Giovanni Allevi
Encyclopedia
Giovanni Allevi is an Italian
pianist
and composer.
at the "F. Morlacchi"'s conservatoire in Perugia
and in composition at the "G. Verdi" academy of music in Milan
.
He got a degree cum laude in Philosophy
with the thesis entitled "Il vuoto nella Fisica contemporanea" (The Void in Contemporary Physics) and he attended the Accademia Internazionale di Alto Perfezionamento in Arezzo
, under the leadership of maestro Carlo Alberto Neri.
In 1991 he did military service in the Banda Nazionale of the Italian Army
. The master of the band
noticed his piano talent and so he decided to put the piano soloist in his inventory. He played the Rhapsody in blue by George Gershwin
and the Warsaw Concerto by Richard Addinsell
in his capacity as piano soloist of the Banda, during a tour in a lot of Italian theatres.
At the end of the military service, Allevi started presenting in concert a repertory formed exclusively by his own compositions for pianoforte solo and at the same time attended the courses of "Bio-music and music therapy
" by professor Mario Corradini, in which he enhanced his awareness of music's great power of setting minds free and of evoking memories, images and emotions.
In 1996 he set to music the tragedy The Trojan Women
by Euripides
, represented on the occasion of the International Festival of the Ancient Drama in Siracusa, winning the special prize for the best scene musics.
In 1997 he won the international selections for young concertists at the San Filippo Theatre in Turin
.
, who in 1997, under his label Soleluna and together with Universal Italia, decides to publish Allevi's first album, by the title of 13 Dita
(13 Fingers) and produced by Saturnino.
He also provided the music at the opening ceremony of the 2009 World Aquatics Championships
in Rome
.
As a result of Allevi's encounter with Saturnino and Jovanotti, he faces the large audiences of modern rock
concerts: Allevi opens, with his piano alone, Jovanotti's concerts during the tour L'Albero, executing a few tracks from 13 Dita
.
In 1998, again with Saturnino as the producer, Allevi creates the soundtrack
for the short film Venceremos
, awarded at the Sundance Film Festival
, a film festival
that takes place annually in the state of Utah
, in the United States
.
, the president of the Republic, and other high-ranking State officers. Along with two pieces by Giacomo Puccini
, five composition by Allevi himself were played. The concert was broadcast live on RAI1
, the main national television channel, establishing his fame and success in the national music scene.
strongly criticized the artist in an article that appeared on the newspaper La Stampa
. Ughi clearly felt "offended as a musician" and declared "Allevi's success is the triumph of relativism".
Allevi retorted later in the same newspaper, accusing Ughi of "defending the caste", adding: "my music speaks to people's hearts but its technical and rhythmical virtuosity requires highly-talented performers". He noted that "in music it has always been difficult for new ideas to gain a hold, but later on they became the rule to follow".
Allevi is often accused of being simply a mass media phenomenon, nothing but the "result of a marketing strategy", as Piero Maranghi, director of Classica, a television channel fully dedicated to classical music, said. Marcello Filotei, journalist at the Osservatore Romano, a newspaper, notes that "Allevi is the stereotyped representation of the composer, as anybody not familiar with concert halls expects him to be".
Allevi is also criticized for his conceit (he defines his music as a "visionary project" for "establishing the basis for a new cultured contemporary music").
Other musicians plead Allevi's cause, recalling that "his success gave a new birth to piano, and encouraged many young to take piano lessons. In this debates I see only envy" as the pianist Nazzareno Carusi said to Panorama
, a magazine.
Italian piano player Loredana Brigandi' has also been a highly outspoken critic of the artist.
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
pianist
Pianist
A pianist is a musician who plays the piano. A professional pianist can perform solo pieces, play with an ensemble or orchestra, or accompany one or more singers, solo instrumentalists, or other performers.-Choice of genres:...
and composer.
Education
Allevi attained a first-class diploma both in pianoPiano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
at the "F. Morlacchi"'s conservatoire in Perugia
Perugia
Perugia is the capital city of the region of Umbria in central Italy, near the River Tiber, and the capital of the province of Perugia. The city is located about north of Rome. It covers a high hilltop and part of the valleys around the area....
and in composition at the "G. Verdi" academy of music in Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
.
He got a degree cum laude in Philosophy
Philosophy
Philosophy is the study of general and fundamental problems, such as those connected with existence, knowledge, values, reason, mind, and language. Philosophy is distinguished from other ways of addressing such problems by its critical, generally systematic approach and its reliance on rational...
with the thesis entitled "Il vuoto nella Fisica contemporanea" (The Void in Contemporary Physics) and he attended the Accademia Internazionale di Alto Perfezionamento in Arezzo
Arezzo
Arezzo is a city and comune in Central Italy, capital of the province of the same name, located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about 80 km southeast of Florence, at an elevation of 296 m above sea level. In 2011 the population was about 100,000....
