JURY
Prominent personalities in the piano world ITALIAN, Riccardo Risaliti has for many years now carried on a continuous activity as a performer, teacher, scholar of piano interpretation and history, critic, and music practitioner. Born in Tuscany, he finished his studies at the Florence Conservatory in the classes of Paolo Rio Nardi (pupil of Ernesto Consolo and Ferruccio Busoni) and Luigi Dallapiccola. His preparation continued at the courses of distinguished teachers (Nikita Magaloff, Carlo Zecchi, Sergio Lorenzi). He made his debut with the Orchestra del Maggio Musicale, and at the Accademia Chigiana in Siena. He began his concert career as a result of winning several international prizes ("Viotti" competition, Vercelli; "Pozzoli" competition, Seregno; etc.). He has performed in various European venues (La Scala in Milan, Teatro La Fenice in Venice, Teatro Regio in Parma, Festivals of Brescia and Bergamo, Victoria Hall in Geneva, etc.), touring with a very varied and particular repertoire; also in the chamber music field, alongside distinguished instrumentalists, singers and chamber ensembles. He has some solo and chamber recordings to his credit. Active as a music critic and publicist, he has edited editions of piano music (Ricordi, Curci, Carisch editions). A tenured professor first at the Pesaro Conservatory, then for thirty years at the "G. Verdi" in Milan, he has also taught at the Imola International Piano Academy since its founding. He has given courses and seminars on interpretation: among others at the Sommerakademie of the Mozarteum in Salzburg, at the Festival delle Nazioni in Città di Castello (Perugia), at Villa Ca' Zenobio in Treviso, and in many Italian conservatories. Numerous students from his school, often winners of major competitions, have gone on to concert and teaching careers. He is often invited on the jury of international piano competitions and on examination boards at European music universities. He has been artistic director of various international competitions, and organizer of concert seasons.
Born in Kielce he completed his studies at the Music Academy in Krakow in the piano class of Irena Sijałowa - Vogel. He graduated from the Odessa Conservatory of Music in the class of Anatolij Kardaszow. He took part in a course in opera by Wiera Gornostajewa and Gunter Ludwig. He has a rich artistic activity both as a soloist and chamber musician. He has played with prestigious Orchestras such as Sinfonia Warsaw, Radio Cameral Orchestra "Amadeus", Radio and Television Symphony Orchestra of Krakow and chamber orchestras of Bialystok, Bydgoszcz, Gdansk, Jelenia Gora, Katowice, Kielce, Koszalin , ecc. He has given concerts abroad throughout Europe and the United States of America . He has collaborated with great Polish conductors : Jerzy Maksymiuk, Jerzy Salwarowski, Marek Pijarowski, Agnieszka Duczmal, and Tadeusz Wojciechowski. As a chamber musician he has collaborated with Teresa Żylis - Gara , Małgorzata Walewska and others. He is in constant relationship with the orchestra "Wirtuozi Lwowa" . In 2005 he made his Carnegie Hall debut. He has recorded for Radio Kielce and Russian Television. He has recorded five CDs as a soloist and as a chamber musician especially the Piano and Violin Concerto by F. Mendelssohn - Bartholdy .He is chairman of the Krystyna Jamroz International Music Festival in Busko Zdrój and runs an authorial series event - " Salon di Cameral Musica" at Kielce .He has received prestigious awards such as: Prize of the Kielce Provincial Officer, Prize of the Holy Cross Provincial Officer Marshall, and others.
Professor at the Katarina Gurska Higher Conservatory in Madrid and Franz Liszt Center for Special Talents in La Nucia (Spain). István is an internationally recognized concert pianist and teacher: he has been invited to Master Classes in Budapest (Hungary), World Teachers Conference in Novi Sad (Serbia), Katarina Gurska Conservatory, Forum Musikae (Madrid), International Piano Festival "UIS" in Bucaramanga, Manizales (Colombia), Special Music School in Apatin, Sombor, Senta, Backa Topola (Serbia), Conservatory of Alicante and Dénia, at the International Music Festival in Valencia ecc. Frequent jury member in international competitions such as International Franz Liszt Competition in Rome (Italy), Bucaramanga (Colombia), IMFV Valencia Competition, International Ibiza Competition, ecc. Winner of numerous prizes in national and international competitions. Since the age of 15, he has given recitals in Europe, the United States, South America and Asia. He has performed in private concert for the Princess of Thailand SAR Chulabhorn Mahidol. His teachers were Aleksandar Madzar, Orsolya Szabó, Michael Boguslavski, Mátyás Molcer, Valéria Utasi, and Milica Dundjerov at the Royal Conservatory in Brussels, Rubin Academy in Jerusalem, Kodály Institute in Kecskemét, Subotica Conservatory, and Sombor School of Music. He is a founder and member of the international Camerata "Universal Music." In 2017 István Székely made the recording of five Chopin etudes for the animated short film Impromptu, directed by María Lorenzo and produced by Enrique Millán, with the participation of Cultur Arts (Generalitat Valenciana) and the A Punt Media network.
