Antonella Sbrilli

"Salzedo has done for the harp what Bach did for the organ, Paganini for the violin, Chopin, Liszt and Debussy for the piano, which is to enlarge the technical and expressive potentialities of their chosen instruments". These are the words of the great conductor Leopold Stokowski when writing about the figure of Carlos Salzedo, who was born in Arcachon, France, in 1885 and died in Waterville, U.S.A., in 1961. A tireless organizer, performer of the harp and piano, and conductor, Salzedo was the co-founder with Edgard Varèse of the International Composers' Guild (active from 1921 to 1927). He was also a member of the International Society for Contemporary Music and of countless other prestigious associations: his desire to promote the music of new composers and to inform the public remained constant throughout his whole life. The programme presented here provides the opportunity to couple the broad soundscape of the Variations sur un theme dans le style ancien (1911), marked by a virtuosity aimed at exhibiting all the resources offered by the instrument, with a more intimate collection like the Five Preludes of 1917, then concluding with the Suite of Eight Dances composed in 1943.

Italian pop singer Antonella Ruggiero used to sing at parties as a child, her first step to becoming a local star years later. After attending the Fine Arts Academy, she started working as a designer for an advertising company. In 1975, Ruggiero joined Matia Bazar, a popular vocal group founded by Aldo Stilita, which achieved international recognition in the late '70s. In October 1989, she decided to leave the band. After an inspiring length of time in India, Ruggiero began her solo career with the release of an album called Libera in 1996. That was followed by 1997's Registrazioni Moderne, produced by Roberto Colombo. It included the song "Per Un'Ora d'Amore," which climbed the most important Italian charts. In 1998, she came in second place at the San Remo Festival for singing "Amore Lontanissimo."