The Pre-selection Jury has selected the 28 pianists who will participate in the 33rd edition of the Alessandro Casagrande Competition 2025:

Umberto Beccaria (Italy)
Vera Cecino (Italy)
Santiago Adonai Chavez Auzza (Bolivia)
Nicole Costoli (Italy)
Tamar Ekvtimishvili (Georgia)
Daniele Fasani (Italy)
Jacopo Fulimeni (Italy)
Mirabelle Kajenjeri (France)
Hyelim Kim (South Corea)
Seunghui Kim (South Corea)
David Mancini (Italy)
Yihao Mao (China)
Davide Marcati (Italy)
Wataru Mashimo (Japan)
Alessandro Mennini (Italy)
Yuna Nakagawa (Japan)
Yuzuka Okada (Japan)
Jacopo Petrucci (Italy)
Federico Giovanni Pische (Italy)
Kiana Reid (Japan)
Nicolas Salloum (Switzerland)
Vladimir Skomorokhov (Russia)
Samuele Tacchini (Italy)
Chiune Tajima (Japan)
Yuto Takezawa (Japan)
Valerio Tesoro (Italy)
Ye Zifan (China)
Stefano Zeitler (Italy)

The new announcement for the 33rd edition of the Alessandro Casagrande International Piano Competition is officially online. 
The Competition will take place in Terni from 13 to 20 September 2025.
Registration will be open online from 15 November to 22 December 2024.

On the occasion of the annual ministerial appointment, Sunday of Paper, an event designed for the second Sunday of October, created to give value and depth to the archival documentation, a primary source for the historical reconstruction of a territory, the State Archives of Terni, the day 13, will organize a study day in collaboration with the Casagrande Foundation and the Terni Briccialdi Conservatory.

From the private fund of the musician and composer from Terni, Alessandro Casagrande, the Institute will make known a document, which in its historical significance will demonstrate how culture is a trunk, where many branches intertwine and interpenetrate: history, literature, art, music…

The document is a musical composition by the Orchestra Director Alessandro Casagrande, created in 1964, to the praises of Jacopone da Todi: “Il Pianto della Madonna”. 
There will be a literary and poetic analysis on the laude by an eminent Professor of Classical Literature, Dr. Fausto Dominici, President of the National Federation of Teachers and a reinterpretation of the musical composition by the G. Briccialdi State Conservatory of Music. 

The Opening Ceremony of the 32nd Edition of the International Piano Competition A. Casagrande will take place on Saturday 10 September, at 6.30 p.m. – Council Hall of Palazzo Spada: the International Jury, competitors and authorities will be present.
From 11 September, the preliminary rounds will be held at the Teatro Secci, open to the public free of charge, with sessions in the morning and afternoon.
On 17 September, the final round will be held with the Orchestra Sinfonica Abruzzese Teatro Secci , starting at 18.00. Ticket prices will be € 15.00 full price, € 12 reduced. Advance sales from Thursday 15 September at the CAOS box office (Tel. 342-6241721).

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The Opening Ceremony of the 32nd Edition of the International Piano Competition A. Casagrande will take place on Saturday 10 September, at 6.30 p.m. - Council Hall of Palazzo Spada: the International Jury, competitors and authorities will be present.
On 11 September, the preliminary rounds will be held at Teatro Secci, open to the public free of charge, with sessions in the morning and afternoon.
On 17 September, the final rehearsal will take place with the Orchestra Sinfonica Abruzzese Teatro Secci , starting at 6 pm. Tickets will cost € 15.00 full price, € 12 reduced. Advance sales from Thursday 15 September at the CAOS box office (Tel. 342-6241721).

The names of the members of the international jury for the 32nd Edition of the competition:
Enrica Ciccarelli (Italy)
Romain Descharmes (France)
Carlo Guaitoli (Italy)
Yuka Imamine (Japan)
Piers Lane (Australia)
Roland Pöntinen (Sweden)
Jerome Rose (USA)

Milan, April 28, 2022
The 32nd Edition of the Alessandro Casagrande International Piano Competition was presented at the Fazioli Pianoforti Showroom in Milan, in the presence of Elena Benucci, President of the Fondazione Casagrande, and Carlo Guaitoli, artistic director of the competition.
The jury of the competition will be composed of: Enrica Ciccarelli (Italy), Romain Descharmes (France), Carlo Guaitoli (Italy), Yuka Imamine (Japan), Piers Lane (Australia), Roland Pöntinen (Sweden), Jerome Rose (USA).

