Bruno Sanfilippo’s Lost & Found is more aptly titled than it first appears. His ambient solo-piano performances are certainly emotional, and will no doubt bring to mind all manner of losses and recoveries. But there’s another dimension to this five-track release that makes its title appropriate.
The disc opens with “Peter,” a sparse, luxuriously paced work layered over a recording of children playing. Because this is the first piece we hear, its selection introduces an additional personal element to the album that adds to its relatability. Sanfilippo fans have heard this piece before. It was included on the Ambientblog 10th Anniversary Collection back in 2015.
Next is “InTROpiano,” a re-release from Sanfilippo’s 2006 release InTRO. This track is a good example of why his work is so often compared to ambient music great Harold Budd.
“Piano Texture Found” follows, a track featured on the Nov. 12 edition of the BADD PRESS Podcast. This one introduces the album’s first noise elements. Originally released on a 2012 EP by the same name, it’s an exceptional piece.
Track four is “Solitario,” which appeared on that same EP. The piano sound is fuller, more well-rounded. Again though, Sanfilippo’s spacious compositional style is what stands out most. Set against various found sound recordings – as this one is – the result is mesmerizing.
Finally, we get “What I Dreamed.” If tracks one to four were found, this one was lost – “rescued from the hard drive of the studio recorder computer” according to the album’s notes.
So, as you can see, we are lucky to have this Lost & Found. Given its varied origins, it’s a remarkably cohesive, sentimental listen.
Sanfilippo works in a well-established genre, but he does so with a mature, tremendously sure hand. This collection is an impressive introduction for those of us who haven’t had the pleasure.