Fabrizio Paterlini: Press/Reviews

Fabrizio Paterlini - Autumn Stories

Autumn Stories is the fourth full-length album from Italian pianist/composer Fabrizio Paterlini. Last year, Paterlini composed, recorded, and released for free on the internet one new song each week, starting on September 21 and ending on December 21, 2011. Autumn Stories is a compilation of those fourteen tracks (the physical CD contains three bonus tracks, which I have not heard). In the first three months, the project received more than 18,000 plays and 4,000 downloads - very impressive! The remixed and remastered release includes some electronic textures as well as a string quartet along with Paterlini’s grand piano (most of the pieces are solo piano). Sometimes describing his music as “red wine on a summer evening,” its melancholy moods communicate deeply, soothing the soul and sparking the imagination. Often compared to Ludovico Einaudi, Paterlini’s music isn’t overly showy or complicated, but the emotions conveyed go straight to the soul. It is interesting to note that all of the pieces are titled with the week in which they were created (“Week 1-14”), leaving it up to the listener to interpret what each piece is about. Several of the pieces would be perfect in the soundtrack for a moody or deeply-affecting film. I fully expect that Autumn Stories will be one of my favorite albums for 2012. It is truly awesome how deeply affecting this music is.

“Week 1” begins with some atmospheric sounds before beginning the dreamy and nostalgic piano melody. “Week 2” is one of those wonderful pieces that would be simple enough for a child to play, but there is no way a child would have the experience to convey the gentle tenderness and emotional depth that the piece expresses. “Week 3,” a piano and cello duet, is mournfully sad, almost tragic. It begins with the spare and heart-stirring main theme, changes to a more dramatic middle theme, and then returns to the first theme, trailing off at the end. Amazing! “Week 5,” which also contains strings, is as soft as a whisper, telling a haunting story of hurt or loss. “Week 8” is an elegant and evocative piano solo - soft spoken and intimate. “Week 9” is another favorite - simple and understated with a very big emotional impact, kind of like a Chopin prelude. “Week 10” is sparkling and magical. “Week 11” is dark, mysterious, and intensely beautiful. “Week 12” is another favorite. A very simple but heartfelt melody is backed with slowly-flowing broken chords that create a feeling of movement. “Week 14” brings this incredible album to close with a piece that resembles a hymn. A continuous low cello note in the background adds atmosphere as the piano bids a warm and gentle farewell. Wow!

Autumn Stories is truly a work of art, and I give it my highest recommendation. It is available from www.fabriziopaterlini.com, Amazon, iTunes, and CD Baby. Bravo!

Ludovico Einaudi: Royal Albert Hall Concert; Fabrizio Paterlini: Fragments Found; Miina Virtanen: Autumn Stories
You always assumed Ólafur Arnalds pioneered the extension of classical music into pop-territory? You thought Max Richter was the first to bridge the gap between the legacy of Phil Glass and Ambient? You were under the impression that Jóhann Jóhannsson and Hildur Guðnadóttir were singular in their blend of styles from different centuries? Time for a little history lesson: Luovico Einaudi was there long before them. After studying with leading avantgardist Luciano Berio in Milan and plenty of soulsearching, experimentation and pondering, Einaudi arrived at incisive conclusions about his relationship towards harmony, structure and composition at the end of the 1980s. Since then, he has developed and honed a style uniquely his own, for years working at the fringes of a music business blatantly disinterested in a music finding strength in silence and a media-landscape misplacing him into the New Age category. There simply wasn't a tag for this music yet, which seemed to exists in a time and place of its own and on the strength of the imagination of an artist, whose words were as carefully measured as his oeuvre and did not serve the puerile needs of marketing departments. Which is probably why Einaudi, thanks to a couple of successful soundtrack commissions, was rather known in the realms of film aficionados than music fans and through his sheet music, which made for a wonderful alternative to the stereotypical etudes and Chopin-waltzes on the menu of piano students worldwide.

Today, of course, the situation has drastically changed. Not only has Einaudi long made it into the upper echelons of the musical establishment, signed a record deal with the renowned Decca-imprint, thereby cementing his position as a wanderer between the worlds of classical and contemporary music, and built a faithful fan base passionately devoted to his cause. Not only can he, as The Royal Albert Hall Concert effectively proves, sell out venues typically reserved for the superstars of Rock and Pop. He also commands respect from the most diverse corners of the creative spectrum - from purists to the outskirts of the electronic music community, the latter of whom have come to regard his work as a logical continuation of Brian Eno and Harald Budd's collaborational forrays into mood and space as well as a contemporary vision of what chamber music could and should sound like in the 21st century. It is therefore anything but surprising that Einaudi, on last year's Nightbook, shared the studio with Robert and Ronald Lippok of German Post-Electronica-trio To Rococo Rot and asked Robert as well as Alva Noto's Carsten Nicolai to rework two of his new pieces for a free-to-download remix-EP. If there was, obvious stylistic differences aside, an important element uniting their aesthetics, it was surely that the line of influence for contemporary forms of expression dates back far further into the past than the 20th century. And that, in a time when it seems to have lost its relevance, classical music in a way has been given a unique chance for renewal. Rather than cutting themselves off from the proud lineage of Western composition or blindly submitting themselves to its dictate, they were discovering it as a means of sharing one of the most precious goods: Intimacy.

