- Madrid will enjoy fifty concerts next weekend (21, 22 and 23 April), with piano as the protagonist of the event, presented today at the cultural space La Serrería Belga.
- Classical, jazz, flamenco, electronic and new age music will fill some of Madrid's flagship spaces, with the technical assistance and advice of Rosa Pérez-Pardo, winner of the 2017 National Music Prize, and the presence of international artists, such as Martin Listabarth, Danilo Rea and Júlio Resende, and national artists, such as María Parra and Álex Conde.
- Some of this year's new features include a tribute to Bebo Valdés, one of the greatest piano players of all times, and a piano playing and book reading initiative to celebrate World Book Day with music.
Piano City, organised by TopArtEspaña, in collaboration with the Culture, Tourism and Sports Area of Madrid City Council, and sponsored by Endesa, is a macro festival in which piano is the star, with more than 50 free concerts across the city and in some of Madrid's flagship public spaces on 21, 22 and 23 April. Concerts of classical music, jazz, jazz-flamenco, fado-jazz and other styles will be organised and there will also be a place for contemporary and electronic music.
Andrea Levy, Municipal Delegate of the Government Area of Culture, Tourism and Sport of Madrid City Council stressed that "Piano City Madrid brings culture, music and talent to Madrid. We must support the arts and, in particular, piano, which requires hard work and effort".
Moreover, Cármelo Di Gennaro, CEO of TopArtEspaña stressed that "Piano City Madrid aims to become the city's new soundtrack. We want everyone to enjoy live music and, in particular, the wonderful sound of the piano, because culture belongs to everyone".
María Lacasa, Brand and Sponsorship Manager at Endesa, mentioned that "this type of event is what makes Madrid unique. Endesa is firmly committed to culture, an area in which we grow year after year, and we do so by showing our commitment to a benchmark project. We want to make sure that everyone can enjoy culture on the street and for free. We love to be a part of moving and thrilling events, just like Piano City".
New for this year: tribute to Bebo Valdés, electronic music and "silent concert"
"El Piano de Bebo Piano City Madrid", in collaboration with Serious Fan Music, will be presented on Saturday, 22 April at the courtyard of Conde Duque, an evening tribute dedicated to the great Bebo Valdés, legend of Afro-Cuban jazz. In addition, a few events will be held to discuss the close relationship between music and literature, in celebration of World Book Day (Sunday, 23 April). The Serrería Belga Cultural Space will be entirely dedicated to electronic-new age music. And, finally, after last year's success, the silent concerts return to the Madrid History Museum with the wireless audio technology "Silent System".
The artists
All of the concerts will be free. They will gather over 50 pianists from Spain and abroad, both consolidated and newcomer, with many female artists, like last year. In addition to enjoying the music of Rosa Torres-Pardo, winner of the 2017 National Music Award, we will listen to María Parra and Lucía Rey (Madrid), Álex Conde and Ricardo Curto (Valencia), Sira Hernández and Laura Andrés (Catalonia), Andrés Barrios (Andalusia), Claudio Constantini and Caramelo de Cuba (Latin America), without forgetting Danilo Rea, Fabio Giachino and Andrea Bacchetti (Italy), Júlio Resende (Portugal), Martin Listabarth (Austria) and Lisa Morgens (Germany).
In addition, newcomers will also participate in Piano City Madrid, as part of the programme organised in collaboration with TopArtEspaña, the Royal Conservatory of Atocha and the Reina Sofía School of Music, in addition to Katarina Gurska Higher Music Centre, which will join us this year.
The spaces
The pianos will be found in different places of Madrid: some of these places will be ones in which there has never been a musical performance, such as the Arganzuela Greenhouse or the Madrid History Museum. Others are some of the city's flagship venues, such as the Goethe Institut or the Ateneo de Madrid, which commemorates its 200th anniversary. The pianos will also be found in different centres managed by the City Council's Culture Area: the central courtyard of the Conde Duque Contemporary Culture Centre, CentroCentro auditorium, Matadero Madrid, as well as Serrería Belga Cultural Space, a great and multi-purpose building in the heart of Paisaje de la Luz, a UNESCO world heritage site. In addition, there will be a Matinee – Surprise in the iconic location of Cuesta de Moyano on 22 Saturday. Three extraordinary concerts to liven up the morning for the people who visit this historic street of Madrid often.
About Endesa
Endesa is the largest electricity company in Spain and the second largest in Portugal. The company is also the second largest gas operator in the Spanish market. Endesa operates an end-to-end generation, distribution and marketing business. Through Endesa X, it also offers value-added services aimed at the electrification of energy usage in homes, companies, industries and Public Administrations. A new business line has also been created, Endesa X Way, fully dedicated to electric mobility. Endesa is firmly committed to the United Nations SDGs and strongly supports the development of renewable energies through Enel Green Power España, the digitalisation of grids through e-distribución, and corporate social responsibility (CSR). The Endesa Foundation is also active in CSR-related matters. Our workforce numbers around 9,260 employees. Endesa is a division of Enel, the largest electricity group in Europe.