“To record these songs Pianelli first of all re-arranged them for solo cello and the Rome based Avos string orchestra. It’s an immense labour of love which Pianelli has carried out with great tact as well as musical imagination. The deep tragedy of the Armenian songs, the lighter charm of the Georgian melodies, and the eccentric, tangy quality of the Greek pieces all shine through, thanks to Pianelli’s playing which is changeable as quicksilver and mournful as a folk balladeer. At the end Pianelli returns home, playing his own witty variations on a Sicilian melody. It’s a fine end to a disc that glows with Mediterranean and Near Eastern heat, and if we really can’t get away to the sun this summer it will bring some comfort.”

“When the Cello Sings and Dances
…a pleasing and entertaining program that blossoms in the lively and virtuosic interpretations of Pianelli and the musicians of the Avos Chamber Orchestra, placing lightheartedness alongside melancholy and nostalgic melodies. In so doing, Pianelli certainly goes his own way with individual phrasing, exquisite rubato and finely nuanced colours. He lets his cello and his orchestra sing and dance. This is suggestive music-making on a high technical level, which is all the more evident because the sound recording is also of excellent quality… very present, full and rich, but at the same time of captivating transparency. The CD concludes with the distinctive and exquisite, originally and imaginatively realised Variations on a Sicilian Theme by Alessio Pianelli himself”

“…fantasia, musicalità, espressione, energia, capacità di trasmettere l’emozione della musica, ricreata così come viva”