Integrated piano workshop Call for applications

Integrated piano workshop
Pratovecchio Stia (AR) Italy 21 - 22 - 23 - 24 July 2016
Call for applications
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What is the Piano Academy
The cultural association Pratoveteri of Pratovecchio Stia (AR) announces a call for
applications for 25 young pianists, italians and foreigners, to attend the Piano Academy, a free opportunity for studying, meeting others, improving and
performing in the third occasion of Naturalmente Pianoforte, an event that will
take place in Pratovecchio Stia (AR) from
21 to 24 July 2016 with the artistic director, Enzo Gentile. Piano Academy offers
young pianists the possibility of participating in a three-day training course
run by teachers of the highest calibre, a
course for understanding and integrating
different styles, genres and approaches,
and aimed at both musical and personal
improvement whilst set against the backdrop of contemporaneity. In addition, candidates will be offered the chance to perform
in the four-day event in dedicated places
in the streets and town squares of Pratovecchio Stia, in front of a large and varied audience, contributing actively in this
way to the development of the event itself
(each performance will last 30 minutes with
the chance of a repeat performance during
the day. The repertoire will be varied, and
discussed with the teacher according to
the ability and propensity of the performer,
in keeping with the spirit of Naturalmente
Pianoforte).
Enzo Gentile journalist, author and italian musical critic.
Artistic director of Naturalmente Pianoforte
He started working as a journalist in 1977, reaching professional status
by 1984. He has written for numerous big newspapers and magazines,
including La Repubblica, Il Mattino, Il Fatto Quotidiano, Sette-Corriere
della Sera, Vanity Fair, La Stampa, Rolling Stone, Rockstar. He lectures
at the Università Cattolica del Sacro Cuore in Milan where he teaches a
course in the history of pop and rock. He has worked in radio for a long
time, has written fifteen books, consults and collaborates with cultural
institutions in creating events.
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The course and the staff of Piano Academy
Arriving and accommodation in Pratovecchio Stia on the night of Thursday
21 July. The course is divided into three workshops of six hours each,
spread over the days of Friday 22 July, Saturday 23 July, Sunday 24 July.
ARTISTIC DIRECTOR and
COORDINATOR of Piano Academy
> WORKSHOP 1
CLASSICAL PIANO
Mario Mariani
Interpretation, analysis, good practice and piano technique are the subject of study in this master class, in the
repertoire proposed by the participants, in a reflection on
the definition of “classical-ness”, from the view point of
contemporary piano.
Instructor • Massimiliano Damerini
Mario Mariani (born October, 1970) is an Italian avant-garde composer, pianist and performer strongly recognizable
for his unconventional sounds. His style goes from contemporary music to theatrical performances, film scoring
(Cannes, Venice, New York and Berlin Film Festivals) and
television. Mariani’s artistic core is rooted within improvised music often performing with other musicians, artists,
actors and performers. After creating the experimental
group Broz Ensemble, Mariani approaches to film scoring,
receiving public and critic acclaim for the opening themes
of Venice Film Festival twice (1999-2001 and 2005-2007)
as for all of Vittorio Moroni’s movies soundtracks. He also
crafts advertising music for brands such as Microsoft,
Toyota, Fiat. Mariani’s compositions go from orchestral
music and opera to real-time performances. He won the
Novaracinefestival award for Best Soundtrack with the
short and internationally acclaimed movie ‘Under my
garden’ by A. Lodovichetti (awarded by Spike Lee). He
attracted further attention worldwide with some unconventional performances, like ‘extreme artistic residence’
where he brought a grand piano in Monte Nerone’s Cave
(centre of Italy) and played a concert per night for a whole month. Mario considers his music as a purely creative
activity that gives itself away and becomes fruitful discussions on topical issues such as respect for mankind, environment and humanitarian projects. www.mariomariani.com
Italian pianist and composer Massimiliano Damerini studied in
Genova with Alfredo They and Martha Del Vecchio. Considered
one of most outstanding musicians of his generation, he was
awarded the prestigious Abbiati Prize in 1992 in recognition of
his career. Damerini has performed at some of the world’s most
renowed music festivals as well as in various concert halls, such
as the Konzerthaus in Vienna, the Teatro Alla Scala in Milan, the
Barbican Hall in London, the Salle Gaveau and Cité de la Musique in Paris, ecc He has played with many distinguished orchestras, such as the London Philharmonic, the BBC Symphony,
the Dutch Radio Orchestra, the WDR Symphony Cologne, the
NDR Symphony Hamburg, the SWF Symphony Baden-Baden,
the SDF Symphony Stuttgart, the Swiss Philharmonic, the Nice
Philharmonic, ecc. He is a regular guest at international festivals,
including the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Venice Biennale, Berliner Festwochen, Holland Festival, Wien Modern, Music Biennale
in Zagreb, Festival d’Automne in Paris, ecc. Many contemporary
composers, such as Ambrosini, Di Bari, Donatoni, Fellegara, Ferneyhough, Gaslini, Gentilucci, Landini, Mosca, Porena, Sciarrino,
Skrzypczak, Sotelo, Tanaka, Vacchi, have written works for him.
