Return to Amoré

Written by

Jude Bautista

Music can affect us on an emotional level. Even when we don’t necessarily understand the words, it can easily move us. It doesn’t hurt if it’s one of the most recognizable and iconic voices of all time singing in Andrea Bocelli. Not to mention a young star in Ellie Goulding.

The result is a certified hit in RETURN TO LOVE. And for the very top names in the music industry today its typical to have more than one music video. For this song there are three versions: First, the original video of the studio recording of Bocelli and Ellie Goulding, Second, the Christmas video where Andrea serenaded his wife Veronica and finally third version the official lyric video.

Andrea Bocelli, Ellie Goulding – Return To Love ft. Ellie Goulding

All of the videos are amazing in their own right. We could see the lovely face of Goulding, gain insight to the processes of Andrea. The synergy of separate recording studios; Andrea’s home in Forte dei Marmi, Tuscany and Goulding in London.

The serenade of wife Veronica is touching and is a must see for every fan. But in spite of all this, the most powerful in my opinion is the official lyric video. The effectiveness comes from its simplicity. 100 individuals were asked to listen to RETURN TO LOVE. The thing is their genuine reactions were captured by a video camera.

The image is that of an extreme close up of these very different faces of different races, genders and age. Yet they are all affected, some are made to smile, some are moved to tears. Some have a deadpan reaction but clearly there’s something very deep going on inside their steely glare. These are very real reactions.

There’s nothing more powerful than the human face in all its glory, feeling honest emotion. All elicited by listening to the same song.

Whether or not you’re fluent in Italian or English isn’t a requirement. Even a toddler loves the song. BUT if you do look at the words that are flashed on the video, as a viewer, that makes it even more moving. Songwriters Chad King, Matteo Currallo, Josh Kear, Ian Axel are all singers themselves and have written a masterpiece of music.

Duetto Film

The video was co-directed and produced by Paolo Caselli and Francesco Ferri. Both are young and promising filmmakers who established Duetto Film. They conceptualized it and executed their idea to perfection.

For 2020, their documentary CLIMATE LIMBO was aired in FUORISALONE TV. The docu

explores the links between climate change and migrations. Funded by The European Union, Italian NGO Cambalache and many others. It spans several continents showing how rising sea levels, droughts, typhoons and hurricanes affect not just poorer countries but the whole world.

Epilogue: Most of the images here are from the official lyric video. But the song has inspired me to create my own images as well and express my own RETURN TO AMORE (Love).

RETURN TO LOVE lyrics:

The words below are not an exact translation. It’s an amalgam of sources including for the very crucial first verse, is Andrea Bocelli himself. He serenaded wife Veronica in November 2019. He sang Return to Love as a thank you and Christmas gift. He sang the first verse in English and is not a literal or exact translation of the Italian version. He may have even shortened a line or two. But may still be more accurate in spirit.

Quand’è che spento il cuore?

When did the light go out?

Che ho smesso di sognare

When did my heart stop dreaming?

Un nuovo amore?

Of someone new?