The Italian Cultural Institute of Vienna hosted the recital “Norma. Free fantasy and variations”, performed by pianist Rossana Tomassi Golkar in a solo piano version written exclusively for her by Maestro Luis Bacalov, winner of the Academy Award in 1996. The concert, organised on the occasion of the staging of Norma by Vincenzo Bellini at the Staatsoper and first premiered in 2009 at the Santa Cecilia Hall of the Auditorium Parco della Musica in Rome, represents Bacalov’s personal reinterpretation of Bellini’s opera. Luis Bacalov, an Argentine-born pianist, composer, and conductor who later became an Italian citizen, passed away in 2017.
In his welcome address, the Ambassador to Vienna, Giovanni Pugliese, highlighted that Rossana Tomassi Golkar’s concert marks the Vienna stop of an extensive tour, which has taken—and continues to take—the Italian pianist across the globe. The Ambassador also emphasised how the idea of reimagining and rewriting Bellini’s opera was a complex yet fascinating challenge for Maestro Bacalov—one that he successfully accomplished. His aim was to bring Norma to life solely through the sounds and emotions of the piano.
The Director of the Italian Cultural Institute, Nicola Locatelli, thanked the pianist for including Vienna in her tour, offering the audience an exclusive performance of a special piece that reflects the enduring inspirational power of Bellini’s work, even for contemporary artists.