It is easy to see why Einaudi should today come to be regarded as something of a godfather for the Neo-Classical movement and, truth be told, if one were merely to listen blindfold to the two audio-CDs of this luxuriously packaged fold-out double-CD and DVD set, the similarities are indeed striking: There's the same emphasis on mood and fragility. A conflation of harmonic and melodic elements into a single texture, in which both are interchangeable, complementary and in a constant state of flux. The focus on the traditional small-scale piano and string ensemble, with the former mostly acting as pulse and melodic lead and the latter as harmonic backing and a body for thematic responses. And, finally, the integration of elements from the world of popular music, signified here by the inclusion of electric bass, frame drum and acoustic guitar - aptly, the gig at the Royal Albert Hall gets off to a flying start, as the band launch furiously into the supple groove and cascading chord-cycles of „Lady Labyrinth“. And yet, it would both feel like a major disservice and a historical injustice of subsuming Einaudi into the genre right at a point when he has successfully corrected the pervasive impression of constituting nothing more than an updated minimalist. In reality, his compositions both precede Neo-Classical tendencies and extend beyond them – which simultaneously awards them a chance of retaining their value long after the current trend has faded.

There are two major qualities which set Einaudi apart from the fold. Firstly, an unrivaled inventiveness in terms of arrangement. Although his pieces cater to a cornucopia of different emotions, he has never made it a secret that he enjoys working with and within a single sound. The Royal Albert Hall Concert openly acknowledges this and even manages to use this seeming limitation to its advantage, as tracks seamlessly segue in and out of each other here, as though being part of an interrelated symphonic suite. Some of them are nothing more than endlessly repeating chord progressions pushed forward on the strength of tiny shifts in accent and a highly effective use of dynamics – on a piece like aforementioned „Lady Labyrinth“, which blends organically into the title track to the Nightbook-album, the band build epic tension arches of all but silent and static passages and euphoric outbursts, euphorically sweeping the audience along with them. In an extended section in the second half of the gig comprised of „Berlin Song“ or „Melodia Africana I“, meanwhile, Einaudi showcases his lyrical talents, hinting at, albeit it never outwardly paying homage to, the vocabulary of the romantics and impressionists – these are, essentially, songs without words played by a man who openly confesses that words are probably least of all suited to expressing emotions. And then, there are compositions which play with microscopic melodic particles passed around from one instrument to the next and subtle variations gradually pulling the music from a clearly defined point of departure to an uncertain future. It is on the latter category especially, that Einaudi puts his theoretical training to its most exciting use – it is hard to imagine a protagonist of the new generation of „intutive“ musicians coming up with an arousing journey like „Primavera“, which runs the gamut from delicate moodwork to ebullient punches of broken chords, evoking associations with the passionate string work of Vivaldi.

Einaudi's second unique selling point is the inclusion of electronics into his set in a way that far extends beyond the hypnotically revolving piano loop on the introductory „The Planets“: On stage, tellingly, the interaction between him and Robert Lippok, as visually unassuming as it may be, is certainly far more incisive for the overall effect of the music as the contribution of the acoustic ensemble. This is perhaps most clearly audible on a piece like „In Principio“, in which the synths literally provide for an engaging context for the piano's outwardly simplistic inventions to unfold and resonate in. But it equally applies to the fulminate and sinister finale of „Bye Bye Mon Amour“, which sees Lippok erecting cathedral spaces filled with desolation and sorrow. Just as in his movie scores, none of the two layers of the experience can be separated from the other, both informing and questioning each other. The tender ambiances and experimental abstractions seem to take the music even further down where it already inherently aspires to: A realm of intuition, where the shapeless and subconscious take prevalence over the tangible and planned. Rather than presenting his audience with a clear-cut emotional statement, Einaudi forces them to deal with ambivalence and confusion – emotions often associated with the mythical, but which here take on an entirely earthy and human face. The dialogue with Lippok is an open form of mediating between these poles – and an expression of the composer's commitment to develop his music organically. Electronics and acoustics may represent different shores, but they still belong to the very same river, flowing constantly and peacefully from a majestic past into a wide-open future.

