Raul di Blasio is one self-assured customer.
Last month the talented Argentinian pianist, whose last two albums, El Piano de America and Barroco, became hits throughout most of the Latin market, was describing a recent concert by pianist Peter Nero as a rather lifeless affair.
“That tremendous symphonic orchestra had no sound,” di Blasio said, “the piano lamentably had two speakers, he’s there with the microphone talking … I tell you, in all modesty, if the American public would let me sit in there, they would have died.”
Nearly 15 months ago, di Blasio dazzled the sellout crowd at Miami Beach’s Jackie Gleason Theater. The witty, charismatic pianist expertly weaved humorous stage patter between classically flavored solo numbers and dramatic pop/Latin instrumentals powered by a 57-piece orchestra.
This weekend di Blasio returns to the Gleason Theater, as part of a supporting tour for his latest disc En Tiempo de Amor (In Time of Love), an eminently pleasant pop/classical/Latin effort that should begin to boost di Blasio towards the lofty sales plateau where French pianist Richard Clayderman resides.
The effervescent tinkler eagerly notes, however, that his Saturday and Sunday shows will be performed with a 12-piece band instead of an orchestra. While di Blasio relates that a smaller band allows for a more intimate performance, he also implies that his huge supporting ensemble may have been garnering a little too much stageside attention.
“I believe when I perform with a big orchestra,” di Blasio said, “I feel removed (from the audience). When I play with a band, you would not believe the animated ambience; it transforms me and it’s an intimate thing. I want to create a bridge between the audience and the music I do. The three background vocalists are going to help add energy to the show.”
Though well-known in the United States for only three years, the classically trained di Blasio first began making a commercial buzz nearly a decade ago with his second album Sur de America, which earned him an invitation to Chile’s prestigious Vina del Mar song festival.
To further his international profile, di Blasio moved to Miami several years ago. According to his record label, BMG, di Blasio’s 1991 album El Piano de America and 1992 release Barroco have sold 125,000 copies each in the United States — a highly respectable tally for an instrumentalist in the U.S./Latin arena. Last year, di Blasio snagged a nomination at Premio Lo Nuestro, the Latin music industry’s version of the Grammys.
Efforts are currently being made by BMG to cross di Blasio into the English- language market. To that end, di Blasio is studying English — and hoping that the “more romantic” En Tiempo de Amor will appeal to a broad audience.
“I want a crossover hit,” di Blasio said. “I want my product to be international and reach Europe and Japan because it has those possibilities. This record — from beginning to end — introduces itself to you, takes you up, and brings you down, just like a concert must do.
“I daresay that this album contains four hits: Volviendo a Casa, Corazon de Nino, Melisa, Gitano and let’s add Piano Caribe.”
Further, di Blasio confidently predicted the percussive Piano Caribe “will go to American radio, not Latin radio.”
—John Lannert is Billboard’s Caribbean/Latin American Bureau Chief and covers — Raul di Blasio is booked at 8:30 p.m. Saturday and 7:30 p.m. Sunday at the Jackie Gleason Theater, 1700 Washington Ave., Miami Beach. Tickets are $24, $29 and $35. Call 673-7300.
