Music has become the protagonist of the institutional opening of the 3rd Iturbi Festival in the courtyard of the Scala of the Provincial Council of Valencia. The pianists Juan Floristán and Rachel Breen, one of the winners of the last edition of the Iturbi Prize organised by the provincial council, took part in an event presented by the Councillor for Culture, Paco Teruel, with the intervention of the Artistic Director of the event, Ana Guijarro.

The Teatre Principal of Valencia becomes, throughout the weekend, the epicentre of the third edition of the Iturbi Piano Festival with four recitals by the renowned performers Claudio Martínez Mehner, who opened the event on Thursday, Iván ‘Melón’ Lewis (Friday 14 June, 7:30 pm), Juan Floristán (Saturday 15, 7:30 pm) and Akiko Ebi (Sunday 16, 7:30 pm ).After these performances, the Festival will move to the Palau de la Música on 21 and 22 June, where Joaquín Achúcarro will perform with the Orquesta de València, conducted by Álvaro Albiach, and the Argentine pianist Nelson Goerner, who will close the musical event.

Tickets for the recitals at the Teatre Principal can be booked at www.servientradas.com until full capacity is reached. As with the rest of the concerts and recitals programmed as part of the event, all the activities are free of charge. In the case of the concerts by Achúcarro and Nelson Goerner, tickets may be booked on the Palau de la Música website three days in advance.

The Festival, organised by the Department of Cultural of the Provincial Council of Valencia with the aim of disseminating piano music and vindicating the artistic legacy and the figure of the Valencian pianists José and Amparo Iturbi, complements the prestigious Iturbi Prize organised by the provincial council every two years. “It is an extraordinary idea that reinforces the international potential of our piano prize and brings together the best pianists of the day in Valencia”, says the Councillor for Culture, Paco Teruel.

Teruel, who acted as master of ceremonies, also emphasised the backbone of this festival and its recital series, which will take piano music to municipalities such as Torrent and Alzira, and to others such as Ontinyent, Chelva, Xàtiva, Utiel and Oliva, where “recitals have been programmed by the young pianists who won the last edition of the Iturbi, who have demonstrated their extraordinary level and are currently part of the international piano circuit”.

‘Melón’ Lewis, Floristán and Ebi

The Artistic Director of the Iturbi Festival, Ana Guijarro, has reviewed the programme of the event, accompanied by the Sevillian pianist Juan Floristán, who will be one of the stars of the weekend. Juan Floristán will take the stage of the theatre of the Provincial Council of Valencia this Saturday to give a recital that includes music by Claude Debussy, Franz Liszt, Maurice Ravel and Modest Mussorgski. The artist has won prizes in prestigious international competitions such as the Arthur Rubinstein Competition in Tel Aviv, the Santander Paloma O’Shea Piano Competition and the Steinway Competition in Berlin.

Floristán has made his debut in some of the world’s leading halls, such as the Royal Albert Hall, the Wigmore Hall, the Herkulessaal in Munich, the Tonhalle in Zürich, the Philharmonie in St. Petersburg, the Béla Bartók Hall in Budapest, the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, the Laeiszhalle in Hamburg, the Auditorio Nacional in Madrid and the Palau de la Música in Barcelona, as well as in important national and international festivals. {Algo}ritmo, released by ARIA classics, is his latest live recording, which includes works by György Ligeti, Alberto Ginastera and Mussorgski.

Before that, this Friday at 7:30 pm, the Teatre Principal will welcome the Cuban Iván ‘Melón’ Lewis. With seven albums released, five nominations and winner of the Latin Grammy for Best Latin Jazz Album in 2021, the pianist, composer and music producer will offer a repertoire made up of his own works that move between jazz and improvisation. A programme that can also be heard at the Casa de Cultura in Torrent on Saturday 15 June at 7:30 pm and in the Cloister of the Casa de Cultura in Alzira on Sunday 16 June at 7 pm.

On Sunday, also at 7:30 pm and in the Teatre Principal, Akiko Ebi, winner of first prize in the National Piano Competition in Japan and second prize in the Long-Thibaud Competition in Paris, among many other awards, is scheduled to perform. He will perform a repertoire beginning with Bach’s Partita No. 1 in B flat major, BWV 825, and continuing with works by Johannes Brahms and Frédéric Chopin.

The French-Japanese pianist performs in many countries around the world, in exceptional concert halls (Berlin Philharmonic Auditorium, Gewandhaus Auditorium, Suntory Hall, Teatro Colón, Théâtre des Champs-Elysées), and with orchestras by renowned conductors. His duo concert with Martha Argerich has been broadcast internationally on several occasions and he frequently performs chamber music with important musicians and ensembles. His discography includes Chopin, Ravel, Dynam-Victor Fumet (first recording worldwide); as well as works by Fauré, Franck, Grieg, Lekeu and Pierné.

Achúcarro, Goerner and recital series

The 3rd Iturbi Piano Festival will end with two concerts in the Palau de la Música on 21 and 22 June. The first of these will be given by the international Basque concert pianist Joaquín Achúcarro, Artistic Director of the Iturbi Prize, accompanied by the Orquesta de València under the baton of Álvaro Albiach, on Friday 21 June at 7:30 pm. The second will feature the Argentinian Nelson Goerner, considered one of the most outstanding pianists of his generation, who will close the edition on Saturday 22 June at 7:30 pm.

In parallel to the Festival, the Iturbi Recital Series will be held, consisting of a total of 12 concerts, featuring the winners of the last edition of the Iturbi Prize, Valencia International Piano Competition: the Italian Elia Cecino (first prize), the American Anthony Ratinov (second prize) and the American Rachel Breen (third prize). The first recital was given by Elia Cecino at the Royal Academy of Spain in Rome. Since then, the winners of the last edition of the competition have come to Puerto de Sagunto, Xàtiva, Utiel, Oliva, Ontinyent and La Beneficència Cultural Centre. This Friday it will be Rachel Breen’s turn in Chelva, and the series will end in Parma and Toulouse with Cecino and Rachel Breen.