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With this inviting and liberating approach, Einaudi has turned into an inspiration for a new generation of artists discovering classical music as a beacon of constancy and continuity in a time of continuous change. Fabrizio Paterlini certainly takes no issue if people see parallels between his work and that of the Turin-born composer: „His works surely were an inspiration at first, I spent a lot of time studying and playing his music some years ago. Sometimes, my music is compared to his - especially my first album, Viaggi in aeromobile. But this is far from being annoying, as Einaudi’s music is certainly a peak of excellence in our category.“ Still today, the elegance, grace and fluidity of his compositions reveal a shared sense of aesthetics, of regarding a lightness of touch as perfectly reconcilable with profundity of emotion and depth. And yet, on Fragments Found, his third full-length after, among others, an experimental EP and a collection of remixes, Paterlini has decidedly outgrown the comparisons: His harmonies are more lush, his compositions more concise than ever, his sound entirely focused on the cool, crystalline timbre of his Piano, amalgamating music from at least two centuries: With their weightless, ethereal quality, Paterlini's compositions constantly border Ambient – an impression further reinforced by his ingenious use of the pedal, which, as he put it himself, doesn't just add sustain to his notes, but actually envelopes the entire composition in a soft cloud of space; their rich harmonic language firmly roots them in the vocabulary of the Impressionists; the sparsity of the one-man-and-his-instrument-setting hints at the conventions of classical music recitals. And yet, they are none of the above, but always all at the same time.

This inner complexity, which notably contrasts the surfatial calm and purity of his pieces, may also explain why Paterlini's public profile is still relatively low-key. Rather than spelling things out in full, he is hinting at them. Instead of answering questions, he is posing new ones. And far from merely pleasing his audience, he intends to take them on a journey, even on an ephemeral two-minute miniature. The challenging aspects of his style have however somewhat obscured the fact that Paterlini is blessed with of the most natural and effortless talents for melody on the scene. His script is far more poetic than that of many of his colleagues, who have reverted to a sort of consciously unsensual style for fear of coming across as shallow and trivial. The reason why Paterlini is capable of avoiding these pitfalls while nonetheless working firmly within the realms of traditional tonality, lies in the seemingly simple but factually unique gift of playing exactly the right note at exactly the right time. At some of the most memorable moments on Fragments Found, a line will suddenly, out of the blue, jump up an octave, piercing one's heart where it hurts the most.

With these heartwrenching surprises constantly hiding around the bend, he can even sustain the tension on a piece like closer „Still Travelling“, which, on paper, just keeps on circling around the same chords for four minutes. On other occasions, meanwhile, Paterlini shows himself a master at building extended arches as a demonstrative counterpoint to the minimalist ideal – such as on „Controvento, senz'olio“, which features the kind of neverending melody someone like Wagner might have dreamt of. With ten tracks of dreamy piano without any accompaniment, one might be inclined to expect this to be a rather lulling affair. The contrary is true, however, as the album rips through the corridors of a mind ornamented with exactly the kind of scenes, images and stories the titles, dealing with „frozen lakes“ or „The giant and the ballerina“ are alluding to. Paterlini has mentioned that he does intend to force electronics on his arrangements, but to wait for them to suggest themselves in a natural way. And why should he? As Fragments Found proves, there is plenty of potential in this pure approach yet.

coverThe music of Miina Virtanen, meanwhile, is a perfect example of how the term Neo-Classical, as problematic as it may be on the one hand, has managed to unite different communities, rather than alienating them, on the other: Despite obvious similarities in terms of sound and mood, her style is both a counterpoint and contrast to Einaudi's and Paterlini's. After finishing her studies in Germany, Virtanen moved back to her native Finland last year and set up a practise for music therapy, working with patients to both improve their physical functionality and psychological condition. The return may not have had the kind of transformational effect one might have expected, since Virtanen had never lost touch with her home - recording, among others, a full-length album of Finish Folk with singer and violinist Pia Repo. And yet, it has at least outwardly, re-aligned her oeuvre with the pulse of nature and the beauty of solitary forests and lakesides. At the same time, it would be trivial to relate both her pristine and ethereal sound as well as the title to her new album, Autumn Stories, to the brittle and pure countryside of the Finish hinterland. It would also be inadequate: Not only does Virtanen perform and record her pieces without any kind of conceptual connotations, adding titles only after the sessions are finished. She also draws from a remarkably varied and international palette. The colour play of Debussy may be heard in some of her more associative moments, the hypnotic circling around a single thematic and harmonic center akin to Satie or the simultaneity of movement and stillness which one can observe in the work of Arvo Pärt.

