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How Legato Came to Life | With Perfumer Mathieu Nardin
Legato is an intimate composition of rhythm, contrast, and emotion, a fragrance that explores the modern spirit of vanilla. Created by Mathieu Nardin, it reimagines this classic ingredient with bold modernity, layered with rum, cherry, woods and musk. Inspired by literature and the mood of London, it’s a slow-burning exploration of desire and texture.
Here, Mathieu shares the creative journey behind the scent.
Legato is described as capturing the magnetic pull of desire, how did you translate this emotional intensity into a fragrance structure?
Structurally, I built Legato around contrast: the familiar comfort of Madagascar vanilla is immediately confronted by the rich, sensuous, and animalic intensity of rum, lifted by the brightness of cherry and plum. The composition unfolds like a slow, intimate movement, magnetic yet tender.
Vanilla is at the heart of Legato. What inspired your use of Bourbon Vanilla Absolute, and how did you shape it into something bold and modern?
Bourbon Vanilla Absolute from Madagascar has this duality I love: it’s rich, gourmand, almost boozy, but also deeply sensual. To modernise it, I amplified its dark, balsamic and boozy side with benzoin and rum, added colour through cherry and plum, and grounded everything in woods and musks like Orcanox™ and Sublimolide. The result is a vanilla that’s textured, luminous, and bold.
Legato draws inspiration from Open Water by Caleb Azumah Nelson. How did this literary influence guide your olfactive choices or emotional direction?
Open Water is intimate, lyrical, and emotionally raw. I wanted Legato to feel the same: immersive and skin-close, but also filled with contrast. The fruit and rum evoke those fleeting moments of joy and intensity, while the vanilla and woods mirror the emotional weight and depth of connection. It’s a fragrance about proximity and vulnerability.
Can you share more about how you balanced gourmand richness with sensual, skin-like textures through musk’s and warm resins?
Balancing the gourmand side was essential. The cherry, prune, and rum create a lush top, but to avoid it feeling too edible, I layered in resins like benzoin Siam and used Sublimolide and Orcanox™ to melt the composition into the skin. These musks aren’t just soft, they bring luminosity and longevity, which gave the fragrance that second-skin intimacy without ever becoming heavy.
Legato seems to tell a story set in London. How did the energy, intimacy, and mood of the city inform your creative process?
London is a city of contradictions, intensely private yet constantly moving. There’s a kind of quiet passion beneath the surface. I wanted Legato to reflect that rhythm: the urban sensuality, the late-night encounters, the mix of old and new. The boozy warmth evokes hidden jazz bars; the creamy woods hint at rainy streets and candlelit spaces.
Sustainability and innovation clearly played a role in crafting Legato. Can you speak to the importance of these values in your work today?
Absolutely. Using upcycled ingredients like Orcanox™ wasn’t just about sustainability, it brought a modern textural depth to the base. For me, innovation means working responsibly without compromising emotional richness. Prune Nat Neo JE™, for example, is both sustainable and unique, offering a juicy, naturalistic effect that synthetic alternatives can’t match. It’s the future of perfumery: ethics and artistry, together.
Legato has been described as addictive and enveloping. What’s the secret to crafting a fragrance with that kind of pull?
With Legato, I wanted each layer to unfold naturally, nothing abrupt. The boozy fruits hook you at first breath, then the vanilla and resins begin to glow, slowly. The dry-down, with sandalwood and musk, is where the magic happens. It’s soft, lingering, and intimate, like a memory you can’t shake. That’s what makes it addictive: it keeps calling you back.
There’s a warmth and complexity that lingers in the dry-down. How important is the final impression to you when composing a fragrance?
It’s essential. A dry-down is what stays with you, it’s how a fragrance whispers, long after the moment has passed. With Legato, I worked carefully to ensure that final trail, sandalwood, amber, musk, felt like a second skin. It’s tactile, intimate, almost like someone’s presence left behind on fabric or in the air. It’s the part of the scent that becomes personal.
Looking at your broader body of work, where does Legato sit in your personal fragrance journey?
In previous creations, I explored structure and technicality, but here, I leaned into vulnerability. It’s a fragrance that doesn’t shout but resonates. It represents my desire to make perfumes that speak directly to the heart, poetic, modern, and full of nuance.
You’ve called this your vision of vanilla “bold, colourful, and full of character.” How does Legato redefine how we think about vanilla in perfumery?
Vanilla is often seen as sweet, safe, or nostalgic, but it’s so much more. With Legato, I wanted to reveal its sensual, vibrant facets. By pairing it with cherry, rum, plum, and resins, I gave it attitude and edge. It’s no longer just comforting, it’s magnetic, adult, and emotionally charged. This is vanilla with soul, complexity, and a story to tell.
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