Trieste International Piano Festival
July 8-19, 2026 - Trieste
Each festival participant will receive:
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Private study with distinguished teachers – four 60-minute applied lessons over the duration of the festival
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Master class opportunities with faculty and guest artists
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Seminars and workshops on a diverse range of topics
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Modern on-site performance venue with Yamaha grand piano
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Ample practice time and dedicated practice rooms
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A minimum of 2 performance opportunities in Trieste and neighboring cities in Italy and Slovenia
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Opportunities to join cultural excursions in and around the beautiful city of Trieste
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Modern, reasonably priced lodging in a historic building in the center of Trieste (Admitted students must select the lodging-inclusive package and complete the deposit payment by March 30 to take advantage of this offer)
Festival Details:
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Open to pianists of all ages – accepted applicants under 18 years of age must be accompanied by a guardian (no additional festival fees for accompanying guardian)
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The festival will begin on Wednesday, July 8 and end on Sunday, July 19, 2026 – attendees should plan to arrive no later than Tuesday, July 7 and depart no sooner than Monday, July 20, 2026
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Cost of Tuition: 1600 Euros
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Cost of Tuition + Lodging package: 2100 Euros (*See lodging details here)
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Non-refundable deposit, applied towards the cost of tuition, due by March 30, 2026: 750 Euros for Tuition + Lodging package, 500 Euros for Tuition only option (attendees making their own lodging arrangements)
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Payment of remaining balance due by April 30, 2026
Application Requirements:
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Applications are due by March 1st, 2026 ($50 Application Fee)
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Links to video recordings of live, unedited performances, uploaded to YouTube or similar video-sharing platforms as "public" or "unlisted"
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One video link is required, a maximum of 3 links is allowed – the total of all materials should not exceed 20 minutes
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A short artistic biography
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A repertoire list
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A high-resolution professional picture (at least 300 dpi, max 5 MB)
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A photo of an official identification document (passport, drivers license, birth certificate; max 5 MB)
Sample Daily Schedule:
Time/Activity
8:00 – 9:00 Breakfast
9:00 – 12:00 Lessons & Practice Time
12:00 – 13:00 Lunch
13:00 – 15:00 Lessons & Practice Time
15:00 – 17:00 Aperitivo Musicale*
17:00 – 19:00 Recreational Activities
19:00 – 20:00 Dinner
20:00 – 21:30 Concert Performances
* In Italy, the Aperitivo is a beverage enjoyed before a meal to stimulate the appetite, which typically takes place from the late afternoon into the early evening, with beverages accompanied by various finger foods. The Aperitivo Musicale is a time for festival attendees, faculty and guests to come together in engaging activities like masterclasses, seminars and workshops, designed to stir musical and artistic appetites.
About our Faculty & Co-Artistic Directors:
Adam Piotr Żukiewicz is an award-winning, internationally acclaimed concert pianist praised for his “virtuosic display of youthful joy” (Blogcritics) and “gracious sense of beauty” (Fanfare Magazine). His performances have captivated audiences across Europe, North and South America, and Asia, with broadcasts in the USA, China, Canada, Germany, Italy, and Poland. Known for innovative programming that bridges popular and lesser-known repertoire, he continues to inspire listeners worldwide.
Recent highlights include Saint-Saëns’s Piano Concerto No. 5 with the Boulder Chamber Orchestra at Carnegie Hall, and performances at St. Martin-in-the-Fields (London), CBC Glenn Gould Studio (Toronto), Royal Łazienki Theatre (Warsaw), and with orchestras such as the Shanghai Nine Trees Philharmonic, Grand Junction Symphony, and Bohuslav Martinů Philharmonic. Following his 2024 debut in Shanghai, his televised Chopin performance for China’s Mid-Autumn celebrations reached an audience of 1.4 billion.
Żukiewicz’s acclaimed debut album, The Beginnings (DUX, 2018), explores musical dialogues between Beethoven, Chopin, Krystian Kiełb, Jacobus Kloppers, and Oscar Peterson, and is regularly featured on Colorado Public Radio. His dedication to contemporary music includes commissioning and premiering works by composers such as Tom Lopez, Krystian Kiełb, and Oscar Peterson (European premiere of Goodbye Old Friend).
A passionate scholar, Żukiewicz leads the Chopin Unknown research project, supported by a U.S. government grant, focusing on newly discovered study works and the late style of Chopin.
He holds a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Toronto and a Master’s from Indiana University, with additional studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London and the United World College of the Adriatic in Italy, where he trained under Dario de Rosa of the Trio di Trieste and Alberto Miodini of the Trio di Parma. His mentors also include James Parker, Arnaldo Cohen, and Jerome Lowenthal.
Currently Associate Professor of Piano at the University of Northern Colorado, Żukiewicz is a Steinway Artist, recipient of the Steinway & Sons Top Teacher Award, and founder of the Intercollegiate Piano Competition of the West and Beethoven in the Rockies: Concert Series.
Equally at home in solo and collaborative music, pianist Gjergji Gaqi maintains an active performing career throughout North America and Europe. He studied piano and chamber music under Prof. Dario de Rosa and Prof. Alberto Miodini at the International School of Chamber Music "Trio di Trieste" in Duino (Italy), while completing the bilingual International Baccalaureate diploma.
A Summa Cum Laude graduate of Colby College as a Music major and Economics minor, Gaqi won the Colby Concerto Competition, studying with Cheryl Tschanz (piano) and Jonathan Hallstrom (composition). Gaqi received his graduate degrees at the University of Michigan under the guidance of Christopher Harding and John Ellis, while pursuing additional studies in jazz piano with Ellen Rowe.
Dr. Gaqi is currently Assistant Professor of Piano at the University of Arkansas at Pine Bluff, with previous appointments at Tyler Junior College, Siena Heights University, College of the Mainland, Brazosport College and the University of Michigan. He is an in-demand masterclass clinician, presenter and adjudicator of festivals and competitions, and has served in many capacities with various music organizations, including as president of the East Texas Music Teachers Association and chair of ETMTA's Helen Elbert Collaborative Music Festival. Gjergji and Piro Gaqi perform internationally as the Gaqi Piano Duo and are co-founders of the Settenote Online Piano International Competition.
