The Story
Why it exists.
The beginning
Released in 2026, Primo Piano joins a catalogue built around colour and visual metaphor. Perfumer Karine Vinchon-Spehner signed the formula, anchoring a heavy floral heart around Grasse tuberose. The composition pulls in two directions at once: animalic warmth on one side, liturgical smoke on the other. The intent reads clear in the opening minutes. This is not a flower arrangement. This is a flower in a room that already smells of old leather and incense. Vinchon-Spehner lets the tuberose dominate without softening it into submission. The indolic creaminess that makes the note so divisive in modern perfumery stays fully present, and the surrounding accords do not flatter it so much as argue with it.
What makes Primo Piano unusual is the collision inside its heart. Grasse tuberose is one of perfumery's most demanding naturals, indolic and creamy in high doses, almost carnal at full volume. Here it shares space with latex and leather, materials that carry their own tactile associations. The result reads less like a bouquet and more like a body in fabric. The base keeps that tension alive. Animalic notes give the drydown a musk-adjacent warmth, while frankincense and myrrh bring the resinous gravity of a chapel at dusk. Cedarwood and tobacco anchor the smoke so it never goes acrid.
The evolution
The opening is a confrontation. Pink pepper and ambrette crackle against a poison accord that registers as green and slightly bitter, a sharpness that previews the strangeness ahead. Soon after, the Grasse tuberose arrives and takes command of the heart, holding its position for hours without fading into background. Latex gives it a synthetic skin, leather lends weight, and ylang-ylang softens the edges just enough to wear. As the hours pass, the florals recede. Animalic notes rise through the resin structure, frankincense and myrrh glowing amber beneath the skin. The tobacco grounds everything with a dry, leaf-sweet warmth that persists long after the tuberose has spent itself. Projection is notably above average, lingering clearly in a room well after application. Longevity follows the same generous arc, the scent staying detectable on skin and fabric alike.
Cultural impact
Primo Piano carries an animalic and resinous structure that gives it a distinctive weight within its category. The tuberose-to-smoke arc has drawn comment from independent fragrance circles, with Deschi noting the unusual combination of materials at play. The composition sits comfortably alongside classic French orientals in its use of incense and leather, while the handling of the floral heart gives it a modern indie sensibility. Responses from the broader community remain limited so far, though the scent's structural complexity suggests it will reward continued discussion as more wearers encounter it.
