Recital: Nicolas Ventura – piano

The Programme

Nicolas Ventura – piano

Sonata No 4, Op 29
I. Allegro molto sostenuto
II. Andante assai
III. Allegro con brio, ma non leggiero

Old Grandmother’s Tales, Op 31
I. Moderato
II. Andantino
III. Andante assai
IV. Sostenuto

Islamey Oriental Fantasy, Op 18

The Artist

Praised for his ‘limitless palette of colours’ and ‘technical mastery and authority’, Nicolas Ventura has played extensively throughout Europe and the UK. His appearances as soloist and with orchestra include such venues as the Jacqueline Du Pré Music Building in Oxford, Wigmore Hall, the Brazilian Embassy in London, Palau de la Musica in Barcelona, Fazioli Concert Hall, Teatro la Fenice in Venice, TeatroManzoni in Pistoia, Sölitar at Mozarteum in Salzburg, Florianka Concert Hall in Kraków and Danube Palace in Budapest. Nicolas has performed and collaborated with distinguished musicians including members of the New York Philharmonic, and recently performed Beethoven, Liszt and Rachmaninov with the Orchestra Sinfonica di Chioggia, the Philharmonic Orchestra of Bacau and the Danube Symphony Orchestra.

Nicolas has been the recipient of many awards including the Sir Reginald Thatcher Prize, Franz Simmons Prize, the Goetze Bequest Award and the Royal Academy of Music Diploma for an outstanding performance in his final recital. In 2023, he won the Oleg Prokofiev Award from the Oleg Prokofiev Trust for his work on the composer’s music.

Born in Carrara, the city of marble in Tuscany, Nicolas studied with Konstantin Bogino and Tatiana Sarkissova. He graduated with highest honours and a special mention from the Conservatorio Cesare Pollini of Padua, plus a First Class degree from the Royal Academy of Music and an Artist Diploma from the Royal College of Music, under the guidance of Dina Parakhina.

Nicolas has been inspired and influenced by such artists as Boris Berman, Benedetto Lupo, Anna Malikova, Håkon Autsbo, Imogen Cooper, Dmitri Alexeev, Marios Papadopoulos, Piotr Palecny, Vanessa Latarche, Pavel Gililov, Roberto Prosseda and Arie Vardi. For the coming season, Nicolas is excited to have successfully auditioned for the Manchester Mid-day Concerts Society and will debut in Manchester at The Bridgewater Hall. Moreover, 2024 will see the release of his first commercial recording devoted to the piano music of Prokofiev and Bloch, containing his original piano transcription of the Scythian Suite, Op 20.