Damerini regularly judges at international piano competitions and
also gives piano and chamber music masterclasses both in Italy
and abroad. In a review in The Times, Nicholas Kenyan praised
him for his “complete command”, Elliott Carter (in New York,
1990) is quoted as saying of Damerini, “A concert given by him is
an unforgettable experience”. After a recital in Münich in 1997, the
Süddeutsches Zeitung wrote, “Damerini is one of three greatest
Italian pianists of our time, together with Benedetti-Michelangeli
and Pollini”.
> WORKSHOP 2
MODERN
AND CONTEMPORARY PIANO
The seminar proposes a short exploration of the musical idioms used in the production of piano music in the
last hundreds years, with the intention of demonstrating how “new music” introduces extreme aspects and
consistently refuses to comply to any arbitrarily imposed rules. From the rigid structure of the first works of
Boulez and Stockhausen to the prolific provocations of
Cage; from the rhythmic experiments of Messiaen to
the visionary discoveries in timbre of Ives, Cowell and
Crumb; from the return to the modality and tonality of
minimalists and neoromantics, to the current, intricate
position of music. Particular emphasis will be given to
new ways of producing sound and to non-conventional
music notation, with accurate historical and stylistic
references.
Instructor • Mario Totaro
Graduated in piano from the Conservatory “G. Rossini” in
Pesaro with honours, and graduated in composition from
the Conservatory “G. Verdi” in Milan with top marks. He
initially devoted himself to piano and continued his studies
at the “Mozarteum” in Salzburg and in Imola (“Incontri col
Maestro”), with Carlo Zecchi, Gyorgy Sandor, Alexander
Lonquich, Aldo Ciccolini, Nikita Magaloff and Bruno Canino. At nineteen Totaro became a Professor at the Conservatory of Pesaro, where he’s still teaching. He has been
awarded prizes in several piano competitions, both nationally and internationally and he has given several concerts
both in Italy and abroad, where he presented programs
based on improvisation and “contamination” between musical genres. In 1992, he was one of the founders of the
Trio Diaghilev (two pianos and percussion). As a professor,
Totaro has held courses in instrumental specialization and
musical analysis, based on original and innovative formulas. Totaro directs the “Laboratory of 20th Century and
Contemporary Music” at the Conservatory of Pesaro, the
aim of which is to study last-century masterpieces, to encourage new musical proposals and to promote the music
of the latest generations.
> WORKSHOP 3
JAZZ E FREE IMPROVISATION
The objective of this workshop is to encourage personal creativity and awareness of timbre and dynamism, exploring various strategies and methodologies of
spontaneous composition in the scope of Afro-American parlance and in that of “free music”.
Instructor • Gianni Lenoci
Pianist, composer and educator Gianni Lenoci born in Monopoli, Italy in 1963) completed his piano diploma at the Conservatorio “Santa Cecilia” in Rome, received a diploma in Electronic
Music, as well as a Masters degree (cum laude and presenting
a lecture-recital on Morton Feldman’s piano works) at Conservatorio “Niccolò Piccinni” in Bari. Thanks to composition studies
with Giacomo Manzoni at the Accademia Musicale Pescarese
and a developing contemporary attitude, Lenoci developed his
own style in contemporary jazz and improvised his music by
studying with jazz icons such as Mal Waldron and Paul Bley. In
1993 Lenoci was a finalist at the European Jazz Competition in
Leverkusen (Germany) and in 1996 he won the Acanthes Fondation prize in Paris. In 2003 his electronic composition “NOTTURNO FRATTALE” won the International Prize from the Società Italiana di Informatica Musicale. Lenoci has played with the great
names of modern jazz and improvised music: Massimo Urbani,
Steve Lacy, Joelle Leandre, Steve Grossman, Harold Land, Bob
Mover, Enrico Rava, Glenn Ferris,Eugenio Colombo, Giancarlo
Schiaffini, Don Moye, Han Bennink, Antonello Salis, Carlo Actis
Dato, David Gross, Paul Lovens, Sakis Papadimitriou, Georgia
Sylleou, Jean-Jacques Avenel, John Betsch, Markus Stockhausen, Steve Potts, Carlos Zingaro, John Tchicai, Kent Carter, William Parker, David Murray, Roscoe Mitchell, Evan Parker, Sabir
Mateen and Charles Gayle. He also collaborates with dancers,
video artists and poets, while his main focus as musical interpreter is on Morton Feldman (he recorded “For Bunita Marcus”,
for Amirani Records), John Cage, Earle Brown, Sylvano Bussotti and the complete keyboard works of Johann Sebastian
Bach. Lenoci is a performance, improvisation and composition teacher in jazz courses at the Conservatorio “Nino Rota”
in Monopoli, where is head of the New Music Department. He
is visiting professor at Bucharest University, Corfu University,
Royal Northern College of Manchester, Conservatorio Superior
de Malaga, Franz Liszt Hochschule in Weimar, Conservatorio
Superior de Madrid, Conservatorio Superior de Salamanca and
in October 2011 he was Associated Artist (with Master Artist
the legendary Roscoe Mitchell) at the Atlantic Center for the
Arts in New Smyrna, Florida, USA. His name is included in the
Philippe Carles’ “Dictionnaire du Jazz”.
