CRISTIANA PEGORARO, PIANIST
RECIPIENT OF THE “2007 SEBETIA-TER PRESIDENT OF ITALY” AWARD

Acclaimed as one of the most gifted musicians of her generation, Italian-born pianist Cristiana Pegoraro has consistently entertained and enlightened audiences with her inspired performances and original programming.

Her numerous awards and prizes include the Città di Senigallia, Città di Marsala, Domenico Scarlatti (Naples) and Artists International Special Presentation Debut Award (New York). In Prague she won the 1989 Best of the Year for Classical Music Award "for her great
personality, strong musical temperament, mastery of phrasing and expressive artistry." The New York Times called her "an artist of the highest caliber" following her stunning 1996 debut at Lincoln Center's Alice Tully Hall.

Ms. Pegoraro has performed in some of the greatest concert halls in Europe, United States, South America, Asia and Australia, including Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, the United Nations and the Guggenheim Museum (New York); the Sydney Opera House; Grosses Saal, Festspielhaus (Salzburg); Bösendorfer Saal (Vienna); Centro Cultural de Belem (Lisbon); Auditorium Parco della Musica - Santa Cecilia Hall, Sinopoli Hall, Petrassi Hall, Casa del Jazz (Rome); Serate Musicali (Milan); Theatro Municipal (São Paulo); Theatro Municipal (Rio de Janeiro), and the Opera House (Manaus). She also performed at the Budapest Spring Festival, the Saint Petersburg Festival, the Edinburgh Festival, the Sorrento Jazz Festival, the Orestiadi in Gibellina (Sicily), the Klavierfestival Ruhr – Germany, the Shabyt Festival in Astana - Kazakhstan and at the 2005 World Expo in Aichi – Japan, among others. In December 2006 and November 2007 she toured the Gulf Countries, becoming the first Italian female pianist to perform classical concerts in Bahrain, Yemen and Oman. On November 15th, 2003, she played for the President of Italy, Mr. Carlo Azeglio Ciampi. Later that same month, on the occasion of the Italian Presidency of the European Council, she performed in her eighth (sold out) concert at Lincoln Center in the presence of the President of the General Assembly of the United Nations. On June 13th, 2006, at the United Nations Headquarters, she played for Her Royal Highness the Grand Duchess Maria Teresa of Luxembourg.

Hailed by the critics as among the best interpreters of Cuban and South American music, Ms. Pegoraro has premiered the works of Latin-American composers such as Astor Piazzolla, Joaquin Nin and Ernesto Lecuona to European audiences. Recently, she also has arranged for solo piano some of their great works including the best tangos of Astor Piazzolla and a Fantasy on Cuban dances by Ernesto Lecuona.

She has been a featured artist on radio and television, on WQXR New York (USA), RAI, Mediaset (Italy), the BBC (Scotland), ARD (Germany), RTP (Portugal), Nine Network (Australia) and CBC (Japan). Her piano artistry can be heard on twenty-two compact discs released by Decision Products, Dynamic, Nuova Era, and her own DIVA label.

Recently, Cristiana has taken up the challenge of composition, releasing three highly acclaimed albums “A Musical Journey”, “Ithaka” and "La mia Umbria." She also composed the sound track for the videopoem "For Whom The Sirens Toll," produced by the United Nations Office of the Special Representative for Children and Armed Conflict and presented at the United Nations on September 11th, 2004, in remembrance of the terrorist attack victims.

Ms. Pegoraro graduated with highest honors from the Conservatory of Terni, Italy, at the age of sixteen. She continued her studies with Jörg Demus in Vienna and Hans Leygraf at the Mozarteum in Salzburg and the Hochschule der Künste in Berlin. She later studied with Nina Svetlanova at the Manhattan School of Music in New York City.

Cristiana has been invited for master classes at universities and colleges in the United States (Juilliard School – New York, Pennsylvania, New Jersey, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Oregon, Washington, South Dakota), as well as in Italy, Portugal, Kazakhstan, Kuwait, Bahrain and Oman. She is the author of a series of children’s books based on Italian operas.

In the recent years Cristiana has been collaborating with world peace organizations such as Unicef, Amnesty International, the World Food Programme and Emergency supporting their campaigns to improve the life of less fortunate people around the world.

On October 30th, 2005, at her 10th sold out concert at Lincoln Center, she was honored with the Circolo Culturale Italiano of the United Nations World Peace Award for her support to the cause of advancing peace in the world.

On May 26, 2007, in Naples, Cristiana received the “Sebetia-Ter President of Italy” Award in recognitions for her achievements as a performer and composer. The 2007 classical music winners are Cristiana Pegoraro and Claudio Abbado.

On October 7, 2007, at her concert at the Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome, she was honored with the title of Ambassador of the Right to Music.

Ms. Pegoraro graduated with highest honors from the Conservatory of Terni, Italy, at the age of sixteen. She continued her studies with Jörg Demus in Vienna and Hans Leygraf at the Mozarteum in Salzburg and the Hochschule der Künste in Berlin. She later studied with Nina Svetlanova at the Manhattan School of Music in New York City.