, under the leadership of maestro Carlo Alberto Neri.
In 1991 he did military service in the Banda Nazionale of the Italian Army
Italian Army
The Italian Army is the ground defence force of the Italian Armed Forces. It is all-volunteer force of active-duty personnel, numbering 108,355 in 2010. Its best-known combat vehicles are the Dardo infantry fighting vehicle, the Centauro tank destroyer and the Ariete tank, and among its aircraft...
. The master of the band
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
noticed his piano talent and so he decided to put the piano soloist in his inventory. He played the Rhapsody in blue by George Gershwin
George Gershwin
George Gershwin was an American composer and pianist. Gershwin's compositions spanned both popular and classical genres, and his most popular melodies are widely known...
and the Warsaw Concerto by Richard Addinsell
Richard Addinsell
Richard Stewart Addinsell was a British composer, best known for film music, primarily his Warsaw Concerto, composed for the 1941 film Dangerous Moonlight .-Life:...
in his capacity as piano soloist of the Banda, during a tour in a lot of Italian theatres.
At the end of the military service, Allevi started presenting in concert a repertory formed exclusively by his own compositions for pianoforte solo and at the same time attended the courses of "Bio-music and music therapy
Music therapy
Music therapy is an allied health profession and one of the expressive therapies, consisting of an interpersonal process in which a trained music therapist uses music and all of its facets—physical, emotional, mental, social, aesthetic, and spiritual—to help clients to improve or maintain their...
" by professor Mario Corradini, in which he enhanced his awareness of music's great power of setting minds free and of evoking memories, images and emotions.
In 1996 he set to music the tragedy The Trojan Women
The Trojan Women
The Trojan Women is a tragedy by the Greek playwright Euripides. Produced during the Peloponnesian War, it is often considered a commentary on the capture of the Aegean island of Melos and the subsequent slaughter and subjugation of its populace by the Athenians earlier in 415 BC , the same year...
by Euripides
Euripides
Euripides was one of the three great tragedians of classical Athens, the other two being Aeschylus and Sophocles. Some ancient scholars attributed ninety-five plays to him but according to the Suda it was ninety-two at most...
, represented on the occasion of the International Festival of the Ancient Drama in Siracusa, winning the special prize for the best scene musics.
In 1997 he won the international selections for young concertists at the San Filippo Theatre in Turin
Turin
Turin is a city and major business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region, located mainly on the left bank of the Po River and surrounded by the Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 909,193 while the population of the urban area is estimated by Eurostat...
.
Encountering Saturnino and Jovanotti
Thanks to Saturnino, Giovanni Allevi matures the idea of moving to Milan and to gather into one CD his own piano production; this work is picked up by Lorenzo Cherubini, stage name JovanottiJovanotti
Lorenzo Cherubini, better known as Jovanotti, is an Italian singer-songwriter and rapper.The name Jovanotti derives from the plural form of the Italian word giovanotto , i.e. giovanotti. Lorenzo Cherubini originally auditioned a band with the name "I Giovanotti", but the record producer only was...
, who in 1997, under his label Soleluna and together with Universal Italia, decides to publish Allevi's first album, by the title of 13 Dita
13 Dita
13 dita is the first solo album by Italian pianist Giovanni Allevi, released in 1997 by Soleluna Records.-Track listing:# Il nuotatore – 3:15# Parole – 3:17# Cassetto – 5:46# Scherzo n°1 – 4:22# Room 108 – 3:10...
(13 Fingers) and produced by Saturnino.
He also provided the music at the opening ceremony of the 2009 World Aquatics Championships
2009 World Aquatics Championships
The 2009 World Aquatics Championships or the XIII FINA World Championships were celebrated in Rome, Italy in 2009 from July 17 to August 2. The 2009 Championships featured competition in all 5 aquatics disciplines: diving, swimming, open water swimming, synchronized swimming and water polo.Rome won...
in Rome
Rome
Rome is the capital of Italy and the country's largest and most populated city and comune, with over 2.7 million residents in . The city is located in the central-western portion of the Italian Peninsula, on the Tiber River within the Lazio region of Italy.Rome's history spans two and a half...
.
As a result of Allevi's encounter with Saturnino and Jovanotti, he faces the large audiences of modern rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
concerts: Allevi opens, with his piano alone, Jovanotti's concerts during the tour L'Albero, executing a few tracks from 13 Dita
13 Dita
13 dita is the first solo album by Italian pianist Giovanni Allevi, released in 1997 by Soleluna Records.-Track listing:# Il nuotatore – 3:15# Parole – 3:17# Cassetto – 5:46# Scherzo n°1 – 4:22# Room 108 – 3:10...