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The 28 selected competitors are:
Stefano Andreatta (ITALY)
Raffaele Battiloro (ITALY)
Matteo Cardelli (ITALY)
Yumiko Chigama (JAPAN) Osvaldo Nicola Ettore Fatone (ITALY) Samuel Glicklich (USA)
Galyna Gusachenko (UKRAINE) Hanna Jang(SOUTH KOREA) Masaharu Kambara (JAPAN) Nejc Kamplet (SLOVENIA) Hyelee Kang (SOUTH KOREA) Saebeom Lee (SOUTH KOREA) Wataru Mashimo (JAPAN) Giacomo Menegardi (ITALY) Ruben Micieli (ITALY)
Asaka Miyoshi (JAPAN) Mayaka Nakagawa (JAPAN) Priscila Navarro (PERÙ ) Tamogami Yuna (JAPAN) Giorgio Trione Bartoli (ITALY) Serena Valluzzi (ITALY) Alessandro Villalva (ITALY) Timofei Vladimirov (RUSSIA) Siyumeng Wang (CHINA) Yuanfan Yang (UK)
Lin Ye(CHINA)
Zifan Ye (MONGOLIA CHINA) Noah Zhou (UK)
Fazioli Pianforti è content partner of the competition also for the 2022 edition.

Alessandro Casagrande, pianist and composer, was born 100 years ago in Terni (11 April 1922 - 11 April 2022).
his music has shown and demonstrates validity and vitality through performances by musicians from all over the world.
Since 1966, Alessandro Casagrande will also be remembered this year during the 32nd edition of the homonymous International Piano Competition which will take place in Terni from 11 to 17 September 2022.

The work of the jury that selected the 28 competitors for the 32nd edition of the Alessandro Casagrande International Piano Competition has been completed.
The list will be made public as soon as the candidates have confirmed and finalised their applications.
In the event of any withdrawals, the competitors following in the ranking list will be invited.

The 32nd edition of the Casagrande Competition, created to honour the memory of the Terni musician after whom it was named, an artist and composer who died prematurely, was presented on Friday, 24 September 2021, in the hall of the Fondazione Carit in Terni. The competition will be held in Terni from 11 to 17 September 2022 for the final phase. Pre-selections of aspiring pianists will begin in November 2021 with the deadline for entries on 15 December of the same year. The artistic director will be Carlo Guaitoli, who took part in the presentation today together with the president of the Casagrande Foundation Elena Benucci.

Since 2002, the Competition has been organised by the Foundation of the same name and enjoys the support of the Municipality of Terni, the Fondazione Cassa di Risparmio di Terni e Narni, the Umbria Chamber of Commerce and the Umbria Region.

“It is – said Carit Foundation president Luigi Carlini – an international event of absolute level that qualifies the city and to which we ensure the necessary continuity thanks to important synergies”. President Carlini hoped that the Competition could soon return to the stage of the Verdi Theatre, the reconstruction of which is supported by the Carit Foundation itself.

“Since 1966, the ‘Alessandro Casagrande’ International Piano Competition has represented one of our city's most important cultural excellences,’ said Terni's mayor Leonardo Latini, president pro tempore of the Fondazione Casagrande. It is a piano competition of absolute importance and is known all over the world for the seriousness and meticulousness of its organisation, as well as for the quality of the young pianists who come to Terni to compete and to grow professionally, as demonstrated by the successes achieved by the winners of the previous editions and their splendid careers. What I like to emphasise is the bond between the Competition and the city, which has always existed and which is strengthened from one edition to the next, thanks above all to the Benucci family, who have taken up the legacy of Franco, Adriana and Marina Casagrande and their enthusiasm in the not simple organisation of an event of international standing. As the Administration, we are working to ensure that the competition can grow further, hoping to shorten the timeframe as much as possible in order to return the Casagrande and the city to a stage worthy of the international attention that the competition attracts, namely the new Teatro Verdi, whose construction work is finally about to begin.

