Roberto Piana - Silesu: Romance sans paroles (2014)

As a pianist and composer, Roberto Piana promotes the music of his native Italy, particularly through performances of the neglected piano works of Giulio Ricordi and Lao Silésu, as well as in his own keyboard arrangements of Neapolitan songs. Born in Sassari on the island of Sardinia in 1971, Piana studied primarily with Isabella Lo Porto at the Luigi Canepa Conservatory in Sassari, where he graduated with honors. He participated in piano and composition competitions, such as the Borgo Cortello-Udine International Competition, the Silenzio Musica Composition Competition, the Concorso Nestore Baronchelli, and the International Competition "Libertango." As a pianist, Piana has performed in Paris, Turin, Milan, Padua, Stuttgart, St. Petersburg, and Moscow, among many other cities across Europe, and he has maintained a large repertoire that ranges from the Classical to contemporary music. His compositions and arrangements have been performed in Italy, the United States, Russia, Japan, England, South Africa, and Israel. He has focused on researching and publishing the music of Sardinian composer Lao Silésu. Piana teaches at the Conservatory in Sassari, and he has given master classes in Italy and Russia. His arrangements of Neapolitan songs have been performed by Antonio Pompa-Baldi on the album Napoli, which was released in 2018 on the Steinway & Sons label. ~ Blair Sanderson