Francesco Piemontesi (Piano)

Born: 1983 - Locarno, Switzerland

The Swiss pianist, Francesco Piemontesi, studied with Nora Doallo in Lugano and with Arie Vardi at the Hannover University of music. Alongside his studies he gained valuable inspiration from his work with Alfred Brendel, Cécile Ousset, Murray Perahia, Mitsuko Uchida and Alexis Weissenberg. He is the recipient of numerous international prizes, including the Queen Elisabeth Competition in Brussels and a 2009 Borletti-Buitoni Trust Fellowship. In September 2009, BBC named Francesco one of its “New Generation Artists”.

Francesco Piemontesi has made guest appearances at the BBC Proms, Schleswig-Holstein, City of London Festival, Martha Argerich Project, Cheltenham, Ruhr, Rheingau, Ludwigsburg, Kissinger Sommer and Roque d'Anthéron Festivals and can look back on performances at the Philharmonie in Berlin, Carnegie Hall in New York, Musikverein in Vienna and Suntory Hall in Tokyo.

Francesco Piemontesi has played as soloist with the BBC Symphony Orchestra, Bayerischer Rundfunk Symphonieorchester, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre Philharmonique de Monte Carlo, Prague Symphony Orchestra, Osaka Philharmonic, Belgian National Orchestra, Tonkünstler Orchestra, Scottish Chamber Orchestra, and the Zürich Chamber Orchestra, collaborating with conductors as Jiri Belohlavek, Sakari Oramo, Lawrence Foster, Mikhail Pletnev, Christoph Poppen, Eiji Oue, Vassily Petrenko, Thierry Fischer and Bruno Weil.

Highlights of following seasons include performances with the London Philharmonic Orchestra, NHK Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Sinfonia Varsovia, Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestre National de Lille, Bournemouth Symphony Orchestra, Northern Sinfonia and a tour with Zubin Mehta and the Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino. Piemontesi will also appear in recital at Wigmore Hall in London, Concertgebouw in Amsterdam and at Lucerne Festival.

Francesco Piemontesi nurtures a special artistic interest in chamber music. He has played with Yuri Bashmet, Renaud und Gautier Capuçon, Daniel Müller-Schott, Emmanuel Pahud, Heinrich Schiff, Jörg Widmann and the Ebène quartet.

Francesco Piemontesi has recorded for EMI Classics as part of the Martha Argerich and Friends series, and recently released his first recording for Claves Records: a 2-CD set of works by Robert Schumann.

Source: Francesco Piemontesi Website (Photos: Marco Borggreve)
Contributed by Aryeh Oron (May 2011)

Francesco Piemontesi: Short Biography | Recordings of Instrumental Works

Links to other Sites

Francesco Piemontesi (Official Website) [English/Italian/German]
Francesco Piemontesi (Intermusica)

Frsncesco Piemontesi (BBC)