BY LILY BRYANT
Amidst the seemingly never-ending discussion about the inaccessibility of classical music, a quiet hero has emerged: contemporary-classical piano. A genre perfectly suited to an industry dominated by digital access, composers across the world have begun to lean towards this sound, which blends modern cinematic and pop idioms with the harmonic and artistic depth of their classical inspirations.
The resultant contemplative, expressive music seems to speak to audiences despite a lack of familiar form or lyrics, with artists like Hania Rani and Ólafur Arnalds racking up tens of millions of listens on Spotify.
Some artists might gravitate towards the style because of its newfound popularity. But for pianist and composer Amy Rita, the sound was simply instinctive.
“I remember sitting down at the piano, without consciously thinking about it, and original music began flowing out,” Amy says, describing her first forays into writing music as a teen.
Having initially pursued her training through private lessons, self-education, and engagement in school orchestras, Amy felt “it was a very natural progression from learning pieces to composing my own”.
Amy’s latest EP Solstice takes the listener on a charming and evocative journey through five new tracks, written around the same time as the compositions on her recent EP Dusk, but recorded in a different way. The two releases are distinct in their voices and timbres.
“Dusk was recorded in the studio over one day on a Kawai grand piano. Solstice, a few months later, was recorded at another studio, over one afternoon on a Yamaha grand piano with a different recording set up,” Amy tells us.
“There is still a difference between the concepts behind the pieces; I wanted that to be reflective in both the EP’s different piano sound and timbre. The decision was to release the EPs close together to show their relation but separately to show their artistic contrasts.”
The two closing tracks on Solstice are perfect vehicles for Amy’s contemplative storytelling. The insistent rhythms of Journey propel forward the ever-shifting emotional narrative, while the darker aesthetics of Mad Time on the Run offer a new perspective from the composer – one that harks back to her classical training.
“Journey I composed as a thematic piece, telling a story of a friendship in its various stages,” Amy begins.
“Moments of sweetness, seriousness, play; moments of change and unpredictability reflected in the driving rhythms, dynamic and octave variations of the main repeated theme and heartbeat of the song.”
For Made Time on the Run, the composer found inspiration in “the complexity of time, its overlapping stages; the feeling of running out of it, from it, and towards it”.
“The final section is performed at a very fast pace, hinting that the music almost can’t keep up, or is perhaps itself running out of time.”
While much of her work explores abstract themes and concepts, Amy’s compositional process is also largely influenced by her activity in screen composition, where the connection between the visual and musical is magnified.
“Composing for the screen is something I’m very passionate about,” Amy says.
“The title track from Solstice was written and inspired by an imagined picture of the 2023 winter solstice. With this imagery in mind, the song freely flowed out onto the piano.”
Amy is a quadruple-threat as a pianist, composer, actor, and dancer, a combination she says offers new perspectives into her creative endeavours.
“When I begin creating new music, I’m definitely taking into consideration how multi-faceted a song can be,” she shares.
“Having a background in these other disciplines has definitely allowed for a deeper and well-rounded understanding of how music can be used, interpreted, and experienced in various ways and in different art forms.”
The simple beauty of sound and the honesty of feeling portrayed through Solstice provide further confirmation of her genre’s potential to connect with listeners.
The practitioners of contemporary-classical piano music perhaps have a unique capacity to shape and share the traditions of classical music with an expansive audience, and offer to them the very inspiration Amy Rita found in it herself.
“This genre of music has been ingrained in me from such a young age, it almost feels like it chose me,” Amy reveals.
“It’s the style’s ability for transportation, emotion, storytelling, and the beauty that can be created solely by a piano alone, I think, that is so special, magical, and lures me in.”
Just as Solstice, in turn, lures in the listener.
Amy Rita’s new EP Solstice is now available on Spotify and Apple Music. Learn more about the composer on her website.
Images supplied.
