A radically different way of shaping a concert season.
The idea is simple: instead of constantly travelling from one concert venue to another, focus on 7 cities in different parts of the world, staying in each for a full month and offering much more than a single performance.
From a personal project, this idea turned into a non-profit association, inaugurating its activity with Filippo Gorini’s chosen “seven cities”, but with the wish to extend its reach to other artists and cities in the coming years.
7 Cities
The inaugural project is set to have residencies in Vienna, Hong Kong, Cape Town, Portland, Medellín, Sydney, Milan, supported by the foremost classical music institutions in each city.
Performances
Each residency has at its significant concerts: recital in important halls and concerto performances with symphony orchestras.
Philanthropy
Music is a force of good, and that it speaks the most to souls that are lost, in pain, or abandoned. These people are mostly not in a position to be able to attend regular concerts. Performing and talking to people in hospitals, in jails, in recovery communities, is a central part in these residencies.
Outreach
It doesn’t matter if the audiences are ten people or a thousand: we should play music to every heart that needs to listen. That is why we organise performances also in smaller towns, provincial territories and disadvantaged neighbourhoods.
Mentoring
In each residency, dedicated teaching is offered to a few local young pianists, free of charge.
Education
We support musical education through concerts, projects, collaborations, activities and seminars with local schools and universities.
New Music
The recitals will be built around piano sonatas from the classical and romantic repertoire, as well as seven newly commissioned sonatas by composers Beat Furrer Stefano Gervasoni, Michelle Agnes Magalhaes, Oscar Jockel, Federico Gardella, Yukiko Watanabe, Ondrej Adamek.
Media
An emotional documentary-series about this project, “Sonata for 7 Cities: an unclassical journey” will be directed by Ruggero Romano and produced by MoviesMoveUs. It will be released in 2028 at the end of this journey! Live albums from the recitals in each city will be available, both in video and digital albums. Filippo will also write a book sharing the most precious memories and reflections from this project and all of this media will be released in a single boxset in Spring 2028 by Alpha Classics.
Support
This project is possible thanks to the Franco Buitoni Award, and the support of the institutions hosting me in each city. If you would like to offer financial, logistic, or any other kind of support, please reach out to us or consider making a donation. Working together makes a huge difference! As a non-profit association, we can receive donations in full transparency, which will be used solely for organising non-profit concerts in places of education, care or disadvantaged communities, by Filippo or other artists who wish to try out the same experience.