Daniele Petralia, piano

The Italian pianist Daniele Petralia, born in Catania, graduated with distinction from the Conservatorio Vincenzo Bellini under Giuseppe Cultrera, then continued his studies at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome with Sergio Perticaroli and at the Mozarteum University in Salzburg. He has appeared as a soloist in many musical capitals, including Paris, Rome, Milan, Zurich, Moscow, Tokyo, New York and Sydney. He works regularly with several Italian orchestras, teaches piano at the Conservatorio Vincenzo Bellini in Catania, and gives masterclasses in Italy and abroad. He has won numerous awards and prizes, including a special UNESCO recognition for artistic achievement, conferred by the International Academy “Amici della Sapienza”. Petralia’s recital features two giants of Russian piano literature. In his cycle of six Moments musicaux, Op. 16, Sergei Rachmaninov revisits characteristic forms from earlier periods: the nocturne, étude, song without words, funeral march, barcarolle and theme with variations. In this collection, as in the later Preludes, Op. 23, we hear the powerful rhythmic currents, lyrical expressiveness and dramatic tension that became hallmarks of his style. The recital concludes with one of Sergei Prokofiev’s so-called “war sonatas”, written during the Second World War. Piano Sonata No. 7, also known by the subtitle “Stalingrad”, reflects the tension of its time, from the fragmented opening movement and lyrical middle section to the wild toccata-like finale that resolves all the unrest in a triumphant conclusion.