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The Blue Notebooks
Classical · 2004 · 11 tracks

The Blue Notebooks

Max Richter

A landmark of modern classical music. Piano, strings, and Tilda Swinton's narration drift through a haze of tape hiss and typewriter clicks.

February 26, 2004 · 130701

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A profound, literary melancholy that feels both deeply personal and universally resonant.

Tracklist · 11 Tracks
01
The Blue Notebooks
1:21
02
On the Nature of Daylight
6:12
03
Horizon Variations
1:53
04
Shadow Journal
8:23
05
Iconography
3:39
06
Vladimir’s Blues
1:18
07
Arboretum
2:54
08
Old Song
2:11
09
Organum
3:13
10
The Trees
7:53
11
Written on the Sky
1:40
Moments Worth Listening For
The devastatingly slow swell of the quintet on On the Nature of Daylight which feels like a physical weight.
Tilda Swinton's voice emerging from a bed of static and typewriter clicks on the title track.
The way the piano on Vladimir's Blues feels recorded so closely you can hear the mechanical movement of the keys.
Reviews
BBC Music
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AllMusic
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Where This Album DepartsEach spoke is a trait. The orange shape shows where this album pulls away from — or holds to — the rest of the artist’s catalogue. Tap for more.

How does The Blue Notebooks sound next to the rest of Max Richter's catalogue?

Spoken Word+2.1σ

The vocals lean far further into spoken word than the rest of the catalogue.

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