fabio grasso website – home
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FABIO
GRASSO aims to recreate a figure of musician that keeps together the aspect of
virtuoso pianist, with wide-ranging classical and contemporary repertoire, and
that of all-round cultivated composer, firmly anchored to the aesthetic
heritage of the European historical avantgarde, not
only interested in piano music, but also in chamber, symphonic and theatrical
fields, whose creative research focuses on the construction of a strongly
characterized harmonic language.
STUDIES
AND TEACHING
Born
in Vercelli (Italy), he began the musical studies in
his town under the guidance of Mario Barasolo and
Jean Micault. He took the Piano Degree at 17 with
full marks and the mention ad honorem (Conservatory
of Turin, section Cuneo). He obtained the Degree in
Composition at the Conservatory of Milan, where he had as teachers Sandro Gorli, Umberto Rotondi and Guido Guida, and the
doctor title in Classical Greek with full marks at Turin University, section Vercelli.
He
attended the piano specialization courses of Marco Vincenzi
and subsequently of Maria Tipo at Fiesole Music School, where he was also student of the
composition special courses of Giacomo Manzoni. He followed other special courses, like a piano
stage of Klaus Hellwig at HdK
Berlin, and a 3-years composition course of Franco Donatoni. At last he obtained the new state doctor’s title in Piano
with full marks and the mention ad honorem at the
Conservatory of Alessandria.
He
is currently professor at the Conservatory of Venice.
PIANISTIC ACTIVITY – or jump below to the COMPOSITIONAL ACTIVITY
In
1996 Fabio Grasso won the Orléans
International Piano Competition, the most important competition dedicated to
the modern and contemporary piano music worldwide. In this occasion he was
highly appreciated both as interpreter and as composer. Subsequently he was
invited to play for Orléans Orchestra season, Radio
France Montpellier and Paris (recitals, Concertos by Mozart, Beethoven and Ligeti), Colmar Festival,
Parisian series of CNSM, Salle Cortot, Théâtre du Châtelet
and Salle Gaveau, where he performed his own Suite. In 2012 as jury member of the Orléans Competition he held its opening recital, premiering
his own Fantasy.
Download reviews – Listen to the
Fantasy on YouTube
He recorded 3 CDs for the French label SOLSTICE: in
1998 Busoni’s Elegies, Toccata, Albumblätter (this CD got the Recommendation
by Répertoire and the CHOC du mois by Le monde
de la musique), in 2002 6 Études and
8 Morceaux by Anton Rubinstein (first world recordings), and in 2004
Schumann’s Carnaval
and Symphonic Etudes with Posthumous
Variations, which got excellent reviews.
Moreover he recorded the 5 Fugues and a choice of 9
Sonatas of Domenico Scarlatti for Euterp.
Among the new recordings for independent productions:
Chopin MP3 Album #1, 14 Valses, Fantaisie
op. 49
See DISCOGRAPHY
Finalist of
the Busoni Competition in 1999, Fabio Grasso is able
to propose extremely varied recital programmes, with classical, romantic and
modern-contemporary repertoire, including the works composed by himself.
See
the GRAVITATIONAL RECITAL PROGRAMMES
See
the CATALOGUE OF THE
COMPOSITIONS
See
the REPERTOIRE
Visit the Virtual Recital "Shrines of
Memory" - six piano works @ rosenfinger.com
Between
2007 and 2011 he performed BEETHOVEN'S COMPLETE SONATAS for the Viotti Society in Vercelli,
ending the cycle by the Hammerklavier Sonata op. 106 and the Diabelli Variations in the same recital.
Read
the BEETHOVEN PROJECT page, with the review of the last concert and the complete program
notes.
Another
"large-sized" projected series concerns SCHUMANN'S MAJOR PIANO WORKS,
to be presented in a non-linear concert route, together with digital lectures
about their literary and philosophical background.
Read the presentation at rosenfinger.com
Listen
on Youtube:
Blumenstück op. 19 with videoanalysis. Please watch from
the Rosenfinger page
www.rosenfinger.com/schumannproject01019.htm
which
contains an Italian comment
Phantasiestücke op. 111. Included in the virtual recital "Piano Tour among European
Cathedrals and Churches"
Widmung
op. 25 n. 1, Liszt's piano version
Excerpt from the Solstice CD with op. 9 and 13
In
collaboration with the pianist and composer Letizia Michielon he performed, both as shared recital and in the form of recital with masterclass, the complete Ligeti’s
Etudes, as well as other
multicultural shared contemporary programmes, mixed two and four hands, often
in connection with themes of the figurative art, for several important European
and American institutions, including Berlin BKA Theater
and the musical Universities of New York (NYU), Vienna (MDW), Montreal (McGill)
and Warsaw (Chopin Academy).
Read
more at the page LIGETI AND OTHER MULTICULTURAL
PROJECTS
COMPOSITIONAL
ACTIVITY
Winner
in 1996 of the First Prize of the Buenos Aires Ginastera
Competition with the work for guitar and orchestra Katoptroeidès (LISTEN ON YOUTUBE, Buenos Aires Teatro
Colón performance) and
In 1999 of the Prize Journées de la jeune musique de Marseille with La Sérénade
aux tristes sourires (LISTEN
ON YOUTUBE) for 11 instruments,
awarded with unanimous vote of the jury and the special mention of the public,
Fabio Grasso shows his varied compositional research
in a catalogue which includes instrumental and vocal solo, chamber and
symphonic compositions, performed by himself and by other remarkable players
(always with high appreciation of his writing) in prestigious European and
American venues.
Browse
the CATALOGUE OF THE
COMPOSITIONS for all details and
links to listenings.
Read the NY reviews (New York Times and Musical
America) of Blumentraum, performed in New York, Merkin Hall, for the
Washington Square Contemporary Music Society, 2010.
Read
about and listen to
...As doth eternity... Washington Square Ensemble, New York 2018, with video
www.rosenfinger.com/me002asdet.htm
Several
Fabio Grasso's works are inspired by literary themes.
Some examples:
Listen on YouTube to Tháleia, homage to E. Dickinson, and L'Aurore au plumage noir, homage to S. Mallarmé, both performed in Venezia, Teatro La Fenice, Plurimo Ensemble, with the composer at the piano.
Read
about and listen to
Der gefesselte
Strom for two pianos (from Hölderlin)
www.rosenfinger.com/me004dgs.htm
From
other poems of F. Hölderlin the composer has drawn
the text for Der Sternenkuss,
for soprano and string quartet, performed in Venezia,
Teatro La Fenice, by the Ex
Novo Ensemble, as a part of the PROGETTO PROMETEO AGIMUS VENEZIA, and recorded on a Rosenfinger CD that
collects the whole production. Tracks and excerpts at
Further
pieces inspired by ancient Greek Literature, Byron, Mallarmé
and other poets are available with comments at Rosenfinger
pages
SHRINES
OF MEMORY www.rosenfinger.com/cvs03.htm
POETRY
AND HARP www.rosenfinger.com/cvs04.htm