By Freelance Music Writer, Chuck Leonard

Notes to a Friend is the culmination of over two decades of work, and the tracks that make up Notes to a Friend were carefully picked from more than 300 compositions. This recording is an excellent and representative collection of Van Sotraidis' work. Notes to a Friend can't be nailed down to a genre, as Van dabbles in a variety of genres and styles. With The Nightbeat, for example, there's a variety of things going on in the music from a beautiful piano part, which might be the highlight of the song, to an entire synthetic band. Van's rich and beautiful piano sound and style is the highlight of this recording, and the best and most enjoyable aspect. As a reviewer who comes across a lot of work, it's the piano and Van's breathy and organic renditions that truly bring the piece to life for me. Again, with The Nightbeat, we have a track that takes jazz and fuses with new age, thus creating something that's accessible, yet unfamiliar. With The Nightbeat opening the recording, there are a variety of other excellent tracks from the ambient-esque Dawn of a New Day, with it's deep and resonant Brian Eno sound, to The Changing World, which acts as the second part of Dawn of a New Day. The Changing World is unique because it rocks, but yet it’s very relaxing and makes you think. Very good track. Listen to Your Heart is one of the finest tracks on this recording. It's a beautiful piano piece that seems to echo the sentiments of Rachmaninoff, Debussy, and Chopin, while managing to touch on the melodic simplicity of Billy Joel, and Elton John. It's possible that this is the best track on the recording, but again this is a work that features Van doing what he does best - playing piano. Best of all this is a piece arranged for solo piano, making it a sonic tour de force! Then with Midnight on the Metro, and A Heartbeat Away from Heaven, we have to seemingly different tracks that come together. Midnight on the Metro is more of a sonic triptych along the lines of Pink Floyd, where A Heartbeat Away from Heaven goes back to emphasizing a new age, and quasi-ambient vibe, thus creating more of sonically rich recording. The record moves on, as if you're traveling through time, with a variety of excellent tracks, including Rhythm of the Universe, A Slow Day in Zanzibar, More Than You'll Ever Know, and Undercover, with its techno-ish dance music vibe that seems to resonate a different sentiment than much of the rest of the recording, yet it adds to the drama of Notes to a Friend, overall. Warm Regards is a beautiful track that flows and segues into the ending of the recording by blissfully moving into, the title-track, Notes to a Friend. 

Notes to a Friend is a relentlessly beautiful recording that echoes a variety of sentiments and inspires a variety of emotions. As a whole this recording speaks to many different sides of the human condition, and acts, truly, as a note to a friend, throughout. Van Sotraidis has created an excellent and gifted recording that seems to have been well worth all of the years that he spent putting it together. Great work Van, and I would love to hear more of your excellent piano work, as it's that instrument that truly uses your voice the best.
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Chuck Leonard
Freelance Music Writer
chuck_leonard11@yahoo.com
P.O. Box 181
New Hudson, MI
48165-0181 USA