The councillor for culture Maurizio Cecconelli also emphasised the centrality of the Casagrande Competition for Terni's cultural policies. “It is – he said - an event that allows Terni to confront itself with the world and that contributes to spreading internationally the image of a city capable of managing and growing great cultural excellence”. Over the years, there has always been a strong link between the competition and the Briccialdi Institute, and we will try to be close to the organisers for the new edition as well, building together other events and opportunities to meet during the competition period that can involve the city even more, in cooperation with the many lively associations that are involved in classical music at a high level in the territory.

“Important events such as the Concorso Casagrande – said Chamber of Commerce of Umbria Vice-President Mauro Franceschini – can generate added value in the area and also give rise to interesting economic spin-offs”.
The President of the Alessandro Casagrande Foundation said she was satisfied and excited by the great response of the citizens, ready to relive the internationality of the event, when Terni welcomes the best music from all over the world, and we are committed to this, because we want to grow further and transform ourselves into a brand, going beyond the niche event stage.

“The 32nd edition of the Casagrande Competition – said Maestro Carlo Guaitoli, its artistic director – concluding the presentation, was born on the basis of the great work achieved in the previous edition, when the competition – was relaunched with a new format. The audio-video pre-selection that will begin in November through a jury will lead to the definition of the 28 participants in the final phase, scheduled to take place in Terni, at Teatro Secci from 11 to 17 September 2022. The final round, as usual, will be with the orchestra for the first three classified, on a programme with music by Mozart and Beethoven”.

JURY PRESELECTIONS

Carlo Guaitoli
Artistic director of the Casagrande Competition, concert artist, winner of prestigious prizes at the A. Casagrande, F. Busoni, A. Rubinstein of Tel Aviv, IMC of Japan.

Filippo Gamba
Winner of the Anda Competition in Zurich, concert pianist and teacher at the Musik-Akademie in Basel.

Alberto Miodini
Pianist of the prestigious Trio di Parma. With this ensemble he has made a name for himself at the “Vittorio Gui” Competitions in Florence, ARD in Munich, Melbourne and Lyon.

Friday, September 24, 2021, the press conference for the presentation of the 32nd edition of the ALESSANDRO CASAGRANDE INTERNATIONAL PIANO COMPETITION 2021/2022 will be held at 11 a.m. in the ground floor hall of Palazzo Montani Leoni, Corso Tacito - TERNI (headquarters of the CARIT Foundation).

The event will be held in full compliance with the measures to contain the Covid-19 pandemic, in accordance with the regulations in force.

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A Green Pass is required for admission.

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First Prize: ARISTO SHAM

Second Prize: EMANUIL IVANOV

Third Prize: FEDERICO GAD CREMA

Special Prizes:

Adriana, Franco and Marina Casagrande Prize for the best performance of a work by A. Casagrande: ELIA CECINO

Dario De Rosa Prize for the best performance of a Beethoven Sonata: MATTEO CARDELLI

Audience Award for the Final with Orchestra: EMANUIL IVANOV

Gianni Scarficcia Prize to the youngest finalist: FEDERICO GAD CREMA

The pianists still competing are 20-year-old Federico Gad Crema from Italy, 20-year-old Emanuil Ivanov from Bulgaria and 23-year-old Aristo Sham from Hong Kong. The final on Saturday 25 May 2019 at 6pm at the Teatro Secci in Terni, with the Orchestra Sinfonica Abruzzese conducted by Marco Moresco.

The names of the three finalist pianists of the 31st edition of the International Piano Competition “Alessandro Casagrande” in Terni were announced this evening, Thursday 23 May 2019. They are: the Italian Federico Gad Crema, 20 years old from Milan; the Bulgarian Emanuil Ivanov, 20 years old, and Aristo Sham, 23 years old from Hong Kong.

The final round will take place Saturday 25 May 2019 at 6pm at the Teatro Secci in Terni. The three finalists will play a Fazioli grand piano, for the first time partners of the competition, and will be accompanied by the Orchestra Sinfonica Abruzzese conducted by M° Marco Moresco. Federico Gad Crema will perform Schumann's Concerto in A minor op. 54, Emanuil Ivanov Saint-Saëns's Concerto in G minor no. 2 op. 22, Aristo Sham Beethoven's Concerto in G major no. 4 op. 58.