Born in Busto Garolfo (Mi), he was initiated to the study of piano by his father. Soon after, he attended the prestigious Barese piano school studying with masters P. Camicia and V. Ferrari, graduating from the Conservatorio N. Piccinni and and graduating from the Istituti di Alta Formazione Artistica del conservatorio "DUNI" in Matera in the II Level course with a Compositional and Interpretive focus in Pianoforte with highest honors. He later continued to perfect his pianistic skills with distinguished masters such as Philip Lorenz of the University Fresno of Music in Los Angeles and François Noel Thiollier. He has been the winner of important National and International piano competitions both as a soloist and in chamber ensembles, and has performed and still performs as a soloist for important Music Associations in various Italian and European cities, always gaining unanimous acclaim from audiences and critics. He has performed with Italian and foreign orchestras such as the A.GI.MUS Orchestra (Italy), "Accademia di Tirana" (Albania), "Orchestra dell'Accademia Musicale Pescarese l'Orchestra Sinfonica della Provincia di Bari ecc. He has held piano master classes at the HINDEMITH Academy in BLUNEY (Switzerland) and in Italy at the XXVII COURSE OF MUSICAL INTERPRETATION CITTA' DI NORCIA; he is called to serve on juries of piano competitions in Italy and abroad. He teaches Principal Piano at the conservatory "Niccolò Piccinni" in Bari.
Maria Sbeglia, began studying piano at the age of three with Emilia Gubitosi and gave her first concert at the age of five; in fact, this year marks the 50th anniversary of her first concert. She then continued her studies at the Conservatorio "S.Pietro a Majella "in Naples with Maestro Massimo Bertucci and pianist Annamaria Pennella, graduating with top honors, praise and special mention. She furthered her studies with Maestro. Aldo Ciccolini. She is a winner of numerous national and international piano competitions and has participated in radio and television broadcasts for RAI and foreign broadcasters. She carries out concert activities both in Italy and abroad. She has toured in Yugoslavia, Poland, Bulgaria, Germany, Switzerland, Spain, France, Kwait. Since 1991 she has been playing in a piano duo with her husband, Umberto Zamuner. She is a professor at the San Pietro a Majella Conservatory in Naples. She is regularly invited to serve on juries of National and International piano competitions. In 2000, she was appointed Artistic Director of the Franco Michele Napolitano Foundation, with which she organizes concert seasons. In 2013, she founded the Rotary Youth Chamber Orchestra, a youth string ensemble. She is Artistic Director of the Emilia and Elsa Gubitosi International Competition held in Capri.
She possesses uncommon instrumental qualities and is endowed with a quivering, poetic sensibility that draws the audience in. This is how la stampa specialized defines the pianist Carla Aventaggiato who has specialized with Maestros Sergio Cafaro,Antonio Bacchelli, Novin Afrouz, Aldo Ciccolini, François Joël Thiollier and Marisa Somma. Awarded in several National and International Competitions, she carries out an intense concert activity, both as a soloist and in piano duo formation, which has led her to give concerts in prestigious Cultural Associations in Italy (Milan-Circolo della Stampa, Cosenza-Teatro Rendano, Bari Teatro Piccinni, Ravello-Villa Rufolo, Matera, Salerno, Turin, Udine, Rome, Florence, etc.) and abroad (Spain, Romania, Germany, Croatia, etc.). Regularly invited to serve on judging commissions of national and international piano competitions, she is artistic director of the National Piano Competition "City of Casamassima", of the "Amadeus" Music Association of Casamassima and of the International Piano Competition "City of Acquaviva delle Fonti - "Premio Giovanni Colafemmina". He teaches principal piano at the Conservatory of Music "N. Piccinni" in Bari.
He graduated with highest honors from the "Niccolò Piccini" Conservatory of Music in Bari under Marisa Somma continuing his studies with Novin Afrouz, Paul Badura Skoda, Aldo Ciccolini e François-Joël Thiollier. He made his debut at the age of seventeen at the Teatro Petruzzelli in Bari, since then a brilliant concert career has followed, both as soloist and in piano duo with his wife Carla Aventaggiato, and has played for important musical associations in prestigious venues, earning acclaim from audiences and critics everywhere. Awarded prizes in numerous national and international piano competitions. Regularly invited to serve on judging panels of national and international piano competitions, he is artistic director( together with his wife Carla Aventaggiato) of the International Piano Competition City of Acquaviva delle Fonti - Premio Giovanni Colafemmina Studies "Giovanni Colafemmina" of Acquaviva delle Fonti. A professor of principal piano at the "N. Piccini" Conservatory of Bari, he has been teaching since the age of eighteen, and his thirty years of experience is comforted by the success of many of his students in competitions and concerts. He regularly holds Masterclasses and Seminars.
