Ludovico Einaudi – Le Onde (2xLP, Limited Grey Vinyl))

Le Onde is Ludovico Einaudi’s profoundly graceful debut solo piano album, unfolding like a tranquil shoreline under gentle waves. Released in 1996, it draws inspiration from Virginia Woolf’s novel The Waves, with the music evoking both the eternal ebb of the sea and the quiet introspection of a solitary beach stroll. Einaudi’s masterful use of recurring arpeggios, delicate melodies, and subtle key shifts creates a meditative and immersive experience—an elegant balancing act between simplicity and emotional depth.

This album marked Einaudi’s breakthrough, especially in Italy and the UK, establishing his unique voice in contemporary classical music and captivating listeners far beyond the traditional classical sphere. Its delicate minimalism and evocative textures continue to resonate, offering an almost cinematic quality that transports the listener into serene and reflective landscapes.

Einaudi writes: "The idea for 'Le Onde' was to write something inspired by Virginia Woolf's novel The Waves. I was really fascinated by the form of the novel, which is very complex and interesting because some parts are written in italics and others in normal text. The italicized parts are a common thread throughout the book. The book is a description of what people experience during the course of a day, starting with the light of morning, and by the end of the book, night has fallen.

"Each time the italicized chapters return, you see a different light change on what's happening on the coast.' Inspired by this idea, he started writing all the pieces for Le Onde, but got to a point where he felt there was still one piece missing from the whole picture. I said, 'Yes, Le Onde' is missing, which has the cadence of a wave in its beginning.' The idea was that the music flows and develops by itself, starting from the initial arpeggio, just like a wave that develops in its space, develops because it has to. It is a perpetual movement."