“Pianista di rara intelligenza…che sprizza salute e ottimismo…la tastiera di De Simone si è fatta bella dei colori più accesi, un vero organo a corde…” (“Pianist of rare intelligence…that radiates health and optimism…. the keyboard of De Simone has made the beautiful vibrant colors, a true organ chords … “)Il Giornale dell’Umbria- Stefano Ragni
“Sergio is a born artist and musicians capable of holding the listener’s attention thanks to his very peronal and creative musical imagination….” (J. Achucarro)
“Sein pianisticher und musikalicher Horizont ist weit gestreckt…” His musical and pianistic horizont extends widely” (A. Lonquinch)
Laureate of numerous international piano and chamber music competitions, Sergio has performed extensively as a soloist and chamber musician in Italy, Spain, France, Slovenia, Croatia, Hungary, Argentina, Brazil, Chile and USA for prestigious concert societies such as La Società dei Concerti in Milan, Amici della Musica in Florence, Sagra Musicale Umbra, Verdi Theater in Pisa, Metastasio Theatre in Prato, Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Amici del Teatro Comunale of Florence, Amici del Conservatorio of Parma, Biennale Musica of Venice, Harris Auditorium in Memphis, TN (USA), Caruth Auditorium in Dallas TX (USA),International Music Festival in Torroella de Montgrì-Barcelona, Mills College Hall in Oakland, CA (USA), Chigiana Academy in Sienna, Settimana Musicale Chigiana, “Valli” Theatre in Reggio Emilia, “Bellini” Theatre in Catania, Winter Festival in Sarajevo, Tartini Atelier in Ljubljana, and the National Theatre in Sarajevo.
He has performed as a soloist with orchestras such as the Romanian State Orchestra, Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto, Meadows Symphony Orchestra, Camerata Strumentale-Città di Prato, Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana, Sarajevo Philarmonic Orchestra , the “Solisti di Città Lirica Orchestra” of Pisa, Intersezioni Festival Orchestra, Cesena Conservatory Orchestra, and the Cherubini Conservatory Orchestra, conducted by Jonathan Webb, Anton Nanut, Paul Philips, Alessandro Pinzauti, Augusto Vismara, Giovanni Bartoli, Giuseppe Camerlingo, Daniele Giorgi, Mauro Bonifacio, Samra Gulamovic and Andrea Fornaciari amongst others. His repertoire includes Piano Concertos by Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, Brahms, Ravel, Grieg, Shostakovic, Chopin and Tchaikovsky.
His chamber music repertoire is vast and ranges from duo to quintet. Amongst his chamber music partners appear violinist Violeta Smailovic (with whom he recorded the Franck and Prokofiev Violin and Piano Sonatas), the flautist Francesco Loi (principal flute of Orchestra del Carlo Felice-Genova), cellist Ilaria Maurri, violinist Paolo Chiavacci, violist Wladimir Kosianejko, cellist Yevgeniy Xaviereff, the Quartetto Fonè, and the Mirò Wind Quintet. He has recently performed the complete Brahms Piano Quartets and Quintet in several cities in Italy with the Quartetto Foné (Italy’s foremost string quartet) and the complete Beethoven Violin and Piano Sonatas with violinist Paolo Chiavacci.
Since the year 2000 he has dedicated part of his activity to contemporary music and since 2001 has frequently collaborated as solo pianist of the ContempoArtEnsemble, with whom he has premiered numerous compositions of prominent composers such as Salvatore Sciarrino, Adriano Guarnieri, Maxwell Davies, Sylvano Bussotti and others. He continues to enrich his repertoire each year with numerous compositions for solo piano as well as various chamber formations.
Since 1995 he has been Assistant Pianist for many Master Classes given by musicians such as Shlomo Mintz, Y. Bashmet, V. Tretiakov, M. Brunello, E. Chugaeva, M. Larrieu, K. Leister, R. Stoltzman, A. Carbonare, M. Stokhausen, I. Gavric, H. Shapiro, K. Blacher, S. Burns and others.
He has been “pianist in residence” at the Chigiana Academy in Siena since 2000 for the Composition Summer Course given by Azio Corghi and the Film Music Course given by Academy Award winner Luis Bacalov.
Born in Florence, Italy, Sergio De Simone graduated from the “Arrigo Boito” Conservatory of Music in Parma with full marks, summa cum laude and honourable mention. Simultaneously he pursued studies in Philosophy and Aesthetics at the University of Florence. He has attented master classes with Murray Perahia, Aldo Ciccolini, Philippe Cassard, Bruno Canino, Alessandro Specchi, Pier Narciso Masi and Christopher Elton. His musical development was deeply influenced by the cellist of the Quartetto Italiano, M° Franco Rossi (with whom he studied chamber music) and by Joaquin Achucarro with whom he studied at the Chigiana Academy in Sienna, (where he was awarded the Diploma of Merit as well the Guido Agosti, SIAE, and the E. Contestabile scholarships) and at Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX (USA).
Since 1998 De Simone has taught Piano at the Music School of Sesto Fiorentino(FI), of which he is also Director, and is also Professor of Piano since 2009 at the “Gesualdo da Venosa” Conservatory in Potenza. He has been Professor of Piano at the “Santa Cecilia” Conservatory in Rome and “G.B. Martini” Conservatory in Bologna. Sergio has been invited to give Piano and Chamber Music Master Classes and Summer Courses by the Split Music Academy (Croatia), Music Academy of Sarajevo (Bosnia), Perugia Music Fest (Perugia, Italy), “Soggiorni Musicali al Castello di Galeazza” (Bologna, Italy), “Roncofreddo in Musica” (Cesena, Italy), “Musica e Mare” (Marina di Pietrasanta, Italy) and Umjetnička škola Luke Sorkočevića Dubrovnik (Croatia). In September of 2012, during his USA concert Tour, he will be giving master classes in several American Universities.
Sergio is founder and Artistic Director of “Intersezioni”, a chamber music festival in the historical villas of Florence and its surrounding area.
