Swiss-Italian pianist Francesco Piemontesi, a native of Locarno, has over the years gained a reputation as one of the leading interpreters of the German classical and romantic repertoire. He appears as a regular guest with many of the world’s leading orchestras, in concert halls and music festivals around the globe, while still being firmly anchored on the shores of Lago Maggiore as Artistic Director of the music festival Settimane Musicali di Ascona.

With his subtle but mesmerizing interpretations of Schubert’s piano sonatas as well as the solo works and piano concertos of Mozart, Beethoven, Brahms and Liszt, he has been acclaimed internationally by critics and audiences alike. His playing is characterized by sensitivity, intimacy and poetry, but also by power and brilliance. Above all, it is important to him to illuminate the scores from within:  “Making music is like a second language for me. It feels like an existential necessity. I don’t want to entertain the audience, I want to let them participate in the deep dimensions of music.”

Highlights of the 2024/25 season include appearances at the BBC Proms, an extensive tour with the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, performing Mozart’s concerto for two pianos KV 365 with Jan Lisiecki under the direction of Gianandrea Noseda. The tour features a special appearance by the orchestra in Locarno, where Piemontesi continues to hold the position Artistic Director of the Settimane Musicali di Ascona. Further ahead, Piemontesi appears with the Filarmonica della Scala, also conducted by Noseda, L’Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della Rai, Gewandhausorchester under Manfred Honeck, and returns to the Frankfurt Radio Symphony and SWR Symphonieorchester. Further engagements include returns to the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchester, NHK, Chicago and Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, The Cleveland Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony, Budapest Festival Orchestra and London Philharmonic Orchestra with Robin Ticciati, as well as the Helsinki Philharmonic. In recital, Piemontesi appears at Auditorium Lyon, Rudolfinum/ Dvořák Hall, Tonhalle Zurich, and La Chaux-de-Fonds, to mention just a few.