respond to one another.
Straddling that fine line between happy and sad, ripples of serenity propel themselves through the dynamic changes. This is music that captures mood and will illicit a relaxing stillness in your surroundings. Its tranquility is positioned confidently in the passive listener enjoying a candle-filled bubble-bath, but also, its dynamic variability allows attentive ears to ride the emotional waves that fluctuate to and fro.
Maybe this record is quite simple, but it also touches the emotions. It’s not cutting edge, it’s not groundbreaking, but it’s still extremely satisfying. Bavota should continue, unperturbed, preserving the simplicity he carries with his unwinding classical vibes, or if he so wishes, use his compositional craft to build higher, and delve deeper into an unknown land.
