Celebrated maestro back in Bay

Italian pianist Antonio Pompa-Baldi is back in South Africa for the fifth time and will perform for the Port Elizabeth Music Society this evening in the Nelson Mandela University South Campus Auditorium.

Society chairwoman Dr Erika Bothma says umpteen requests were received for the celebrated Steinway Artist’s return since his last recital here.

Pompa-Baldi won the Cleveland International Piano Competition in 1999 and embarked on a career that continues to extend across five continents.

A top prize-winner at the 1998 Marguerite Long Jacques Thibaud Competition in Paris, France, he also won a silver medal at the 2001 Van Cliburn International Piano Competition and now regularly serves on the jury of important music competitions

The award-winning concert pianist and professor of music at the Cleveland Institute of Music is know for his technical prowess.

Reviews of his concerts throughout the world result in accolades and his recitals have been described as: “brilliance and structural insight”; “Pompa-Baldi possesses a magical touch, rich in a thousand of nuances”; “a spectacular technique and an amazing finesse”.
He is married to Emanuela Friscioni, who is also a pianist and they often play together at festivals.

Believing that festivals are ideal for the development of young players, Pompa-Baldi established the Todi International Music Masters Summer Festival in Italy.

He has recorded 20 CDs, among them, the entire piano repertoire of Grieg, a live recital of his award-winning Cliburn Competition performances and The Rascal and the Sparrow-Poulenc meets Piaf, piano arrangements of songs by Francis Poulenc and Edith Piaf on the Steinway Label.

His programme in PE will include some of the latter.

The concert starts at 7.30pm and tickets will be on sale at the door at R95, while pensioners pay R85 and students and school pupils R40 and R35 respectively.

Inquiries: Theresa Cunliffe on (041) 504-2250 or e-mail: Theresa.Cunliffe@mandela.ac.za