.
In 1998, again with Saturnino as the producer, Allevi creates the soundtrack
Soundtrack
A soundtrack can be recorded music accompanying and synchronized to the images of a motion picture, book, television program or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack of a film or TV show; or the physical area of a film that contains the...
for the short film Venceremos
Venceremos
Venceremos is a Spanish and Portuguese word meaning "we will overcome", or "we will win".The word can also refer to:* Venceremos, a battle cry and the name of a few republican newspapers during the Spanish Civil War...
, awarded at the Sundance Film Festival
Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is a film festival that takes place annually in Utah, in the United States. It is the largest independent cinema festival in the United States. Held in January in Park City, Salt Lake City, and Ogden, as well as at the Sundance Resort, the festival is a showcase for new...
, a film festival
Film festival
A film festival is an organised, extended presentation of films in one or more movie theaters or screening venues, usually in a single locality. More and more often film festivals show part of their films to the public by adding outdoor movie screenings...
that takes place annually in the state of Utah
Utah
Utah is a state in the Western United States. It was the 45th state to join the Union, on January 4, 1896. Approximately 80% of Utah's 2,763,885 people live along the Wasatch Front, centering on Salt Lake City. This leaves vast expanses of the state nearly uninhabited, making the population the...
, in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Non-piano work
Giovanni Allevi has written some non-piano works, in addition to his piano compositions, which are mostly unpublished. The most important are:- Inno delle Marche (Hymn of the MarcheMarcheThe population density in the region is below the national average. In 2008, it was 161.5 inhabitants per km2, compared to the national figure of 198.8. It is highest in the province of Ancona , and lowest in the province of Macerata...
regionRegions of ItalyThe regions of Italy are the first-level administrative divisions of the state, constituting its first NUTS administrative level. There are twenty regions, of which five are constitutionally given a broader amount of autonomy granted by special statutes....
) - Orchestral work for the Marche Italian region, commissioned in occasion of a youths meeting promoted by the Italian Churc in Loreto (2007). - Angelo Ribelle (Rebel Angel) - Suite for string orchestra, written in five movements. The premiere was executed by the Virtuosi Italiani orchestra on the 9 March 2007, at the Teatro nuovo in VeronaVeronaVerona ; German Bern, Dietrichsbern or Welschbern) is a city in the Veneto, northern Italy, with approx. 265,000 inhabitants and one of the seven chef-lieus of the region. It is the second largest city municipality in the region and the third of North-Eastern Italy. The metropolitan area of Verona...
, under the conduction of Allevi. It was published in his 2008 album Evolution. - 300 Anelli (300 Rings)- Work for piano and orchestra (strings, winds and harp) composed in two movements (the first without the piano). The premiere was executed on the 4 August 2007 for the "I suoni delle Dolomiti" season, by the Virtuosi Italiani orchestra with Allevi on the piano and conductor. It was published in Evolution.
- Foglie di Beslan (BeslanBeslanBeslan is a town and the administrative center of Pravoberezhny District of the Republic of North Ossetia–Alania, Russia. In terms of population, Beslan is the third largest town in the republic behind Vladikavkaz and Mozdok...
's leaves - Work for piano and symphony orchestra written to commemorate the Beslan massacreBeslan school hostage crisisThe Beslan school hostage crisis of early September 2004 was a three-day hostage-taking of over 1,100 people which ended in the deaths of over 380...
. The premiere was executed on the 29 April 2005 at the Metropolitan theatre in PalermoPalermoPalermo is a city in Southern Italy, the capital of both the autonomous region of Sicily and the Province of Palermo. The city is noted for its history, culture, architecture and gastronomy, playing an important role throughout much of its existence; it is over 2,700 years old...
, by Allevi himself at the piano with the Orchestra sinfonica Siciliana directed by Daniel Kawka. It was published as first track of the album Evolution. - Sparpagghiò - Musical comedy for orchestra (22 players) and choir, under the direction of Gianni Lattanzi. The first execution was held on the 9 February 2001 at the Ventidio Basso theatre in Ascoli PicenoAscoli PicenoAscoli Piceno is a town and comune in the Marche region of Italy, capital of the province of the same name. Its population is c. 51,400.-Geography:...
. The orchestra was directed by Allevi himself.
The concert at the Senate
On December 21, 2008 Allevi directed "I virtuosi Italiani" symphony orchestra at the Christmas concert at Senate House. The audience included the likes of Giorgio NapolitanoGiorgio Napolitano
Giorgio Napolitano is an Italian politician who has been the 11th President of Italy since 2006. A long-time member of the Italian Communist Party and later the Democrats of the Left, he served as President of the Chamber of Deputies from 1992 to 1994 and as Minister of the Interior from 1996 to...
