Songo

Though Andrea Bocelli kicks off SENTIMENTO with a 20th Century piece, the stately setting of Rodrigo's "En Aranjuez con tu amor," the balance of the album wisely focuses on one of the renowned vocalist's greatest strengths, the Romantic period, as Rodrigo quickly gives way to the more sprightly feel of Leoncavallo's "Mattinata." After moving arrestingly through similar fare, Bocelli bookends things nicely by closing with a pair of canzonas from Tosti; the passionate, poignant "'A vucchella" and the quietly elegant "Vorrei morire," followed immediately by Donaudy's "Vaghissima sembianza," which ends things on a fulsome, appropriately romantic (with a small "r") note. Throughout SENTIMENTO, the sympathetic accompaniment of the London Symphony Orchestra, masterfully conducted by Lorin Maazel, provides the perfect instrumental setting for Bocelli's evocative voice.