About

I remember trying to reach the piano keys in my family’s home (I was barely tall enough to see them) at a very young age; I would spend hours experimenting and improvising short melodies that must have driven my neighbors crazy.

I soon began taking private classical piano lessons during elementary school and later went to a music middle school, where I would learn more than just my instrument: we had our orchestra, choir and modern rock ensembles.

My piano teacher (M° Ivana Seniga) soon noticed my strong will to explore and understand the music I played, as well as my growing interest in improvisation; at the end of middle school I remember her telling my parents (with remarkable foresight) : “if he continues to study classical music he will shoot himself sooner or later; he should study jazz”.

And so, I did. During high school I started studying jazz piano with M° Massimo Colombo at CPM. It was during this time that I began to truly understand the anatomy of music: how harmony works, and the meaning of improvisation.

I knew I needed to go deeper, so at my last year I attended the preparatory pre-academic year at Civica Scuola di Musica Claudio Abbado, with renown jazz pianist M° Mario Rusca.

Of course the following year, I began the academic program, where I refined my craft and expanded my understanding of jazz piano and music as a whole, still under the guidance of Maestro Rusca: I owe to him almost everything I know about jazz piano and music in general.

I completed my bachelor’s degree in jazz piano with a thesis on Brad Mehldau and his jazz interpretation of Radiohead’s repertoire.

In parallel with my academic studies, I completed an Electronic Music Production course at SAE Institute in Milan. This experience broadened my skillset in computer-based music and digital production.

Over time, I have worked on my own creative projects, continually blending my background in jazz, harmony, and production. I also had the privilege of collaborating with Mauro Pagani and the team at Officine Meccaniche, where I further developed my skills in film scoring, music production and recording.

To further expand my proficiency I completed a course in Sound Design for New Musical Media at Italian Design Institute in Milan, while taking private jazz piano lessons with M° Roberto Tarenzi.

In summary, my goal is to gradually expand in multiple directions, both academically and through practical work experiences.

Mario Rusca

Roberto Tarenzi