Spring Will Come

Four variations evoke the cyclical nature of the seasons, inviting us to embrace change

The experience had with THE WAITING, with its boredom and frustration points toward the achievement of an auroral new awareness: SPRING WILL COME. Four variations of an echoing theme evoke the passing of the seasons – spring, summer, fall and winter, not necessarily in that order – their interconnection, their cyclical nature. The symbolism, without too much subtlety, expresses the certainty that, however negative a period in our lives may have been, it will pass. There is no escaping the wheel of time, and while it may seem frightening to us at times, it actually assures us that every ending represents nothing but a new beginning, inviting us to embrace change and look beyond the difficulties to a springtime of light, rebirth, and regeneration. SPRING WILL COME does not use magniloquent rhetoric and with its simplicity reminds us how crucial it is to value what is truly meaningful to us and what makes life worth living, without caring about superficial commonplaces that risk imprisoning us in a suffocating and unattainable ought-to-be and whose only effect is to make us feel constantly inadequate. In this sense, SPRING WILL COME is also a reminder not to forget the importance of the present, the here and now, to appreciate what we have and to enjoy the moments we spend with the people we love. Sometimes, however trivial, a sunrise or a sunset, the peacefulness of a walk or a child who stops crying is all it takes to make us happy. Let us look to the future with confidence, believe in ourselves, make sense of our lives with courage and determination!

I wrote SPRING WILL COME as a journey through the first lockdown of March 2020, when we all felt fear, boredom, and frustration, but also courage, strength, and hope. It was a deep need that pushed me to create this second musical diary, which was vastly different from my previous work RINASCITA. I recorded it using only a piano out of tune, a single microphone, and a single video camera in an unsuitable room filled with the noises of everyday life. My intention was to provide an aural space for listeners to feel safe and connect with their own emotions and thoughts. It serves as a form of meditation and a source of comfort.

After almost three years, the close connection the record had with the terrible events of that period has obviously loosened, but its underlying purpose remains. In today’s world, overwhelmed by social media notifications, headlines, political crises, a changing climate, and a constant sense of impending catastrophe, the temptation to escape from reality has never been stronger. SPRING WILL COME invites us not to do so, to stay awake and in relationship with others, and to practice attentive and patient listening, an essential tool for living a better and more fulfilling life.

The single’s cover for SPRING WILL COME was designed by my Iranian friend Golnar Dashti (Dashi Design Studio): I met her when she was studying painting at the Accademia di Belle Arti (Firenze, Italy) taking her first tentative steps toward the development of personal artistic ideas. She is really open-minded and always looking forward to the experience of new perspectives in contemporary visual art. She is one of the founders of La Filharmonie and she already collaborated with me a few years ago on the music video for PICCOLA DANZA, a single from my first album for piano solo. I loved her idea of creating a short video instead of the usual static artwork: it makes the cover a lot more interesting and engaging! What do you think? One last thing: Golnar is a lovely person!!!

Credits

Music composed and performed by Paolo Cognetti

Recorded and Mixed by Filippo Rossi and Lawrence Fancelli at Officina Sonora del Bigallo

Mastered by Niccolò Caldini

Digital distribution: Distrokid

Artwork: Dashti Design Studio

Poems: Maria Ester Mastrogiovanni (MEM)

A year after composing and recording my second solo piano album SPRING WILL COME, I felt the desire to offer a new perspective on the pieces, one that would recover the spontaneity and naturalness that had originally characterized them. So, I decided to spend a day with Francesco Ponticelli at the Cicaleto Recording Studio, a historic eighteenth-century home immersed in the peace and beauty of nature, just minutes from the center of the city of Arezzo, in the heart of Tuscany. Inspired by the place and its atmosphere, I recorded all the tracks in a row and without any editing, trying to capture the essence and emotion of a live performance. To further foster the sense of an immersive and engaging experience, I asked Arianna Fiandrini and Mauro Magrini of Visualcam Production to create a video of the entire experience, and today I share with you the third excerpt, presenting SPRING WILL COME.

Credits

Directed by Arianna Fiandrini

Gimbal: Mauro Magrini

Recorded, Mixed and Mastered at Cicaleto Recording Studio by Francesco Ponticelli