Giuliano Mazzoccante
Giuliano Mazzoccante is internationally recognised as one of the best Italian pianists of his generation. He graduated from the Conservatory “L. Cherubini” in Florence with top marks, honors, and a special mention. He obtained a Diploma of Excellence from the Umbra Music Academy, a Diploma of Merit from the Chamber Music courses of the Trio di Trieste, as well as a scholarship to study at the Accademia Chigiana in Siena, before going on to study with Lazar Berman. He has held advanced masterclasses in Austria (Salzburg-Mozarteum), Russia (Moscow-Yamaha Center), the USA (Washington Catholic University), Austria (Keisersaal), Germany (Aachen, Cologne Hochschule), Spain (Conservatories of Valencia and Campillos), Portugal (Espino Music Center), Malta (La Valletta International Music Festival). Since 2010, he has been responsible for selecting Italian musicians for the Sommer-Akademie Schloss Pommersfelden in Germany.
Winner of over fifty national and international competitions, his achievements at the “Premio Venezia,” the “Arcangelo Speranza” in Taranto, and the “4th Tbilisi International Piano Competition” in Georgia stand out. Giuliano has performed throughout Europe, Asia, and the United States and has played as a soloist with major orchestras such as the Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, Kiev Philharmonic Orchestra, Orchestra Sinfonica Abruzzese, Orchestra Sinfonica di Lecce, and many others. His artistic training was characterised by a wide range of studies, ranging from classical music to ballet and opera.
From 2001 to 2007, he collaborated on productions at the Teatro Marrucino in Chieti as a substitute conductor, lighting designer, assistant director, and vocal coach, working with artists of the calibre of Renato Bruson, Lorenzo Arruga, Claudio Desderi, Donato Renzetti, and Vittorio Grigolo. From 2002 to 2008, he furthered his training in classical, modern, and contemporary ballet, collaborating with important Italian and foreign institutions as an accompanist and teacher of music applied to dance, working for the Royal Academy in London, and supporting dancers such as L. Wallis (director of the Royal Academy), R. Paganini, and F. Olivieri.
He plays and collaborates regularly with renowned musicians such as K. Leister (long-time principal clarinetist of the Berlin Philharmonic), F. Manara (principal violinist of La Scala in Milan), and P. Berman. He is a pianist in the prestigious “Trio DOROGI” alongside D. Schwarzberg (violin) and R. Garioud (violoncello). He has recorded for Dynamic, Wide Classique, DAD Records, Camerata Tokyo, Vatican Radio, Phoenix Classics, and Da Vinci Records.
He founded and was Artistic Director for over ten years of the Civic Music School of S. G. Teatino, where he organized the FB jazz festival, hosting artists such as J. Berlin, M. Stern, M. Moriconi, M. Tamburini, T. Azul, D. Schmitt, O. Ruiz, F. Gambale, and A. Caron. During the same period, he organized several concert seasons involving some of the greatest performers of the time, such as L. Piovano, E. Dindo, P. Berman, and K. Leister, and brought artists such as Pupi Avati, Lina Wertmuller, and Vincenzo Cerami to the small town in Abruzzo. His great versatility led him to explore musical direction, first choral and then orchestral, for which he attended masterclasses with Maestro M. Bufalini, conducting, among others, the Abruzzese Symphony Orchestra, the Kiev String’s Orchestra, and the Bacau Philharmonic Orchestra, G. Rossini’s Petite Messe Solennelle, and numerous other works, particularly sacred music.
Giuliano is the founder and Artistic Director of the Music and Art International Academy in Chieti, where he teaches advanced courses in piano performance and chamber music. In 2018 and 2020, he was Artistic Director of the “In Musica Roma International Music Festival & Piano Competition,” held at the Sala Accademica of the Pontifical Institute of Sacred Music and at the Teatro Argentina in Rome. He is also president of the Artensemble Association, with which he organises concert seasons for various institutions in Abruzzo and other regions, and is artistic director of the CHIETI CLASSICA International Music Festival, now in its seventh edition, which has featured international artists such as P. Gililov (professor at the Mozarteum in Salzburg), A. Kobrin (professor at Eastman University in the USA), P. Berman, and R. Garioud.
In 2020, the European Foundation for Support of Culture in Malta (EUFSC) appointed him Artistic Director of the MCMA – Malta Classical Music Academy. Since 2022, he has been Artistic Director of the Deputazione Teatrale Teatro Marrucino – Teatro lirico d’Abruzzo. In the same year, he was appointed Artistic Director of the Spoltore Ensemble in Spoltore (PE). He currently teaches piano at the L. D’Annunzio State Conservatory of Music in Pescara.