, the president of the Republic, and other high-ranking State officers. Along with two pieces by Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Puccini
Giacomo Antonio Domenico Michele Secondo Maria Puccini was an Italian composer whose operas, including La bohème, Tosca, Madama Butterfly, and Turandot, are among the most frequently performed in the standard repertoire...
, five composition by Allevi himself were played. The concert was broadcast live on RAI1
RAI1
RAI1 is a transcription factor associated with Smith-Magenis syndrome. It is known as retinoic acid induced 1.-External links:*...
, the main national television channel, establishing his fame and success in the national music scene.
Criticism
The concert at the Senate hall inspired a strong debate on Allevi's actual talent: the celebrated violinist Uto UghiUto Ughi
Diodato "Uto" Ughi is an Italian violinist and conductor. He was the music director of l'Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia from 1992-1997...
strongly criticized the artist in an article that appeared on the newspaper La Stampa
La Stampa
La Stampa is one of the best-known, most influential and most widely sold Italian daily newspapers. Published in Turin, it is distributed in Italy and other European nations. The current owner is the Fiat Group.-History:...
. Ughi clearly felt "offended as a musician" and declared "Allevi's success is the triumph of relativism".
Allevi retorted later in the same newspaper, accusing Ughi of "defending the caste", adding: "my music speaks to people's hearts but its technical and rhythmical virtuosity requires highly-talented performers". He noted that "in music it has always been difficult for new ideas to gain a hold, but later on they became the rule to follow".
Allevi is often accused of being simply a mass media phenomenon, nothing but the "result of a marketing strategy", as Piero Maranghi, director of Classica, a television channel fully dedicated to classical music, said. Marcello Filotei, journalist at the Osservatore Romano, a newspaper, notes that "Allevi is the stereotyped representation of the composer, as anybody not familiar with concert halls expects him to be".
Allevi is also criticized for his conceit (he defines his music as a "visionary project" for "establishing the basis for a new cultured contemporary music").
Other musicians plead Allevi's cause, recalling that "his success gave a new birth to piano, and encouraged many young to take piano lessons. In this debates I see only envy" as the pianist Nazzareno Carusi said to Panorama
Panorama
A panorama is any wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography, film/video, or a three-dimensional model....
, a magazine.
Italian piano player Loredana Brigandi' has also been a highly outspoken critic of the artist.
Books
La Musica in Testa - His first book that has been published on March 5, 2008. It's a diary which collects his thoughts, his experiences and the ancdotes until his success.Studio albums/CD
- 13 Dita13 Dita13 dita is the first solo album by Italian pianist Giovanni Allevi, released in 1997 by Soleluna Records.-Track listing:# Il nuotatore – 3:15# Parole – 3:17# Cassetto – 5:46# Scherzo n°1 – 4:22# Room 108 – 3:10...
(1997) - ComposizioniComposizioni (album)Composizioni is the second solo album by pianist Giovanni Allevi. The musician performed Piano Karate at the 59th Festival della canzone italiana.-Track listing:# L'idea - 2:29# Luna - 3:14# Le sole notizie che ho - 3:04# Incontro - 4:10...
(2003) - No concept (2005)
- Joy (2006)
- Evolution (June 13, 2008)
- Alien (September 28, 2010)
Concerts/DVD
- Joy tour 2007 (2007)
- Allevi & All Star Orchestra Arena di Verona (2009)
Musical editions
- No Concept, piano score, CarischCarischCarish is an Italian music publishing house, founded in Milan in 1887 by the Swiss, G.A. Carish. Initially dealling with the sale of musical instruments and music manuscripts, it became a music publishing concern in 1894. Ownership passed down to various members of the Carish family and the firm...
, Milano 2006, ISBN 978-88-50709-59-5 - Joy, piano score, CarischCarischCarish is an Italian music publishing house, founded in Milan in 1887 by the Swiss, G.A. Carish. Initially dealling with the sale of musical instruments and music manuscripts, it became a music publishing concern in 1894. Ownership passed down to various members of the Carish family and the firm...
, Milano 2007, ISBN 978-88-50711-43-7 - Pianoforte a quattro mani, four-hands piano score, CarischCarischCarish is an Italian music publishing house, founded in Milan in 1887 by the Swiss, G.A. Carish. Initially dealling with the sale of musical instruments and music manuscripts, it became a music publishing concern in 1894. Ownership passed down to various members of the Carish family and the firm...
, Milano 2008, ISBN 978-88-50712-76-2 (it contains the transcription of the following pieces for the four-hands piano: Back to life, Come sei veramente, Vento d'Europa, Jazzmatic)