© Kate Kondratieva
Federico Colli
Praised by The Daily Telegraph for “his beautifully light touch and lyrical grace” and called by Gramophone “one of the more original thinkers of his generation”, Federico Colli has gained worldwide recognition for his unconventional interpretations and philosophical approach to music making, in addition to clarity of sound and refined musical sensitivity.
The first release of Sonatas by Domenico Scarlatti, recorded on Chandos Records for whom he is an exclusive recording artist, was awarded “Recording of the Year” by Presto Classical. The second volume of Scarlatti’s Sonatas was named “Recording of the Month” by both BBC Music Magazine and International Piano Magazine and it has been chosen by BBC Music Magazine as "one of the best classical albums released in 2020".
Following the 1st Prize at the Salzburg Mozart Competition in 2011 and the Gold Medal at the Leeds International Piano Competition in 2012, the International Piano Magazine selected him "as one of the 30 pianists under 30 who are likely to dominate the world stage in years to come".
Since then, he has performed with renowned Orchestras including the Mariinsky and St Petersburg Philharmonic, London Philharmonia, Royal Philharmonic, BBC Symphony and BBC Philharmonic, Royal Liverpool Philharmonic, RTÉ National Symphony, Royal Scottish National, Vienna Chamber, Royal Stockholm Philharmonic, Orchestra Arena di Verona, Accademia Nazionale di S. Cecilia and Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI, Armenian State Symphony, Estonian National Symphony, Klassische Philharmonie Bonn and Hamburger Symphoniker, Polish National Radio Symphony, National Philharmonic of Ukraine, National Symphony of Uzbekistan, George Enescu Philharmonic, National d'Île-de-France, Stamford Symphony and Sinfônica Brasileira.
He has also worked with esteemed Conductors including Vladimir Ashkenazy, Yuri Temirkanov, Juraj Valčuha, Valery Gergiev, Ion Marin, Claus Peter Flor, Alan Buribayev, John Neschling, Heribert Beissel, Roman Kofman, Neil Thomson, Thomas Søndergård, Ed Spanjaard, Fabio Luisi, Vasily Petrenko, Case Scaglione and Sakari Oramo.
He showcased his mastery in some of the world’s most famous Theaters such as Vienna Musikverein and Konzerthaus, Mariinsky and Philharmonia in St Petersburg, Berlin Konzerthaus, Munich Herkulessaal, Leipzig Gewandhaus, Hamburg Laeiszhalle and Elbphilharmonie, Bonn Beethoven Halle, Amsterdam Royal Concertgebouw, Dublin National Concert Hall, Glasgow Royal Concert Hall and Edinburgh Usher Hall, London Barbican Hall, Royal Albert Hall, Wigmore Hall and Royal Festival Hall, Liverpool Philharmonic Hall, Warsaw Philharmonic Concert Hall, Prague Rudolfinum Dvorak Hall, Kiev Lysenko Hall, Romanian Athenaeum in Bucharest, Paris Philharmonie, Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome and La Fenice in Venice, Stockholm Konserthuset, Tokyo Nikkei Hall, Hong Kong City Hall, Seoul Kumho Art Hall, New York Lincoln Centre, San Francisco Herbst Theater and Chicago Bennet Gordon Hall, Playhouse in Vancouver, Theatro Municipal in Rio de Janeiro, Estonia Concert Hall in Tallinn and Khachaturian Concert Hall in Yerevan.
He has also appeared in prestigious Festivals such as Robeco Summer Nights in Amsterdam, London Symphony Orchestra Season, International Piano Series and Southbank Centre Classical Season in London, Klavier Festival Ruhr in Dortmund and Bechstein Klavierabende in Berlin, Dvorakova International Festival in Prague, Steinway International Piano Series in Cardiff, Leeds International Piano Series, International Festival MiTo in Turin and Brescia Bergamo International Piano Festival, Chopin and his Europe International Festival in Warsaw, Rubinstein Piano Festival in Lodz and Chopin International Piano Festival in Duszniki-Zdrój, Lucerne Festival, Festival Groba in Spain, Malta International Music Festival, White Nights Festival in St Petersburg, Armenia International Music Festival, Pohang Chamber Music Festival, Medalha de Ouro Piano Festival in Rio de Janeiro, The Vancouver Chopin Society, Steinway Society Season in San Jose, The Gilmore in Kalamazoo and Ravinia Festival in Chicago.
Some concerts in 2023 include performances at the Dublin National Concert Hall with the National Symphony Orchestra under Case Scaglione (Beethoven piano concerto no. 4) and Romanian Athenaeum in Bucharest with the George Enescu Philharmonic Orchestra under Gabriel Bebeșelea (Beethoven piano concerto no. 1), in addition to concerts with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (S. Rachmaninov: Rhapsody on a Theme of Paganini under Manoj Kamps), Ulster Orchestra and Bergische Symphoniker (W. A. Mozart: piano concerto no. 21 under Daniele Rustioni and Golo Berg), Orchestra del Teatro Comunale di Bologna (S. Rachmaninov: piano concerto no. 2 under Sasha Yankevych) and BBC Scottish Symphony Orchestra in Glasgow (D. Shostakovich: piano concertos no. 1 and no. 2 under Sir Mark Elder). Solo recitals are planned at the Queen Elizabeth Hall in London for the International Piano Series, Turner Sims in Southampton (UK), Teatro La Fenice in Venice and Teatro Dal Verme in Milan. Furthermore, appearances are scheduled again for the Brescia Bergamo International Piano Festival, Concert Season of the Janáček Philharmonic Ostrava (Czech Republic) and International Chopin Piano Festival in Duszniki-Zdrój (Poland).
Born in Brescia in 1988, he has been studying at the Milan Conservatory, Imola International Piano Academy and Salzburg Mozarteum, under the guidance of Sergio Marengoni, Konstantin Bogino, Boris Petrushansky and Pavel Gililov.
The Music Section of the UK Critics’ Circle included him among the recipients of its 2018 Awards.