Sergio
Calligaris' piano technique is one of the most interesting and involving aspects of his
entire artistic profile.
An astonishing technique which leaves amazed not only because of beauty, clearness and
purity of sound, always balanced and careful up to its very inmost expressive shade; but
also visually impressive because of the absolute independence of fingers, hook-curved in
hands let's say "armed", with a spurt power, a touch accuracy and an
infinitesimal control which reveal an innate personal talent trained by a sturdy practice
of the old days up to the slightest technical and performing details. Here is an example:
As it is clear, much more eloquent than whatever explanation is the living experience
of this technique, by means of listening and watching the Artist at work: those who have
got experience in this, during a Maestro's concert, can't keep anything but an impressed
memory. Who instead, like the writer, got the extraordinary opportunity to attend Sergio
Calligaris' interpretation at his piano, feels to have had a privilege that
Maestro grants only to a few people. And from that splendid and indomitable Bechstein
that, like Odysseus bending his own bow, he only can tame thanks to his amazing technique
- because of the deep and slow action of keys which make it an instrument out of reach of
many other fierce pianists - rippling waves, billows and darting sprays of sea gushed with
crystal clear fluency, softly smashing onto the quietly fluctuating planking of Une
Barque sur l'océan, from Ravel's Miroirs. And the lucky listener can hardly
recover from the poetic entrancement evoked by the Artist...
"His playing is distinguished by a romantic
élan and virtuoso technique. " [Nicolas Slonimsky, "The Baker's Biographical Dictionary of
Musicians"
Edition - G. Schirmer, New York, 1991]
All excerpts have been taken out from: [1] C053-17973: Bis celebri - EMI His Master's voice
(1969) [2] ORS 7142: Sergio Calligaris - Orion Records (1971) [3] ORS 7286: Piano Music of Latin America - Orion
Records (1972)
(LPs digitally remastered by Carlo Bellani) [4] ACD 069, ADD, Ares - Libreria Editrice Vaticana
(1993, recordings 1967-'68).