At the end of the three performances, the prestigious international jury – chaired by the American pianist Julian Martin, and composed of colleagues Christian Debrus, Eteri Andjaparidze, Alexey Lebedev, Andrea Lucchesini, Graham Scott and Carlo Guaitoli, artistic director of the competition – will decide the winner. The first prize winner will receive 20 thousand euros, the second 7 thousand, and the third 4 thousand, to which will be added several Special Prizes. The competition also offers the winner a concert tour with engagements at prestigious institutions, among which are already confirmed: Società dei Concerti in Milan, IUC-Istituzione Universitaria Concerti in Rome, Fazioli Concert Hall in Sacile, Gioventù Musicale d’Italia, Istituzione Sinfonica Abruzzese in L’Aquila, Associazione Filarmonica Umbra in Terni, Amici della Musica in Foligno, Lingotto Musica in Turin, Teatro Comunale in Carpi, Associazione Musicale “Anna Jervolino” in Caserta and Festival di Vigan in France.

The “Alessandro Casagrande” Competition is organised by the Casagrande Foundation, with Elena Benucci President and Michele Benucci Vice President. It is part of the international circuit of the Alink-Argerich Foundation. The founding partners are Comune di Terni and Famiglia Casagrande. The institutional participating members are Carit Foundation and Terni Chamber of Commerce.

The jury announced the names of the three finalists. Pictured here, they are: Federico Gad Crema (20 years old, Italy), Emanuil Ivanov (20 years old, Bulgaria) and Aristo Sham (23 years old, Hong Kong). The final will be this Saturday, 25 May at 6 p.m. at the Teatro Secci in Terni, with - respectively - Schumann's Concertos Op. 54, Saint-Saëns No. 2 Op. 22 and Beethoven's No. 4 Op. 58. The three pianists will be accompanied by the Orchestra Sinfonica Abruzzese conducted by Marco Moresco. It will be an exciting challenge and a fabulous evening of music!

The other evening, Saturday 18 May 2019, in the Council Chamber of Palazzo Spada, in Terni, the inauguration of the works, with representatives of the Casagrande Foundation, the jury, competitors and authorities. Open to the public, rehearsals at the Teatro Secci began this morning and will conclude on Saturday 25 May with the announcement of the winner.

The other evening, Saturday 18 May 2019, the opening ceremony of the 31st edition of the International Piano Competition “Alessandro Casagrande”, which kicked off yesterday and will conclude on Saturday 25 May with the proclamation of the winner, took place in Terni, in the Council Chamber of Palazzo Spada.

«We are particularly pleased with the response of the citizens of Terni to this edition: there is an enthusiasm that takes us back to the beginnings of the competition» commented Elena Benucci, President of the Casagrande Foundation. «I and my brother Michele (Vice President of the Foundation ed.) are proud to carry on the construction of a cultural building that rests on solid foundations and we are happy that this will also have positive social and economic repercussions for our cityà».

The Mayor of Terni Leonardo Latini was also present: «The Municipality – said – è has always been by the side of the Competition, immediately grasping its artistic and cultural value and its enormous potential for the city, with a spirit of great unity and esteem for the organisers». Andrea Giuli, Deputy Mayor and Councillor for Culture added: «The “Casagrande” è a feather in the cap for the city. It is an honour to be part of this history, in the name of beauty and emotion, of the city's identity that is projected into the world.

Luigi Carlini, President of the Fondazione Carit commented: «We are happy to give our contribution to relaunching this initiative of great value and importance». Italo Federici, representing the Terni Chamber of Commerce, then spoke: «The city needs cultural initiatives like this to grow».

For the occasion, engineer Paolo Fazioli, founder and President of Fazioli Pianoforti of Sacile (PN), for the first time this year a partner of the “Casagrande”, arrived in Terni: «Bringing our grancoda here è an honour and also a responsibility: this è one of the few competitions in the world capable of building careers, as demonstrated by its prestigious roll of winners’.

Pianist Carlo Guaitoli, Artistic Director and member of the jury thanked the Fondazione Casagrande for its commitment, even in difficult years. The audience gave a spontaneous round of applause when the maestro movedly recalled his colleague Paola Bruni, winner of the “Casagrande” in 1986, who died prematurely a few days ago. Finally, the President of the Jury, the American pianist Julian Martin, greeted all the competitors: «The result of the competition è fundamental, but not è everything. This is an important learning experience and I wish you all to enjoy it to the full. Enjoy these days in Terni: we look forward to hearing from you!»