Isole Sonore

BOCCONI-YAMAHA CONCERT REVIEW

Now in its third edition, the festival promoted by Bocconi University and Yamaha – curated by Cesare Picco – stands out once again for its special offer placing the piano at centerstage in its various musical variations. All seven dates with must-see events are free, but reservations are required.

The 2024-2025 season of Isole Sonore will head in a new direction with classical repertoire, jazz contemporary reinterpretations, and some of the most innovative forms of musical performance – all conducted by acclaimed international artists.

The traditional opening event of the season will feature pianist Andrea Vizzini, founder of the "Silent Wifi Concert".

This concert represents an evocative, multisensory experience in which the audience is completely and actively engaged.

The concert will take place in the silence of the night, and will be audible through high-fidelity Wifi headphones – each pair its own acoustic microcosm – so the audience can listen to the night-inspired lineup and wander around, swept away by dreamlike visions.

Andrea Vizzini silent piano

Antonio Gargiuolo narrator

Music from the classical repertoire

Musician’s website

Created by Cesare Picco in 2009, this concert in the dark – first of its kind in the world – celebrates its 15th anniversary at Isole Sonore. 

Since its founding, this format has captivated viewers around the globe.

Music reveals all its saving power during this concert: the audience, reaching the most intimate and remote listening source, is guided through a musical journey – acoustic and electronic – specifically studied to result in an experience of deep inner and spiritual transformation.

This concert has become an enriching experience with significant social impact, as it metaphorically leads the audience on a journey from darkness to light, symbolizing the millions of people in the Global South who are reached and cared for by CBM.

 

Cesare Picco piano, electronics, percussion

Original music

 

Musician’s website

Born in the Netherlands in 1994, she made her debut at age five in South Korea as a soloist in Haydn’s Piano Concerto in C Major.

When she was six, she joined the Royal Conservatory in The Hague, and at age 15 she won first prize at the Dutch International Steinway & Sons Piano Competition.

In 2020, at the invitation of Sir András Schiff, she performed at the Klavier Festival Ruhr and participated in the “Building Bridges” project with concerts in Berlin, Antwerp, Baden, Aubonne and Bonn. Together with violinist Grazia Raimondi and cellist Luigi Piovano, she started the Trio Arciduca in 2021. In 2019 she recorded Bach’s Goldberg Variations for the Fonè label.

She was appointed a “Bösendorfer Artist” in 2018.

 

Gila Bae piano

Music by Bach, Beethoven, Prokofiev, Schumann

Musician’s website

 

FREE ENTRY WITH RESERVATION (SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY).

 

An event not to be missed for lovers of new-age jazz.

Since his debut with his own trio in 2011, Shai has forged a strong and unique personal identity and displayed incredible musical fluidity – making him and his band one of the most powerful and harmonious groups in the world of music today.

With his last two albums for the famous ECM label – both produced by Manfred Eicher – Shai Maestro immediately joined the ranks of notable jazz pianists who have defined the label, including Keith Jarrett, Paul Bley and Chick Corea.

 

Shai Maestro piano

Original music

 

Musician’s website

 

FREE ENTRY WITH RESERVATION (SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY).

Luigi Carroccia is, beyond question, one of the stars of Italian pianism on the global stage.

Winner of the Virtuoso Prize at the Vendome Piano Prize competition, he has also earned great acclaim at the Van Cliburn Competition in Fort Worth, at the Ferruccio Busoni Competition in Bolzano and the Fryderyk Chopin International Piano Competition in Warsaw.

He regularly holds concerts in Italy and abroad.

He conceived a musical journey entitled “Pagine di diario” for Isole Sonore.

 

Luigi Carroccia piano

Music by Tchaikovsky, Chopin

 

Musician’s website

 

FREE ENTRY WITH RESERVATION (SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY).

“Mirrors” gives us the possibility to listen to classical numbers interpreted by Fanny Azzuro, then revisited in a contemporary key by Andrea Manzoni. A curious and stimulating musical “game of mirrors”.

Fanny Azzuro piano

Music by Rachmaninov, Scriabin, Gershwin

Andrea Manzoni piano

Reinterpretations 

 

Fanny Azzuro

She is the first French pianist to record Rachmaninov's complete Preludes. Her album “The Landscapes of the Soul” was selected classical disc of the month for the October 2021 issue of Le Monde, and was awarded five stars by Musica magazine and four stars in La Libre Belgique. She performs all over the world in prestigious theaters and festivals.

Musician’s website

 

Andrea Manzoni

Andrea Manzoni is a pianist, award-winning composer, producer and sound explorer. He represents a generation of artists who work to create innovative forms of expression, bending the boundaries among jazz, electronic music, music for films, music for theater, pop, and classical music in the emerging "crossover" style.

Musician’s website

 

FREE ENTRY WITH RESERVATION (SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY).

A final surprise for the Isole Sonore audience – a beyond-special evening to celebrate the conclusion of the third edition.

Surprise guests and sounds from all over the world.

 

FREE ENTRY WITH RESERVATION (SUBJECT TO AVAILABILITY).