The southeastern-most corner of Italy contains a modestly sized region by the name of Salento, which annually produces a renowned music festival called La Notte della Taranta. Having taken over as the most recent director of the famous concert, composer Ludovico Einaudi brought his own innovative flair to the proceedings by introducing Turkish and North African musical influences to the mix. Bringing on expert musicians and singers from around the world onto the team to provide the performances for the festival, the end result is something unlike any other, given its vast and varied world influences and the bevy of talent introducing it to La Notte della Taranta. That end result has been recorded for international reception in Ludovico Einaudi’s Taranta Project.
An epic, worldly folk instrumental opens the show with “Introductio Ad Regnum Tarantulae”, featuring most prominently Leo Einaudi on banjo and Giulo Bianco on bagpipe. Electric guitar courtesy of Justin Adams takes the forefront on follow-up track “Taranta”, featuring a rock-flavored hook and a Middle Eastern flair best accentuated by a hypnotizing lyrical delivery courtesy of Alessia Tondo, Cinzia Villani, and Enza Pagliara. Lyricist Mauro Durante takes on a violin solo midway through the track, which best encapsulates the sweeping overall feeling of the collective work from right out of the gate. Classical and electronic Italian music meet African beats and Turkish melodies on the album, which paints a bright future for La Notte della Taranta with Einaudi fronting the ensemble.