„All the world is one blue whirl” – the words of an unkown Hindi poet of yore are imitated by the soloist of my new composition. Alessio Elia’s new piece was inspired by the concept of ekpyrosis, the periodic destruction of the cosmos, followed by its rebirth. Ivan Fedele’s inspiration came from ancient Levant – today’s Eastern Mediterranean – while the title of Luca Francesconi’s composition, Da Capo, suggest that everythings begins anew. With mundane problems clouding our line of sight to mere centimeters, perhaps now more than ever, it is important to invoke the intergalactic perspective of art. Italy’s name used to be one with art and music, and the country was a formative force in European history. Let’s consider how their composers speak to us. (László Tihanyi)