All of these comparisons are nonetheless going nowhere, however, as Virtanen has created a style entirely her own, based on a conclusive combination of improvisation and composition. When recording an album like Autumn Stories, her only preparations will consist in preparing sketches of ideas and motives, which she will then bring to fruition in the moment. At the same time, if she feels it will benefit the music, she will go back to a particular idea and define it in more detail before re-submitting it to a new round of variations. The consequences are twofold: For one, almost all of the tracks contained here are based on an extremely reduced amount of parameters, deepening the set of their expressive powers over the course of a piece's duration. And secondly, that sculpting a flow always takes prevalence. On a piece like „Starflights over the Sea“, all that is essentially happening is Virtanen delicately keeping the music alive by sending it through a funnel of ferocious clusters and passages of relative quietude, in which she rebuilds the momentum. Intensity of performance is her highest priority, even compared to factors like rhythmical smoothness, precision and accuracy in terms of pitch. At the beginning of „Frost I“, for example, she all but hammers out a smattering of stunningly atonal notes in the midst of an otherwise entirely harmonic surrounding. An yet, it is this very impulsiveness, this sense of roughness and immediacy, which awards the work its air of urgency and undeniability, demanding attention and constantly pulling listeners from their comfort zone.

Perhaps twenty two tracks of these streams of consciousness are a bit too much in objective terms. Yet the abundance of material suggests that linearly listening your way through this album is not the best way to appreciate it. Instead, Autumn Stories invites its audience to dive in and out of its riverbed, of finding individual paths and creating personal narratives. The same applies to Virtanen's work as a whole, which, in its very essence, is always an undiluted expression of the human condition. That may not make it popular anytime soon. But as the example of Ludovico Einaudi proves, time will eventually put these things straight.

Fabrizio Paterlini – Fragments Found (self)

Sometimes the simplest melodies awaken the most evocative of emotions… Listening to neo-classical piano compositions by Fabrizio Paterlini is like being cradled in the depths of nostalgia, holding back the eyes from tearing. It all depends on the current state of mind. And if you are already vulnerable, Paterlini will take you just a bit further. His ten piano pieces, originally recorded and left undisturbed for years, tell a story with a soundtrack to your life. Born in Manuta, Italy, Fabrizio has been playing piano since the age of 6. “When I sit in front of my piano and start playing, melodies come to find me and I immediately record them…” And it feels like some of these pieces are fragments of familiar melodies, heard in movies of your childhood, or perhaps in lullabies of your past. It is not until the second or third rotation of this album, that you realize that the beauty within, is not to be without. Pick up this disk directly from Paterlini or download a digital edition. While you’re there, don’t forget to grab his 2009 Viandanze, available as a download along with sheet music [something I've been begging other musicians to do!]. Fans of Library Tapes, Max Richter, Hauschka, Peter Broderick and Nils Frahm will absolutely enjoy! Really enjoyed this, and I’m sure you will too!

FABRIZIO PATERLINI - FRAGMENTS FOUND

Until now, my only experience of the Italian city of Mantua is as the place of Romeo’s exile in Shakespeare’s Romeo & Juliet and such in my mind’s eye it has always looked uninviting, tense and had a sense of looming inevitability – even the name of the city is derived from Mantus, an Etruscan god of the underworld. Of course, if I was ever to visit, I’m sure I would find it a vibrant, exciting – or at the very least – degage place.

Given my preconceptions about his home, I was interested to hear Fabrizio Paterlini’s recent album Fragments Found and discovered to my delight that these 10 tracks of solo piano fit nicely across both points of view.

First a little history. Paterlini is Italian born and began playing piano at the age of 6 years old and spent many years learning his craft as a classical musician. Like many other classical musicians, his formative years found him flirting with prog, hard-rock and jazz before finally returning to a modern style of classical music at the tail end of the last century. His debut was released in 2007 and he followed it with an e.p. in 2008. His latest album comes hard on the heels of a album of remixes of earlier work released in 2009 and what a follow-up it is.

Fragments Found is a beautifully structured and intricately balanced collection of piano pieces that seems to owe as much to German Composer Nils Frahm and the Austrian, Franz Schubert as it does to the oft-compared Einaudi and Satie. On first listen, Paterlini’s touch and tone is immediately apparent and his restraint is as impressive as his understanding of when to move forward.

Album opener Girasoli e Lavanda provides the album an immediate tone of reflection and on this track Paterlini uses space and the sustain pedal to create a truly beautiful ambience that stretches across the piece. Frozen River (Part ii) uses a pedal note of D to maintain a delicate tension as the melody leads us to the track’s climax of a dramatic arpeggio.

The title track of the album, Fragments Found uses a similar structure, this time building a soft, understated melody towards a torrent of notes at its end. Pensiero notturno is quiet and tentative like footsteps climbing stairs at midnight and the melody suggests despair. Il Gigante e la balena is the most romantic of the collection and while certainly pretty, it feels overly sentimental compared to the darker pieces and it feels a little out of place.

