Though Andrea Bocelli kicks off SENTIMENTO with a 20th Century piece, the
stately setting of Rodrigo's "En Aranjuez con tu amor," the balance of the
album wisely focuses on one of the renowned vocalist's greatest strengths,
the Romantic period, as Rodrigo quickly gives way to the more sprightly
feel of Leoncavallo's "Mattinata." After moving arrestingly through
similar fare, Bocelli bookends things nicely by closing with a pair of
canzonas from Tosti; the passionate, poignant "'A vucchella" and the
quietly elegant "Vorrei morire," followed immediately by Donaudy's
"Vaghissima sembianza," which ends things on a fulsome, appropriately
romantic (with a small "r") note. Throughout SENTIMENTO, the sympathetic
accompaniment of the London Symphony Orchestra, masterfully conducted by
Lorin Maazel, provides the perfect instrumental setting for Bocelli's
evocative voice.