A couple of quick ones today. Ludovico Einaudi's I Giorni (#84) is probably the least classical piece of music in the countdown so far. It's beautiful piano music sure, but it would fit better in an Instrumental Pop playlist than Classical Greats. As the YouTube commenters point out, it's hard to dislike Einaudi's simple, emotive melodies. Slap this over the credits of any film for instant catharsis.
You might be able to tell, I'm a little ambivalent about Einaudi. Is he that rare genius who can create something singularly profound with just a few chords? Or is he one of a multitude of 'instrumental piano' purveyors who got a lucky break? In case I'm coming across cynical here, I actually lean towards the former.
Maybe I'm feeling curmudgeonly because of the lockdown doldrums. And that's really just a contrived segue into the next piece of music... Mendelssohn's Hebrides Overture (#83).
Mendelssohn was inspired by a trip around Scotland, and who wouldn't be? I'm reminded of the amount of times I've gone away on holiday and almost instantly felt a wave of inspiration. I haven't felt moved to write a song about a particular vacation destination yet, but I feel that just getting away and being outdoors awakens the creative spirit like almost nothing else. And this is coming from an indoorsy kind of guy.
It should be no surprise that creativity is likely to suffer in a lockdown, along with other emotional and mental faculties. At least we have YouTube, because enjoying the world through a screen may be second rate but it's a lot better than nothing.