Five-Thirty am is as fragile as the track title suggests it may be but is enduringly hopeful and beautiful. Déjà Vu’s slow walk through a heavy atmosphere feels sombre but not heavy and Rue des Trois Frères, while being the shortest track on the record is arguably the most lovely with its brisk waltz it is reminiscent of Yann Tiersen’s score for Le Fabuleux Destin d’Amélie Poulain.

In Controvento, senz’olio, Paterlini carries the piece with the bass line while using sparing melodic phrases to push it forward and the effect is stunning. The final track of the album, Still Travelling, pivots around a gorgeous melodic motif that is used over and again across the piece evoking a myriad of emotions before slowly fading out – an effect that gives the impression the music will continue, inaudibly, on to infinity.

All in all Fragments Found is a graceful and emotive collection of piano pieces and, from this reviewer at least, is highly recommended. And of course, Mantua now evokes an altogether different image in my mind.

Fabrizio Paterlini - Viandanze
Viandanze is a stunning solo piano release from Italian pianist/composer Fabrizio Paterlini. Soft-spoken yet very deep and passionate, this is music that travels instantly from the ears to the heart. Reflective and somewhat melancholy, the thirteen pieces create a quiet atmosphere for other activities, but are too beautiful to keep in the background. Peaceful and uncluttered, Paterlini gets his message across with a minimum number of notes and an abundance of soulful emotion. He describes his music as “a glass of red wine on a summer evening.” I might add rich, soothing, and relaxing. This is a truly exceptional album and a very likely candidate for my Favorites List for 2010.


Viandanze begins with “Profondo blu” (“Deep Blue”), a very quiet piece that conveys feelings of yearning and hope. The steady repetition of a single note on the left hand suggests a heartbeat or pulse while the gentle melody tells an uncomplicated story - a great start! “Nuovi orizzonti” (“New Horizons”) picks up the tempo a bit, giving the piece a gentle energy and a sense of moving forward. “Esoterica virtu” is very slow and dark, and reminds me a bit of Erik Satie (as do other pieces on the album). “Primi Passi” (“First Steps”) is one of my favorites. Paterlini is the father of a young son, and I interpret this piece as the joy of seeing one’s small child starting to get around on his own, tempered by questions of what the future holds - an amazing piece! The title track is very understated and almost mournful, conveying the feeling of an intimate (and perhaps painful) conversation with someone close - an emotional powerhouse! “Sottovoce” has a subdued yet sparkling quality that moves with the grace of a slow, evocative dance. “In cerchio” (“Circle”) is a waltz of sorts that expresses longing, deep reflection, and perhaps a touch of regret. It’s another beauty! “Veloma” (“Goodbye”) is also a favorite. Heartfelt sadness pours out of the music, touching the listener in a profound way. “Qui ed ora” (“Here and Now”) closes the album with a simple, gentle melody accompanied by accented notes in the deep bass of the piano, creating a mood of peaceful reflection.


Viandanze is an amazing album! The moods created with a minimal number of notes convey passions and emotions that would take volumes of words to express. Fabrizio Paterlini is an artist on a par with Ludovico Einaudi and David Lanz, and my hope is that the world is ready to embrace his music. Viandanze is available for download from fabriziopaterlinirecords.com, Amazon, CD Baby, and iTunes. Very highly recommended!

Fabrizio Paterlini - Viandanze (EP)
Soavi poesie scritte con gentilezza da un carezzevole pianoforte. Romantico, profondo, Fabrizio Paterlini si esprime con magiche formule minimali e libere, attraverso due sole mani, suoni delicati ed amorevoli, subendo positivamente il fascino di Yann Tiersen. La dolcezza, la malinconia, la tensione emotiva si ritrovano nelle note sparse meravigliosamente da un solo strumento. "Veloma" è semplicemente stupenda. Tredici minuti per distaccarci dalla realtà, levare i piedi da terra e viaggiare ad occhi chiusi tra terre incantate e cieli azzurri sconfinati.

FABRIZIO PATERLINI
Viaggi in aeromobile
Come non incoraggiare un coraggioso giovane che pubblica un disco di solo pianoforte senza il preciso intento di compiacere?
Questi viaggi in aeromobile sono dodici piccoli racconti diatonici, decorativi, piacevoli, ambientali. Musica che intrattiene in modo intelligente.
Sicuramente un punto di partenza, giacchè il discorso di Fabrizio si fa tanto più interessante quand'egli riesce a guardare dentro se stesso. Tali momenti, più rarefatti e contemplativi, risultano essere migliori di altri ove la tecnica o la forma cristallizzano l'attenzione più sul significante musicale, rischiando in trappole qui ben evitate, quasi sempre.
Per favore, non chiamate questi lavori neoclassici New Age.
Paterlini se ne tiene intelligentemente lontano.

