Born in Catania, Francesco Nicolosi is one of the most distinguished pianists of the Italian tradition. He studied under Vincenzo Vitale and won third prize at the 1980 International Santander Piano Competition and in the same year second prize (first prize not awarded) at the Concours International d’Exécution Musicale in Geneva, establishing him as one of the world’s foremost pianists of his generation. He has played in recitals and as a soloist with prestigious orchestras, in some of the most famous concert halls of Europe, toured in the United States, Argentina, Russia, Japan and China, and is a regular guest in the most exclusive festivals of the world. His recordings of Thalberg and Liszt Bellini paraphrases received the 1994 Bellini Golden Prize, and as president of the Sigismund Thalberg International Study Centre he has developed for years an intense work of search and revaluation of the music of the legendary Austrian pianist, of whom he is today the principal interpreter in the world. He is Artistic Director of the Sigismond Thalberg International Piano Prize, I concerti d’Estate di Villa Guariglia, the Jeux d’art a la Villa d’Este in Tivoli, the Roccaraso in Musica Festival and the Corsi Internazionali di Alto Perfezionamento e Formazione Musicale in Naples and Rome.