🎶 A Night at the Opera – Coming to Cambridge This November 🎶

Hi everybody,

I had the chance of spending a fantastic summer in Italy singing, being close to family and friends and eating fantastic food!

 

Now I'm back in the UK and I'm absolutely thrilled to invite you to our upcoming concert, "A Night at the Opera", taking place on Saturday 29th November at 7:30 PM in the beautiful Bateman Auditorium at Gonville and Caius College, Cambridge.

This special evening will feature a carefully curated selection of arias and duets from some of the most beloved operas in the repertoire. Expect an enchanting journey through the Italian greats – including Rossini’s The Barber of Seville, Donizetti’s The Elixir of Love, and Puccini’s La Bohème – as well as timeless works by Mozart and the fiery spirit of Bizet’s Carmen.

I’ll be performing alongside an exceptional lineup of artists:
🎤 Soprano Naomi Roger – known for her radiant voice and compelling stage presence
🎤 Baritone Ted Day – bringing depth and elegance to every performance
🎹 Pianist Ralph Woodward – whose artistry at the piano ties everything together with grace and sensitivity

Together, we aim to create an evening full of passion, humour, heartbreak, and of course… music that stays with you long after the final note.

Whether you're a lifelong opera lover or simply curious to experience these masterpieces live, A Night at the Opera promises something truly special. The venue, Bateman Auditorium, offers an intimate and acoustically rich space—perfect for immersing yourself in the magic of live performance.

🎟️ Tickets & Info

Visit our event page here to learn more about the performers, and to secure your tickets. Seats are limited, so don’t wait too long!

We can’t wait to share this music with you. See you in Cambridge!

 

 

A Tale of Light and Fear - Now online!

I'm happy to share that my new piece A Tale of Light and Fear is now available on all major streaming platforms!

This work is based on a poem by my dear friend Jen Freer, a marine biologist at the British Antarctic Survey. Her text brings to life the strange and fragile world of lanternfish, krill, and other deep-sea creatures in the Southern Ocean — the same environment she studies in her scientific work.

The piece was first performed in Italy in August 2024, with a beautiful premiere by soprano Sara Pegoraro and pianist Tullia Melandri. This winter, I had the chance to record it in studio with two exceptional artists: soprano Naomi Rogers and pianist Patrick Hemmerlé. Naomi is a British soprano with a growing international career in opera, concert and contemporary music. Patrick is a French pianist based in the Cambridge, known for his wide-ranging repertoire and poetic touch, particularly in lesser-known Romantic and early 20th-century music. I actually wrote this piece with Naomi’s voice in mind, and it was a real pleasure to hear it take shape in the studio with both of them.

These are the links to listen to A Tale of Light and Fear on Spotify and on YouTube.

As always, thank you for listening — and feel free to share your thoughts if you do!

 

 

 

Next Concert in Cambridge

Unfortunately, we had to cancel our concert in Cambridge a couple of weeks ago because Ralph Woodward was ill. But we are ready for the next one!

On Saturday 15th February 2025 at 7.30 pm, we will be performing in Cambridge one more time at the URC Downing Place: Anthony Howell - A Life in Poetry and Music.

Ralph and I will be joined by cellist Riccardo Pes to celebrate the multifaceted genius of Anthony Howell, a poet, novelist, dancer, and performance artist.

Anthony was born in 1945 and his first collection of poems called Inside the Castle was published in 1969. Since then, numerous other collections of poems, novels, and essays appeared - amongst the latest are Incomprehensible Lesson (versions of poems by Fawzi Karim); Consciousness (with Mutilation); Songs of Realisation; The Step is the Foot: Dance and its Relationship to Poetry; The Distance Measured in Days. Anthony is also a tango teacher (after being in his youth part of the Royal Ballet) and was the founder and director of The Theatre of Mistakes, which created notable performances worldwide in the seventies and eighties at venues such as the Paris Biennale, the Sydney Biennale, the Paula Cooper Gallery, the Tate, and the Haywood.

At the core of the concert program are the pieces based on Anthony Howell's poems composed by Michael Nyman, the popular composer of the soundtrack to the 1990 film The Piano, and Battista Pradal, my old composition teacher. Nyman wrote these songs as part of the cycle Body Parts for voice and piano in 2010, while Pradal composed his suite of pieces for the unusual tenor & cello duo in 2019. Pradal's songs were dedicated to Riccardo Pes and me, and we performed them in London and in Italy.

The rest of the program is also related to Howell's work: Field and Schumann had a key role in his exploration of the relationship between tango and classical music, while the songs by Vaughan Williams and German are based on poems by R. L. Stevenson and R. Kipling, who Anthony admires.

The concert will also include some of Anthony Howell's poems, read by the author himself.

 

Click here for more info and to reserve your seats!

Stay tuned, something else is also cooking and should be ready before Christmas... Don't forget to check out my Facebook and Instagram pages!

Next Concert - 'Fathers and Sons'

 Since last week I've been back in the UK after a fantastic summer spent in Italy: nice hot weather, being close to my family and friends and able to get to the beach with only a couple of minutes walk, and of course concerts (both being on stage and in the audience - a special one was when Sara Pegoraro and Tullia Melandri gave the first performace of my A Tale of Light and Fear, they did an amazing job and the audience was quite happy) - ah, it was amazing! I've also been lucky enough to find some nice weather on my return to England and spend the weekend before resuming my lessons exploring a couple of National Trust places with Claudia and our little Nora.