Fabrizio Paterlini
Viaggi in aeromobile
Le recensioni vivono di soggettività. La musica di Fabrizio vola sulle ali dei fratelli Wright e di Lindbergh.
Fabrizio ha un retroterra musicale sostanzioso: cinque anni di pianoforte classico, solfeggio, e diversi altri di musica “pop” nel senso più lato dell’accezione.
Fin dai tempi del liceo insegue le note sul pianoforte e sulle tastiere elettroniche. La musica lo entusiasma, lo coinvolge, è vita vissuta. Emozione insopprimibile.
Se lo conosci, lo avverti. Ti travolge, con semplice autorevolezza. Una sera d’estate mi propone un primo ascolto, in auto. Racconta dei suoi nuovi brani. La curiosità cresce. Si impegna, scrive e compone nottetempo, tra bilanci di società e revisioni contabili. Il suo lavoro ufficiale.
C’è una forza travolgente a guidare le sue mani sulla tastiera: un amore, certo. E basta leggere le note di copertina. C’è però molto altro. La capacità della sua musica di condurti lontano, girando le spalle; senza rabbia. E’ come in un film. La scansione dei singoli brani ha la potenza dell’evocazione, un flashback infinito. Certe note stimolano i ricordi più dolci e melanconici. Nessun strumento è più adeguato di quello scelto.
Talvolta la grandezza della musica è semplice. Ogni nota scivola lentamente e ti racconta di lui, della sua vita. Rapisce i sensi, è bellezza della memoria, del tempo. E a quella vita accosti la tua.
Pomeriggi lontani, mattine di nebbia, notti gelide e volti che premono gli angoli nascosti del cuore.
I suoni mirano all’essenziale, al messaggio estremo più che all’alchimia delle forme.
Ogni ascoltatore troverà, ne sono certo, un’ ispirazione, un momento di cui essere gelosi.
Per me è stata la sera e la sua prima stella.

Felice è il volo d’esordio di Fabrizio Paterlini
Il primo decollo è sempre un momento delicato: quanta gravità c’è da vincere, ansia, voglia di affrontarlo ad occhi chiusi con il cuore che tambura nelle tempie. Ma la forza delle idee lucide supera qualsiasi freno ed è così che Fabrizio Paterlini è stato capace di lanciarsi nella sua prima impresa discografica. E’ di novembre scorso l’uscita del suo CD d’esordio, dodici tracce riunite sotto il titolo Viaggi in aeromobile: un lavoro che ha già raccolto lusinghieri consensi da più parti, ancor più significativi se si pensa che questa impresa è sorretta dal tam-tam dei sostenitori a lui vicini e dalla spontanea diffusione su Internet. L’affollata presentazione ufficiale ha avuto luogo il 15 dicembre allo Spazio Feltrinelli nell’originale forma di concerto guidato dal racconto dell’autore stesso: il migliore dei modi per promuovere la corretta percezione del significato di queste composizioni così fortemente legate alla rappresentazione di emozioni. Per Fabrizio Paterlini è la suggestione che determina la forma e soprattutto l’ambiente entro cui si muovono i temi; lo slancio creativo pare alimentato dal colore dei suoni, quasi dalla sensazione tattile del tasto che con cura ostinata va a premere. Dodici brani per una equilibrata successione di immagini e sensazioni sulle quali vibra l’ala della spontanea musicalità, frutto di esperienze artistiche e di studio progressivamente accumulati fino alla maturazione del progetto di impresa solitaria. Un esordio felice che si colloca in un momento fortunato per questo genere musicale, variamente definito, che riesce a coniugare elementi tanto interessanti quanto diversi, tra echi di classicismo e spazi armonici ben più recenti, costruzioni ridondanti e momenti riflessivi ottenuti per sottrazione negli sviluppi. Un panorama artistico punteggiato da altissime personalità che ne hanno determinato il successo e che testimonia dell’inesauribile miniera rappresentata dalla tastiera del pianoforte, tuttora alimentata, a un secolo di distanza, dalla sorgente immensa dei Preludi di Claude Debussy. Il benvenuto a questo promettente nuovo rappresentante del marchio famigliare Paterlini viene garantito dall’orgoglio di Mantova che lo accoglie tra le ricche fila dei suoi artisti riconoscendogli l’invidiabile qualità di diretto comunicatore di una spiccata sensibilità musicale. E c’è già grande interesse per rivedere all’opera Fabrizo Paterlini, tutti pronti ad applaudirlo al Ludas di via Oberdan, domenica prossima, 30 dicembre.