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What we offer
In addition to the workshops and to the possibility of
performing, Piano Academy offers freely to young pianists selected:
ACCOMMODATION WITH FAMILIES
IN THE AREA OF PRATOVECCHIO STIA
MEALS OFFERED IN THE RESTAURANT
AREA OF NATURALMENTE PIANOFORTE
FREE ENTRANCE TO ALL EVENING
CONCERTS OF NATURALMENTE PIANOFORTE
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How to apply
Process of application and selection at
Piano Academy
21 22 23 24 July 2016
Pratovecchio Stia (AR) Tuscany • Italy
Even though we are referring to “young pianists”, there is no age limit for candidates. We
believe that the concept of “young” refers more
to a person’s state of mind than to their physical
age. We are looking for such young pianists, curious, talented and enthusiastic.
To participate in Piano Academy send a complete application with a photo and youtube link
and/or a video recording of at least two performances, by 30 April 2016 to:
academy@naturalmentepianoforte.it
Applications received will be chosen and selected by the staff of Piano Academy.
CONNECTING WITH GREAT PIANISTS
PRESENT AT THE EVENT
What is Naturalmente Pianoforte and where is it?
Naturalmente Pianoforte is a piano festival of
four days (from 21 to 24 July 2016), organized by
the cultural association PratoVeteri and which will
take place in Alto Casentino (the highest part of the
Arno valley). In particular it will take place in the town
squares and streets of the area of Pratovecchio Stia,
in the province of Arezzo. Characteristic of the zone
is the presence of a very rich natural environment,
a large part of which falls under the “Parco Nazionale delle Foreste Casentinesi, Monte Falterona e,
Campigna”. Also characteristic of this zone is the
presence of castles, churches, monasteries and medieval villages. The event was born out of the idea
that this territory and the community that lives there
could represent an ideal setting for hosting piano
music and for this music to resound in the air, creating an experience and unique atmosphere, hard to
find in other similar events. In previous occasions of
the piano festival, were present (amongst others):
Stefano Bollani, Danilo Rea, Sergio Cammariere, Antonello Salis, Cesare Picco, Rita Marcotulli, Gloria
Campaner, Francesco Grillo and Francesco Tristano.
Alongside the piano music, Naturalmente Pianoforte
will organize events and projects concerned with the
promotion of the area of Pratovecchio Stia, its products and its people: the flavours of Casentino, the
various form of local craftsmanship, bicycle tourism
and quality of life.
PratoVeteri Blow Up Club 70
Via Roma, 1 • Pratovecchio - 52015 Pratovecchio Stia (AR) Italy
pratoveteri@gmail.com
Naturalmente Pianoforte 2016
Application for Piano Academy
1 • NAME: ................................................................................................................................................
2 • SURNAME: ........................................................................................................................................
3 • AGE: ....................................................................................................................................................
4 • ADDRESS: .........................................................................................................................................
5 • TELEPHONE NUMBER/EMAIL: ......................................../.................................................................
6 • NATIONALITY: .....................................................................................................................................
7 • QUALIFICATIONS: .......................................................................................................................
8 • PIANO CURRICULUM (attach a pdf file)
9 • AWARDS ...........................................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................................................................
10 • LINK TO PERFORMANCE VIDEO: .....................................................................................................
.................................................................................................................................................................
11 • IMPROVISATION ABILITY. If yes, what kind sight-reading ability (poor/fair/excellent): ..................
.................................................................................................................................................................
12 • LANGUAGES SPOKEN: ....................................................................................................................
13 • IMPROVISATION ABILITY. If yes, what kind sight-reading ability (poor/fair/excellent): ..................
.................................................................................................................................................................
14 • SHORT DESCRIPTION OF YOUR PIANO-PLAYING STYLE: ..........................................................
.................................................................................................................................................................
15 • GIVE THE NAMES OF YOUR THREE FAVOURITE MUSICIANS: .......................................................
.................................................................................................................................................................
16 • OTHER INFORMATION: ..................................................................................................................
..................................................................................................................................................................
Send to: academy@naturalmentepianoforte.it • by April 30, 2016