Ensemble Bella Luce – The Arc of Light

Patricia Lazzara and Dave Malyszko – the duo behind the classical music phenomenon Ensemble Bella Luce – have teamed up with the distinguished Italian maestro and composer Armando Ghidoni to bring their quest for a brand new album to life.

Featuring five feature-length pieces divided into three spectacularly contrasting movements, The Arc of Light is a voyage through the emotional and spiritual world; illuminating a brilliant and picturesque spectrum of “love, wonder, mystery, profound connection, radiant joy, poignant reﬂection, heartfelt tenderness, hope, and transcendence,” as described in Patricia Lazzara’s own words.

With their band name translating to ‘Ensemble of Beautiful Light,’ Ensemble Bella Luce’s vision is just as intriguing on paper as it is in practice, and we can’t wait to spread the hype.

When you first picture what flute, string, and piano compositions may sound like, we’re guessing it’s nothing like the album-opener, “Yellow Inside.” An eccentric and erratic intro with a wild jazz edge melts into a serene woodland mood, picking up explorative hints of blues music’s mystic chaos laced with grounding traditional twists. A masterful blend of cascading sound and clear-skied sense fuels this piece, its rapid riffs and rich, technicolour tricks catching the listener off guard in the best possible way; wonderfully inspired as Ensemble Bella Luce unleashes their kaleidoscopic sound.

“Blue Night” – Patricia’s personal favorite piece – is a practice in tranquility, its phenomenally haunting soundscape bridging the gap between unease, hope, trust, and beauty. It almost hearkens back to classic Disney scores whilst stepping far beyond those familiar themes with a daring modern touch of imagination. Bittersweet melancholia twines with wishes and shy optimism, forming an absolute stand-out piece on The Arc of Light.

Then, “Vivace” cuts the previous mood, stepping back into a realm of captivating erraticism; the lead flute melodies forming the thread you trace through the jazz-like chaos. Dramatic, cryptic, and completely enigmatic, moments of this piece almost sound like a war song, a deep cut from Hans Zimmer’s catalogue, or even a classic Tom & Jerry soundtrack; its maze of inspiration wild enough to keep even the most avid avoiders of instrumental music gripped, perplexed, and utterly obsessed.

Track four, “The Old Years,” was the piece that initiated this entire album. As Patricia explains, “The project began when my longtime ﬂute partner, Steve Markoﬀ of Lazzarkoﬀ, commissioned Maestro Ghidoni to write The Old Years for ﬂute, alto ﬂute, and piano. This evocative work traces the journey of a human life: from the innocence of childhood, represented by a tender and lyrical melody, through the energetic and blues-infused spirit of adolescence, into the warmth, wisdom, and reﬂection of adulthood, and ﬁnally toward a serene and transcendent ascent of the soul.”

“L’âme D’un Regard” wraps up this album; a piano solo recorded in one single, seamless take by Dave Malyszko, capturing dream-soaked nocturne ambiences comparable to a lullaby composed by Chopin, with hints of Debussy’s ‘Clair de Lune’ nestled in its midst. Swing atmospheres soon edge their way in, emanating the vibe of jazz pianos in candlelit restaurants and other sepia-toned scenes of old-school beauty.

Together, these pieces form an album that breaks all molds; effortlessly snaring attention from its first notes to its last as it roams the familiar territory of the classical world and pioneers new paths, picking up oddities from the modern age and linking them with those left behind decades ago. Its flawless merging of genres, moods, and hidden themes allows you to listen to this album ten times over and still discover new twists every time, leaving us with one easy, final verdict: Highly Recommended.

BELOW: Listen to Ensemble Bella Luce and check out their music online. Please support Ensemble Bella Luce by visiting their website and playing, downloading, and/or purchasing their music. And, as always, thank you for supporting real music.