Brescia and Bergamo International Piano Festival

A Festival Between Two Cities

Founded in 1964, the Brescia and Bergamo International Piano Festival is a unique event of its kind: a festival that for over sixty years has united two Lombard cities in the name of great piano music. Among the most important piano festivals in Europe, it has hosted the greatest performers of the classical and contemporary repertoire over time, building an international reputation.

East & West

The 63rd edition is titled East & West – From Chopin to Arvo Pärt and dedicates particular attention to the repertoires and composers of Eastern and Slavic Europe. Alongside the immortal names of Tchaikovsky, Rachmaninov, Prokofiev, Shostakovich, and Scriabin, the audience will encounter the voices of Bartók, Dvořák, Janáček, and Arvo Pärt, in a journey that combines tradition and contemporaneity.

The Great Performers

On the stages of the two cities, some of the best pianists on the international scene will perform: Grigory Sokolov, Mikhail Pletnëv, Jan Lisiecki, and Lilya Zilberstein, along with young talents that the festival is proud to present to its audience. Among the special events in Bergamo, the recital by Yuja Wang accompanied by the Mahler Chamber Orchestra, on September 8 at the Teatro Donizetti.

Bergamo's Venues

For the Bergamo part, the concerts are held at the Teatro Donizetti, in the heart of the lower city, and at the Teatro Sociale in Città Alta. The long duration of the festival, from late April to early October, allows the experience of great piano music as a common thread running through the entire beautiful season between Brescia and Bergamo, Italian Capitals of Culture.