Plot August to be amazing. Porto PianoFest will do the rest

Porto Pianofest 2020 will make its online debut for one week in August. Amid the pandemic, nearly all cultural activities had to be adjusted to meet the necessary Covid-19 control measures. The fifth edition of this festival will write a new chapter in its history and the good news is that over 70 musicians will take to this different platform to reach audiences worldwide this August. All about this event spells perfect. 

In February 2020, Porto PianoFest was heard at the Yamaha Artist Services, in Manhattan, New York; this event gathered on stage Porto PianoFest Director Nuno Marques, Portuguese musician settled in New York, and Vice-Director Mariel Mayz, North American pianist.

On that occasion, the musicians presented the fifth edition of Porto PianoFest, which is set to happen in the Invicta, on 1st August, at Casa da Música.

Porto PianoFest Director affirmed to Lusa that "the fun and different part of this year's edition is the release of ten musical videos" on a daily basis, live at the Porto Pianofest website, from 1st to 8th August, by over 70 professional musicians from Europe and from the United States. "It is a Netflix sort of season, in which we release episodes every day and they remain in our webpage", Nuno Marques explained to Lusa.

Also great news is the fact that two concerts will be delivered before a live audience, at the Rectory of the University of Porto and at the World of Wine, in Vila Nova de Gaia, set to take place in the last two days of the event. The Rectory of the University of Porto hosts a concert by young talents, on 7th August, with "two young bright pianists from Porto", before a live audience of about 20 or 30 people, which is also streamed live on the Internet, as "we give greater prominence to the younger generation and youth we host every year", Nuno Marques emphasised.

The closing of the Porto PianoFest is set for 8th August, with live streaming from Vila Nova de Gaia, at the World of Wine.

Concerts in Porto will be streamed live on the Internet and they will be hosted by Nuno Marques and Mariel Mayz from New York.
"This will also be a way to mobilize artists and to bring a breath of fresh air", Porto PianoFest Director highlighted, "we will gather everyone around us and we will post that so that everyone can reach a much wider audience. Free of charge, as the impact has been tremendous". 

"We have invited circa 70 pianists to be with us and send us some recording tailored for this purposed, which represent them as musicians", Nuno Marques told Lusa and furthered by saying that "they should choose something that "would show the best in them".

As well as streaming from Porto, Porto PianoFest also includes concerts' releases from New York and Chicago, on 2nd and 3rd August, and on 4th August the programme also includes a conference by maestro Oscar Colomina i Bosch, from Madrid, on orchestral conducting and his life in music, namely his experience as a Director of the Reina Sofía School Of Music.

On an annual basis, Porto PianoFest offers the city of Porto a varied programme of exhibitions, such as concerts and recitals, and also sponsors young piano students with masterclasses and lectures by renowned artists.

Every year the festival is organised by Porto City Hall and by the Cadenza Cooperative.

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