Vita

Italian pianist Francesco Tropea, born in 1994, has been described as a "rising star in the sky of international pianists" (Beatrice Ballin, Pizzicato, Luxembourg 2024) following his debut album in May 2024, J.S. Bach: Rare Piano Sonatas BWV 963-970. The album has received rave reviews from prestigious outlets such as Piano News and BBC News, as well as from various online magazines, and has also earned the "Klassik Heute Empfehlung 2024" recognition.

Tropea has performed as a soloist, improviser, and in chamber music ensembles in numerous countries, including Austria, Germany, Italy, Japan, Spain, Bulgaria, and Switzerland, performing in renowned venues such as the Beethovenhaus in Bonn and the Festival dei Due Mondi in Spoleto. His performances have been broadcast by prominent broadcasters such as the Bulgarian National Radio (BNR), Austrian National Radio (ORF), and Swiss National Radio (SRF).

In 2016, he performed Bach's Concerto for Two Pianos BWV 1061 at the Teatro Niccolini in Florence, in a duo with Pietro De Maria. In 2022, he collaborated with Rolf Plagge during the Friendship Week at the Kobe College of Music in Japan. In 2023, a recital of him was streamed by TVT Televisión Tabasqueña in Mexico. Furthermore, in 2024, he was selected to perform at a gala concert at Carnegie Hall in New York in 2025.

A winner of numerous international awards, including first prize at the "F. Mendelssohn" competition and second prize at the II Concurso Internacional de Piano Chopin in Granada in 2023, Tropea is also known for his deep connection to piano improvisation. He performs solo recitals, improvises cadenzas in piano concertos, and draws inspiration from paintings and poetry. He also participated in the film Beethoven X: Das KI-Projekt, portraying Beethoven in an improvisation duel.

His musical education is international: he studied at the Conservatory of Cosenza with Grazia Amato and Roberto Russo, at the Scuola di Musica di Fiesole with Pietro De Maria and Bruno Canino, and at the Academy of Music in Pinerolo with Benedetto Lupo. He obtained his second Master's degree in piano at the Mozarteum in Salzburg with Rolf Plagge, a CAS in Concert Improvisation at the CSI in Lugano with Galina Vracheva, and is currently completing a PhD in Musicology at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, focusing on Bach's Keyboard Sonatas BWV 963-970 and their relationship with improvisation. He is also pursuing a Master's in Piano Improvisation in Stuttgart under the guidance of Noam Sivan.

In addition to his concert career, Tropea has extensive teaching experience, having taught in Austria, Germany, and Italy. He is currently teaching in Italy Piano Practice at the Conservatory of Music "F. A. Bonporti" in Trento and Riva del Garda, Trento campus.