Cellist and Composer
Riccardo Pes
About me
“He is a perfect combination of knowledge, technical skills,
natural lyricism, fluent sound and fine musical instinct.”
Giovanni Sollima
Riccardo Pes is an Italian cellist and composer. He graduated with outstanding from the Royal College of Music, London on the Artist Diploma course, under the tuition of the distinguished professor Melissa Phelps. His repertoire spans from the baroque, played on period instruments, to the contemporary. His curiosity has led him to experiment with various sources of technology, such as the loop-station, and he is committed to finding new ways of bringing classical music to younger generations.
As a soloist, Riccardo has played the Schumann Cello Concerto with the Richmond Symphony Orchestra, Tartini’s Cello Concerto in A major with I Solisti Veneti conducted by Claudio Scimone, the Cello Concertos by Nicola Fiorenza and Nicola Porpora with the Marchigiana Philharmonic Orchestra conducted by Marco Feruglio.
His chamber music collaborations have included performances with Mario Brunello, Giovanni Sollima, Gilles Apap, Madeleine Mitchell, Thomas Zehetmair.
He has played numerous solo recitals in prestigious venues, such as the Elgar Room at the Royal Albert Hall, Kings Place, The Queen Elizabeth Hall at the Southbank Centre, Blackheath Halls, Royal Academy of Arts, Schloss Laudon in Vienna, Sala Sinopoli in Rome, and Teatro Della Tosse in Genoa. He has been invited to perform at important festivals such as the Venice Biennale, “AHA! Festival ” in Gothenburg, Triennale of Milan, and The Sounds of the Dolomites.
Riccardo also studied at the Conservatory of Venice and at the Accademia Nazionale of Santa Cecilia in Rome with cellist and composer, Giovanni Sollima, graduating with distinction. He has attended several masterclasses held by Frans Helmerson, Ludwig Quandt, Franz Bartolomey, Johannes Goritzky, Gustavo Tavares.
Riccardo has studied composition and counterpoint with the composers Battista Pradal and Mario Pagotto. His music is published by the Sonzogno Music Publisher in Milan, and it has been performed at venues including the Southbank Centre London during the festival "Nordic Matters", the "Summer Exhibition" at the Royal Academy of Arts, Venice Biennale, Triennale of Milan, and Teatro Valle in Rome.
In 2025, he will record the cello and piano sonatas by G.A.Fano and L. Sinigaglia with the pianist Pierluigi Piran for the label TACTUS. He will also premiere a video documentary to celebrate Prokofiev’s 70th anniversary. The documentary is supported by the Oleg Prokofiev Trust and it will include exclusive interviews of distinguished researchers and musicians, as well as rare archival materials about the uncompleted cello solo sonata.
