Pianist: Flavio Villani

Cambridge Town Hall presents pianist Flavio Villani in a solo evening shaped by memory, loss and quiet transformation. The exquisite programme pairs Bach-Busoni's Chaconne and his debut suite In Memoriam with Brahms's searching Rhapsody and Intermezzi, and Franck's Prélude, Choral et Fugue.

Flavio Villani is an Italian–New Zealand pianist who made Auckland his home after moving from Italy in 2008. He completed a Bachelor of Piano Performance with Matteo Napoli at the Conservatory “G. Martucci,” alongside a Bachelor of IT in Salerno in 2007. After working in IT in Barcelona, he moved to New Zealand to pursue his musical career, completing a Master of Piano Performance with first-class honours at the University of Auckland under Stephen De Pledge.

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Flavio has just completed a Doctorate (DMA) at the University of Waikato, supervised by Katherine Austin, with additional research undertaken at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama in London with Professor David Dolan. His doctoral work explores the role of improvisation within Classical music learning, performance, and interpretation — reviving approaches that were foundational to musicians up until the late nineteenth century. His research investigates how creative exploration can deepen understanding, embodiment, and expressive agency in modern classical practice.

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He has performed widely as a soloist and chamber musician in Italy, Spain, North Macedonia, New Zealand, Australia, California and Texas. His festival appearances include the Venice Biennale, Pianino Festival (Mallorca), Lamezia Classica, The Gurwitz (USA), Auckland Arts Festival, and Christopher Classics (NZ).