But now it's time to work, see again students old and new, and get ready for the Autumn and Winter concerts. The first one will take place on Friday, November 8th at 7.30 pm at URC Downing Place in Cambridge. We planned a fantastic night with my good friend and excellent pianist Ralph Woodward and the theme of our recital is Fathers and Sons. The programme will feature some Lieder by Schubert, Loewe, Mahler, and Wolf which, in various ways, offer an insight into the relationship between fathers and sons. Moreover, there will be songs composed by three generations of Mozarts (grandfather Leopold, the one and only Wolfgang Amadeus whom we all know, and his son Franz Xaver), plus one written especially to be part of this programme by the Italian composer Emilio Ghezzi.

For more info and to get your tickets, please visit https://bit.ly/fathersandsonscambridge

Hope to see you there!

A Tale of Light and Fire - First Performance!

 Hi everybody!

Save the date - I'm very happy to say that on Sunday 4th August in Pordenone (Italy) soprano Sara Pegoraro and pianist Tullia Melandri will be the first to perform my A Tale of Light and Fear, the song I wrote based on the beautiful poem by my friend Jennifer Freer!

I'm honoured that two fantastic musicians such as Sara and Tullia decided to include my piece in the programme of their next concert!

I can't wait... and if you happen to be in Italy next weekend please join us!

Summer Summer Summer!

Another summer is nearly here and we are getting ready to finally enjoy some nice weather - hopefully! - and for many musical events.

To begin with, in just a few weeks, at the beginning of July, my and my friend and colleague Alice's students' concert is planned: a garden party to have fun and share with old and new friends the musical progress made in the past few months!

After that, a few more lessons and then it will be time to go to Italy, where family, friends and many concerts are in line - including an hommage to Puccini on the 100th anniversary of his death, a concert performance of Elisir d'amore and my first performance of a wonderful and moving piece by Britten, his Canticle III, Still Falls the Rain.

But first - a quick trip to Italy in 10 days, to sing the chamber orchestra version of Mahler's Das Lied von der Erde, with the Windkraft Ensemble under Kasper de Roo. Cannot wait!

Our 'Italian Journey' in Egham

 Hi everybody,

in just a few weeks I'll have the chance to embark once again on our Italian Journey together with pianist Ralph Woodward!

On Sunday 16th of June at 3 pm we will perform at the United Church in Egham, for the Egham and District Music Club. The programme will include arias from operas set in Italy, some salon songs by Tosti, Respighi and Puccini, and some Italian piano music.

Here's a little teaser of the concert

Ralph and I look forward to seeing you in Egham!

Next Concert in Cambridge

Hello everybody, 

my trip to Edinburgh was fantastic - the concert went well (it was a real pleasure to perform for such an attentive audience at the Edinburgh Society for Musicians), and we had a lot of fun!

Now it's time to start preparing for our next concert in Cambridge: on Saturday 4th of May at 6 pm at the Downing Place URC, we will present a new Italian Opera programme! Soprano Naomi Rogers will join Ralph Woodward and me to perform a selection of arias and duets from some of the most loved Italian operas - Verdi's Traviata, Puccini's Bohéme and Donizetti's Elixir of Love.

Don't miss out on this extraordinary evening of music and emotion - book your tickets now and prepare to be captivated by the breathtaking performances at A Night of Opera in Cambridge!

Happy New Year!

Today I got back to the UK, ready to resume with my lessons and for a new year of concerts!

The first concert of 2024 will also mark my debut in Scotland: in just a bit more than two weeks, together with Ralph Woodward, we will travel to Edinburgh to perform again Schubert's Winterreise. I have a feeling that the cold of the North will help me to find new interpretative ways to my Winter Journey!

So on Saturday 27th of January, we will perform for the Edinburgh Society of Musicians:

Check out their website https://www.edinburghsocietyofmusicians.co.uk/events

See you soon!

Last concerts of 2023

 Hi everybody!

Christmas is approaching, and I'm getting ready for my last concerts of 2023 - one here and a couple back home in Italy.

On Friday 15th at 7 pm at Chatteris Parish Church I will be part of the line-up for the Concert for Hope, an event to raise funds for East Anglia Children Hospice and Hospices of Hope in Ukraine. I will be singing some Italian Opera arias and a few songs with Ralph Woodward at the piano. For more info and tickets click here.

 

A few days after this concert I'm heading to Italy: my friends Anna Viola, Silvia Regazzo, Michele Bravin and the amazing guys of Orchestra da Camera di Pordenone are waiting for me to perform in two Christmas Concerts - at the church of the town where I grew up, Lignano Sabbiadoro, and in another town not far from home. I will sing some sacred music and Christmas carols. After that - 2 weeks of holidays before coming back to the UK and start working again with my students!

Merry Christmas!!

Concert at the Andover Music Club

Hey everybody!

I got back a couple of days ago from Italy, a very quick trip home for a concert at a very interesting festival, as this year's main theme was madness! Together with pianist Federico Lovato we performed some Lieder by Schubert and Schumann, some opera arias by Donizetti, and Verdi, and the ultimate tenor mad scene: the end of Britten's Peter Grimes!

Now it's time to get ready for my next concert in the UK, as next week I'll be performing again with Ralph Woodward at the Andover Music Club in Hampshire. On Thursday 23rd November we will bring our Italian Journey programme to The Lights, the local auditorium.

Stay tuned for more news!