MARKHAM – The pandemic, for an artist, can also be a source of inspiration. And so it was for Carlo Bianchini, a young Canadian singer-songwriter son of Italian immigrants. Between the first and the second lockdown, Carlo wrote and recorded, in his home-studio in Markham, the album “Quarantine Sessions”, containing fourteen original songs between which there is also “Grandpa”, a very sweet and melancholy tribute to parents and grandparents “who have made many sacrifices – explains Carlo himself – to come to Canada and give a better life to their families”.
Carlo was born in Toronto, his parents are both Italian. He began performing as a child, making his first television appearance at the age of 11. Two years later he had his first band, the Stardust, with whom he played in night clubs, parties and weddings until he found space in important events alongside famous Italian artists of the caliber of Umberto Tozzi and Toto Cutugno.
Then came the first awards, such as the broadcast of his songs on the radio: “Maria” and above all the single “Miracles” co-produced by Rich Dodson of the Canadian rock trio The Stampeders and broadcasted in Canada, United States, United Kingdom and Europe. “I will never forget what I felt listening to ‘Miracles’ on the radio in the car for the first time, in Toronto”, tells us Carlo who today, with “Quarantine Sessions”, is on his third album after “Mother Nature (2010) and “Looking For The Light” (2015).
Carlo, how was “Quarantine Sessions” born?
“I found myself locked in the house, isolated like everyone else. And I decided to send a message of hope, to overcome the fear and anxiety that the pandemic has caused in all of us. So in March 2020 I started writing, recording and producing new songs. And last December 5 I published them” (the album is available on all streaming and download platforms).
Your songs range from the pop atmospheres of “Keeping Hope Alive” or rock of “I Need Some Air” to the nostalgia of “Grandpa” in which you sing: “So many nights he hoped to go home, so many nights alone in this new world”.
“Yes, that song is dedicated to the sacrifices made by parents and grandparents to come to Canada and give their families a better life. It was hard for them. I wanted to pay homage to them with my music ” (here the full text: Grandpa lyrics).
You recorded the last album all by yourself. Do you have a band right now?
“Yes, and I also recruit other musicians when I need them. But I like to have control over my music. Of course, if Quincy Jones wanted to help me produce the next album, I would have no problem… ”.
Which are your musical influences?
“The Beatles are definitely my biggest influence.”
What would you like now? Do you have dreams in the drawer?
“When this pandemic is over, I would like to tour and perform the new material in front of an audience, live. My dreams? That the ‘new’ world is better than the previous one. And that I can continue to write and create even more beautiful music for a receptive audience ”.
To listen to excerpts of the new songs by Carlo Bianchini, click here: https://carlobianchini.hearnow.com