Fabrizio Paterlini: in volo sulle ali dell'airone
Fabrizio Paterlini è indubbiamente una stella nascente nel panorama pianistico solista italiano. Sta per uscire infatti a novembre, il suo primo lavoro ufficiale, il cd "Viaggi in aeromobile", nel quale il pianista mantovano vi ha concentrato tutta la sua musica definita ambient, minimalista, gentile, dolce e rilassante.. "Un bicchiere di vino rosso in una notte d'estate", come ama definirla lui stesso. Un pianista che nasce musicalmente all’età di 6 anni quando, come ci racconta, «con un briciolo di cognizione iniziai ad imparare “A whiter shade of pale”, dei Procol Harum. Mio padre, con alle spalle un passato fatto di clan e beat generation, mi insegnava allora a muovere i primi passi nel mondo degli accordi con la sinistra, e della melodia con la destra. Poi la musica classica: solfeggio, maestro, scale, arpeggi… confesso la mia fatica a rientrare nei canoni del perfetto musicista classico. Anche perché, nel frattempo, scoprivo i dischi di mio padre, Chuck Berry, Little Richard, Fats Domino e soprattutto Jerry Lee Lewis». Iniziava così, per Fabrizio Paterlini, un percorso musicale fatto di intrecci, contaminazioni, personalizzazioni passando dal progressive al hard rock, dal jazz al pop più raffinato. Ma nel 1994 cambia tutto. Le evoluzioni della musica contemporanea raggiungono il top al concerto live dei Floyg in quel di Modena. « Il concerto più bello della mia vita - ci racconta - da allora la mia carriera musicale e la mia musica hanno trovato la loro strada». Un inizio in gruppo ed ora un cd da solista. «Sicuramente negli anni novanta posso dire di aver vissuto la dimensione gruppale della musica – ricorda Paterlini - Voglio dire che, oltre alla scelta di fare ciò che più mi piaceva interpretando le cover dei più grandi, forse anche con un po’ di presunzione, era senz’altro presente anche una dimensione amicale in ciò che si faceva; quasi non sapevo se suonavo per incontrare gli amici o se incontravo gli amici per suonare! Il raggiungimento di una personale interpretazione, lo slancio creativo e la scelta di una esperienza da solista l’ho vissuta solo recentemente, quando circa due anni fa, si concluse l’ultimo progetto con un gruppo che proponeva cover di classici come James Taylor Quartet ed Herbie Hancock». E poi? « La cosa si era chiusa con un po’ di amaro in bocca, almeno per quanto mi riguarda, - continua - e avevo deciso di fermarmi per un po’ e riordinare le idee. Dopo qualche mese mi sono trovato tra le mani uno spartito, la mia ragazza me l’aveva regalato con l’intento, credo, di stimolarmi su un piano mai sperimentato fino a quel momento. Si trattava di Ludovico Einaudi, e ne rimasi folgorato! Ecco credo che tutto sia iniziato in quel preciso istante, entrare in un altro “mondo”musicale e sentirlo incredibilmente proprio, mi ha convinto a provarci sul serio e di lì a poco l’airone è arrivato!» La musica di Paterlini nei "Viaggi in aeromobile", abbandona tutti gli stereotipi per ripartire dai suoni della natura. Sembra di vederlo, l’airone, spiccare il volo e librarsi nell’area con la sua agile maestosità. Una leggerezza che emoziona e porta con sei i pensieri, le umane fatiche, la quotidianità. Una musica che va oltre la semplice ispirazione. «Mi fa molto piacere che tu avverta la leggerezza di cui parli. E’ stata per me la risultanza di una serie di esperienze.. soprattutto personali. La semplice ispirazione è stata l’epilogo di un lungo vagare, una sorta di risveglio, potrei dire, in cui tutto quello che prima mi sembrava impossibile e difficilissimo è improvvisamente diventato vicinissimo e naturale. Quello che cerco di dire è che la mia musica è proprio sgorgata dalle mani, senza nessun genere di forzatura». Ed infatti, ascoltando “colori” si ha la sensazione di vederli, quelli dei bambini di tutto il mondo, con i loro sorrisi rivolti ad un futuro migliore, fatto di dolcezza ed amore. E nessun volto è simile ad un altro, come le musiche di Paterlini, che sebbene si ispiri alle sonorità di Ludovico Einaudi, Yann Tiersen, Michael Nyman e molti altri, ha una sua leggerezza ed una sua forte consistenza, ma dove porterà?« Ancora non so! – ci dice salutandoci - In questo momento il mio impegno e la mia concentrazione sono orientati verso l’uscita di questo disco. Posso anticiparti che c’è in cantiere una possibile collaborazione con altri artisti e che sto vagliando la proposta di un agenzia che si occupa di comunicazione. Ti prego di scusarmi ma non posso dirti di più..!». E nel salutarlo, rielaboriamo mentalmente la sua musica: una musica da ascoltare e vivere. Una musica che, come in un aeromobile, consentirà davvero di volare.

In viaggio sulle ali di un airone
Il rapporto del 34enne Fabrizio Paterlini con
la musica è di vecchia data: ha incontrato per la prima
volta i tasti di un pianoforte a sei anni e, da allora,
note e spartiti l’hanno sempre accompagnato.

