The ivory tinkles of Canadian pianist Carlo Aspri were debuted at an invite-only recital in Beijing at the weekend.
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Canadian musician Carlo Aspri explains how he uses different musical styles from Asia and the West in his compositions during a performance in Beijing on Saturday. [photo by Marc Checkley/chinadaily.com.cn]
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The self-taught pianist played a selection of pieces from his self-titled album at the Yamaha Music Performance Centre in Liufang district on Saturday afternoon.
Aspri, 22, is in China to launch the album in hopes of gaining the same following as his idols Richard Clayderman and Kenny G.
"There is a lot of interest in this type of music in Asia," says the energetic Aspri. My style is similar to theirs so that's why I made China a key place to release the album."
The young musician, a native of Quebec, comes from a musical family and began playing and composing pieces at nine-years-of-age.
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Carlo Aspri plays ‘Unforgettable Moments', which he will perform during the Beijing Olympics in August. [Photo by Marc Checkley/chinadaily.com.cn]
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"My dad is a professional guitarist, my mother a pianist and my sister, aunt and grandmother are pianists and singers so I've always been around music. I taught myself piano and never studied it formally."
Although proud of his Canadian heritage, Aspri says there's a special place in his heart for China. This bond began during a dark time in his life when at age 17 Aspri was diagnosed with cancer.
The teenager turned to traditional Chinese medicine and his love of music to help him through this challenging period. When recovered he made it a point to visit the Middle Kingdom and has made several trips since.
"Each time I come here I get the same feeling of when I first arrived. I feel at home and very happy in China. I see life and myself differently here."
Matt Doran, with Illuminant Partners who organised Saturday's concert says Aspri has made a strong cultural connection in China.
"He's really taken to the place and enjoys the culture here. He even tried Chinese kungfu but had to give it up as it was hurting his hands."
Doran says Aspri finds inspiration from the music of China and has incorporated many traditional instruments into his compositions.
"I use Chinese instruments like the erhu, the dizi and Chinese gong in music I compose and mix it with western music styles," adds Aspri.
During the performance Aspri played 'Unforgettable Moments' a piece he wrote and will perform for the Beijing Olympics in August. He also passionately performed 'Florence' a piece he adapted for his Italian mother and 'Missing You', which embodies a Disney-esque type melody.
Aspri displayed his deep connection with both China and Canada by playing 'The Moon Represents My Heart' a traditional Chinese song and the Canadian national anthem as his final piece respectively.
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Quebec-native Carlo Aspri chats with a fellow French-speaker following his debut performance at the Yamaha Performance Music Centre in Liufang district on Saturday. [Photo by Marc Checkley/chinadaily.com.cn]
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His encore was the iconic 70s hit 'Ballade Pour Adeline' or 'Song For Adeline' first performed by Richard Clayderman in 1976.
Still coming to terms with his time in the spotlight, Aspri wasn't always sure of how to explain his music but his passion for playing is undeniable.
"I want to take my music throughout Asia and also Europe – the world is my goal," Aspri shared at the end of the performance. "I see myself as a player, an entertainer as well as a composer for other performers and movies. I just want to be everything in music!"
Doran says the next few months will be busy for Aspri as he takes his music to other parts of China and Asia including South Korea, Hong Kong and Singapore.
Carlo Aspri the album is expected to be released in September by Star Search Music.
