While we were all making sourdough starters and following the latest Tik Tok trends during the pandemic, famed composer and classical pianist Ludovico Einaudi was working on his first solo album in 20 years. The result was Underwater, a 12-track album released in January 2022, which Austinites will get to hear live at Bass Concert Hall for one night only this April.

It's been four years since the acclaimed Italian artist — officially the most streamed classical artist of all time — last visited Austin, and he's been busy. Since 2019, he's composed the scores to films such as The Father (including tracks from his immensely popular 2019 release Seven Days Walking) and six-time Oscar-winner, Nomadland. He also released a compilation album Cinema, and a new podcast mini-series Experience: The Ludovico Einaudi Story, which features celebrated filmmakers including multiple award-winning actor and director Russel Crowe (Gladiator), Oscar-winning director Chloe Zhao (Nomadland), Academy Award winner Florian Zeller (The Father), and more.

According to a release, Underwater returns to the roots of his original sound, featuring 12 transcendent solo piano tracks each showcasing Einaudi’s "luminous, emotive, effortlessly lyrical, and supremely refined sound."

On the making of Underwater during the pandemic, Einaudi explains: “The music came naturally, more than ever before. I felt a sense of freedom to abandon myself and let the music flow differently. I didn’t have a filter between me and what came out of the piano; it felt very pure. The title Underwater is a metaphor—it is an expression of a very fluid dimension, without interference from outside.”

One of the most ubiquitous contemporary composers of the century, Einaudi will take the stage at Bass Concert Hall for one night only on Tuesday, April 4, at 8 pm. Tickets will go on sale beginning Friday, January 13, at 10 am, and Texas Inner Circle members can access pre-sale starting Thursday, January 12, at 10 am.

Head to texasperformingarts.org for tickets and more information on the show.