A dialogue between classical music, pop, and Italian folk, and a few hints of electronic music—it makes for an interesting approach to classical music from Italian pianist Ludovico Einaudi and his 11 piece ensemble, which make a stop at the Harris Theater on Wednesday.

Though you may not be familiar with Einaudi’s name, odds are, you’ve heard his music. His works have been featured in J. Edgar, and The Reader, and he’s composed for the TV series Doctor Zhivago and Luce dei miei occhi (Light of My Eyes). Throughout Europe, Einaudi has made a name for himself through film scores, but also in his classical releases, the most recent being In A Time Lapse.

Over the last few years, Einaudi read many of the works of poet David Henry Thoreau in search of inspiration for In A Time Lapse. Einaudi was completely taken with Thoreau’s famous return to nature and through this fascination, he decided he was ready to write this new album.

“I was looking at many different things in life and how they change. The more we go on, we go faster and faster. We start to walk and then you fly at a certain point,” says Einaudi. “[This flying] creates a loss of contact with what is happening around us.”

In A Time Lapse was recorded in a centuries old monastery outside of Verona, Italy. After hearing about the beautiful acoustics of this space Einaudi felt compelled to visit it for himself. He knew immediately that it was the best place to record his album. “There was no interference with normal life, I got to be completely isolated,” he says.

Einaudi returns to Chicago for the first time since the 1980’s. “Chicago is a wonderful town of which I have many fond memories,” he says. Don’t miss Einaudi at Harris Theater, Wednesday May 22 at 8:00 p.m. For tickets visit www.harristheaterchicago.com