Dopo una lunga e variegata esperienza in cover-band
che spaziavano dall’hard rock dei Deep Purple al prog
dei Police, il pianista mantovano ha recentemente
iniziato a comporre pezzi propri. I frutti di questo
lavoro saranno racchiusi nel suo primo album Viaggi
in aeromobile, appena finito di registrare e in uscita
a breve.

Lei ha esplorato in carriera diversi generi musicali. Come
è tornato al pianoforte, il suo primo amore? “Negli anni ho soprattutto suonato musica altrui, in
diverse cover-band. Non ho mai covato particolari
velleità compositive,o almeno è stato così finché non
ci ho provato. Scrivere al pianoforte è stata una scelta
più che naturale: è uno strumento che mi accompagna
da quando ho sei anni, che ho studiato
tanto e che continuo a studiare tuttora. Se devo trovare
un “punto di svolta” penso a un paio di anni
fa, quando Arianna, la mia ragazza, mi ha fatto scoprire
Ludovico Einaudi, che non conoscevo, se non
per qualche brano ascoltato qua e là. Da quel momento
mi sono avvicinato a questo tipo di sonorità
e ho capito che riuscivo a scriverle.Mi è venuto tutto
in un modo estremamente spontaneo, tanto che
io stesso non mi spiego bene come sia successo.Voglio
dire: ho suonato per una vita senza comporre
e poi,improvvisamente, mi sono messo al pianoforte
e, con estrema semplicità e naturalezza, è uscita tutta
una serie di brani.”

Ha definito la sua musica come “un bicchiere di vino rosso
in una notte d’estate”… “Fondamentalmente io amo ciò che quella immagine
evoca: amo il rumore delle cicale con il cielo
buio e l’atmosfera che si respira nelle notti d’estate.
Pertanto mi piace pensare che chi ascolta la mia
musica lo faccia in quel momento, oppure, se anche
si dovesse trovare in un’altra situazione, che venisse
riportato a quelle atmosfere dalle mie canzoni.Mi
piacerebbe immaginare un mio ascoltatore lì, in
estate, mentre si rilassa bevendo un bicchiere di vino
rosso e intanto si fa accompagnare da uno dei
miei brani.”

La sua musica viene anche definita ambient. Qual è il
rapporto con le sensazioni che provoca? “È un aspetto molto importante per me. Quello che
vorrei è che i miei brani creassero, in chi li ascolta,
una sensazione,un’immagine positiva del luogo in cui
stanno,un’atmosfera che faccia sentire a proprio agio.
Ecco, vorrei che tu che ascolti la mia musica possa
stare bene dove sei, perché la musica ti aiuta a farti
star bene.”

In ambito new age la spiritualità è centrale: cosa significa
per lei? “I brani che ho scritto sono stati composti in un periodo
profondamente evolutivo della mia vita. Per
questo credo che il legame tra musica e spiritualità
sia molto stretto: mi piace pensare alla musica come
uno strumento che può aiutarti a compiere un
viaggio introspettivo. Come si può capire dal titolo
del mio cd, Viaggi in aeromobile, il tema del viaggio
per me è fondamentale. Non inteso esclusivamente
in senso geografico, fisico: il viaggio in questione
è più di tutto un percorso spirituale. Il mondo
della new age è per me ancora nuovo, da esplorare,
visto che mi ci sono avvicinato da poco. Ho iniziato
leggendo Terzani e poi la curiosità mi ha spinto
ad approfondire, facendomi scoprire altri autori che
trattano tematiche molto attuali in questo periodo
della mia vita.”

Ci parli del disco in uscita e dei suoi progetti futuri… “Il disco al momento è in fase di preparazione e in
questi giorni sto ultimando la registrazione delle
tracce, in vista dell’uscita nel mese di settembre. È
un lavoro totalmente indipendente e autoprodotto,
senza l’aiuto di sponsor o case discografiche. Riguardo
al futuro è successo tutto talmente in fretta
che sono un po’ stordito dagli eventi, devo ancora
mettere in ordine le idee su quello che verrà dopo.
Mi piace pensare che qualcuno apprezzerà la mia musica:
poi si vedrà cosa succederà.”

Nel cd allegato a questo numero del giornale abbiamo inserito
il brano “L’airone”.Ce ne parli… “Come dicevo prima, anche “L’airone” è un brano
nato in un momento molto importante della mia
vita, un momento di profondo cambiamento. Pertanto,
dando il nome di un uccello alla canzone, ho
voluto tentare di rappresentare la metafora del volo,
inteso come in senso spirituale. In più l’airone in
particolare è un animale abbastanza familiare a Mantova,
per cui nella canzone c’è anche il legame con
la mia terra: mi ha sempre affascinato vederlo spiccare
il volo, spiegare le ali e librarsi in aria con tanta
maestosità.”