The pianists taking part in the Amici della Musica di Firenze event are Chiara Bleve, Pierpaolo Buggiani, Pietro Fresa, Andrea Jermini, Giorgio Lazzari, Edoardo Mancini, Wataru Mashimo, Leonardo Merlini, Ot Ortega Travé, Marco Ottaviani, Kristina Papiieva and Matteo Weber. The musical programmes are currently being finalised.
For more than seventy years, the Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition has been a catalyst for discovering musicians who have gone on to become leading figures in the piano world. In 2026, the Bolzano-based institution begins a new two-year cycle, once again taking its first stage onto the global scene through the evolving format of the new Glocal Piano Festival, fully integrated into renowned concert seasons in ten cities across Europe, Asia and North America, including Amici della Musica di Firenze.
The hybrid preselection model has proved to be a valuable alternative to holding every stage of the competition in Bolzano, allowing the event to reach a wider international audience. Now, in the pioneering spirit of its founder, the competition’s preselection phase takes the form of a worldwide festival, a long journey through piano marathons organised in collaboration with leading partners including the Wiener Konzerthaus, Amici della Musica di Firenze in Florence, Parco della Musica with the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, the Miami Piano Festival, Seoul Arts Center, Shanghai Symphony Hall, Toppan Hall and Salle Cortot.
The Glocal Piano Festival celebrates the individuality of each of its 120 pianists by giving them complete freedom in their choice of repertoire, making every event a glimpse into the future of music.
The audience plays a central role. Rather than simply attending the events of this international festival, audiences actively participate in the selection process for one of the finalists.
The Glocal Piano Festival’s long journey will conclude in Bolzano on August 25, 2027, when the curtain rises on the solo and chamber music rounds and the Final of the Ferruccio Busoni International Piano Competition.
In the spirit of its founder, Ferruccio Busoni, the competition reaffirms a transnational and inclusive vision. Selected on stages across three continents, the musicians are citizens of the world, and this will be their only geographical identity when they take the stage.
Audiences everywhere are invited to experience the extraordinary artistic and technical brilliance of a new generation of outstanding pianists.
