From Italy With Love | Musica Viva!

Born in 1995 in Altamura (Bari), Southern Italy, Leonardo Colafelice is a concert pianist of the greatest degree. In August 2016, he was awarded Second Prize in the prestigious Cleveland International Piano Competition and also received 3 special awards: Audience Prize, Best Performance of a Russian Piece, and The Junior Jury Prize. Most recently in January 2020, Leonardo won the 3rd prize Bronze Medal and the Audience Favorite Award at The Gurwitz International Piano Competition in San Antonio (Texas, USA). He has also been recognized as “Emissary of the Muse” by the current mayor of San Antonio Ron Nirenberg. In May 2019, Leonardo was also one of the 6 finalists during the first edition of the “China International Music Competition” in Beijing.

Prior to this, Leonardo has been awarded with several international prizes: in May 2014 as a young 18- year old, Leonardo Colafelice was one of the six finalists in the “Arthur Rubinstein International Piano Master Competition” in Tel Aviv. At the end of the competition, he also received three important special prizes: Best Performer of a Classical Concerto, Best Performer of a Chopin Composition, and finally, Most Outstanding Pianist up to 22 Years of Age. Also in October 2014, he was awarded the “A. B. Michelangeli” prize from the city of Eppan in Northern Italy.

Between 2012 and 2013, he won several important international awards: Gold Medal at the “Gina Bachauer Young Artists International Piano Competition” in Salt Lake City (USA); First Prize at the “Thomas & Evon Cooper International Competition” in Oberlin and Cleveland (USA); Gold Medal at the “Eastman Young Artists International Piano Competition” in Rochester (USA); all in 2012. In 2013, he was awarded: Gold Medal at the “Yamaha USASU International Piano Competition” in Arizona, where Martha Argerich herself personally handed him his Award; First Prize at the “Aarhus Competition” in Denmark; and finally, First Prize at the “Hilton Head Competition” in South Carolina (USA).

He was also the First Prize winner at many other international piano competitions including:”The Young Pianists of the North International Piano Competition” in Newcastle (UK); “The International Fryderyk Chopin Piano Competition for Young Artists” in Szafarnia (Poland); “The Concours Musical de France” in Paris; “The International Tournament of Music” (TIM) in Verona (Italy); and “The Premio Città di Padova” in Padua (Italy).

Colafelice is regularly invited to play in the principal Italian cities including Milano, Turin, Roma, Bologna, Messina, Palermo, Catania, Bari, Padova, Venezia, Verona, Caserta, etc., as well as abroad in various venues in the United States, Canada, France, Germany, United Kingdom, Denmark, Switzerland, Poland, Hungary, Israel, Morocco, Turkey, Norway, Chile, and Georgia. He has performed with numerous and prestigious orchestras like: The Cleveland Orchestra, The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra, The Toledo Symphony Orchestra, The Aarhus Symphony Orchestra, The Kristiansand Symphony Orchestra, The Chile Symphony Orchestra, The Morocco Philharmonic Orchestra, The Orchestra dei Pomeriggi Musicali, The Orchestra di Padova e del Veneto and many more.

Leonardo is also currently Piano Professor at the renowned “Niccolò Piccinni Conservatory of Music” in Bari, in which Leonardo was graduated in 2014 as a pupil of Pasquale Iannone.

https://www.leonardocolafelice.com/