New York – On 20 October, Giulia Mazzoni, a leading figure in Italy’s new classical music scene, will give a solo piano concert at the Italian Cultural Institute in New York. The event will mark the debut of American Tapes, a project exploring the artist’s relationship with the United States through a kind of musical diary, bringing together places, experiences and memories gathered over the years. For the occasion, the Italian composer and pianist has produced a limited-edition cassette featuring new recordings of some of the most representative pieces in her repertoire, including Ellis Island and Winter’s Dream. The tape also features her personal solo piano reinterpretation of Giacomo Puccini’s Nessun dorma, reworked with original material. Starting from the celebrated Puccini aria, Mazzoni reshapes it into a dialogue between the memory of musical tradition and a contemporary compositional voice. The project takes on particular significance in the centenary year of the world premiere of Turandot, which took place in 1926. Mazzoni’s connection with the United States has long been an important part of her artistic journey. Works associated with this relationship include Room 2401, released by Sony Music and featuring Ellis Island, and YAS – Your Anima System, created with American producer Thom Russo, a 16-time Grammy Award winner, across recording sessions in Los Angeles, Prague and Florence. “I am deeply grateful to director Claudio Pagliara for his strong commitment to making this concert happen, and to the entire team at the Italian Cultural Institute in New York for bringing it to life,” said Giulia Mazzoni. “Returning to the United States means a great deal to me. Coming back to New York today with American Tapes feels, in a way, like rewinding the tape and pressing play once again. “I am fascinated by tape because it preserves something that the digital age seems to have made us forget: time. To listen to it, you have to let it run and travel through it. Perhaps that is precisely what American Tapes is about: a tape records who we once were, but when we press play again, we are no longer the same people who made that recording. And I cannot imagine a more beautiful place than New York to set this tape in motion.” Before travelling to the United States, Mazzoni will also perform at the opening of the sixth edition of the FánHuā Chinese Film Festival on 14 October at Cinema La Compagnia in Florence. For the first time, the festival’s opening programme will feature a musical performance, entrusted to the Italian composer in recognition, in part, of the deep artistic and cultural ties she has developed with China over the years. (9colonne)