A New Era Begins for the Tuscan Sun Festival

10th Edition to be held in Florence, Italy 11th–18th June , 2012

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Artists Include Angela Gheorghiu, Sir James Galway, Susan Graham, Nigel Kennedy, Nina Kotova, Valentina Lisitsa, John Malkovich, Ivo Pogorelich And Maxim Vengerov

Tickets to go on sale from 20th April

The Tuscan Sun Festival, described by the UK’s The Independent newspaper as ‘one of the ten best festivals in Europe’, which has brought together the elite of the music, art and film world, continues to advance by launching its tenth edition in Florence, the capital of Tuscany, 11th – 18th June, 2012. With one of Italy’s most beautiful cities as the new sophisticated backdrop, and gratefully acknowledging the support of the City of Florence and Ente Cassa di Risparmio, the Tuscan Sun Festival is delighted to welcome artists such as soprano Angela Gheorghiu, flautist Sir James Galway, mezzo-soprano Susan Graham, violinist Nigel Kennedy, cellist Nina Kotova, pianist Valentina Lisitsa, pianist Ivo Pogorelich, actor John Malkovich, directors Gabriele Lavia and Maurizio Scaparro as well as violinist Maxim Vengerov, who will appear in this anniversary edition of the event in venues throughout Florence, including the beautiful Teatro della Pergola.

Crowning nine years of success in its original home in Cortona, the City of Florence will promote the continued growth of the Tuscan Sun Festival from this year forwards. The international festival will now interact with the most important institutions in the city including one of the most anticipated dates of the event; the Gala Concert of soprano Angela Gheorghiu on June 12th. As part of Ms. Gheorghiu’s appearance with the Orchestra del Maggio Fiorentino at the Teatro Nuovo, the great Romanian star will receive the designation as a UNESCO "Artist for Peace" in the sign of recognition for promoting respect for diversity and understanding through music.
Continuing with the Tuscan Sun Festival’s aim of presenting a multi-disciplinary festival, the musical performances will be enhanced by a literary collaboration with the innovative Palazzo Strozzi, a cinematic partnership with the stunning Odeon Cinehall in Florence as well as a series of gastronomic adventures under the heading of ‘Nuove Tradizioni’.

Nuove Tradizioni events will feature celebrated chefs of the Italian Culinary vanguard; Paolo Lopriore from Il Canto in Siena, Carlo Cracco from Ristorante Cracco in Milan, Davide Scabin from Combal.Zero in Rivoli (Turin), Vito Mollica from the Four Seasons in Florence and Massimo Bottura from the Osteria Francescana in Modena.

Founder and Director of the Festival, Barrett Wissman, said, “We wanted to launch a new challenge this year for the Festival and we are delighted to do this in Florence. It is named the ‘Tuscan’ Sun Festival as we had always intended to represent the finest calibre of arts Tuscany has to offer. To achieve this goal, we have broadened our horizons, expanded our opportunities and found new partners which will further add to the dimension, breadth and international profile of our Festival.”

Florence is often referred to as experiencing a “New Renaissance”. As a city with a rich and historic cultural fabric, it is actively investing in its own future. For the 2012 event, the Tuscan Sun Festival gratefully acknowledges the tremendous support of Mayor Renzi and the City of Florence, the Ente Cassa di Risparmio of Florence as well as the Fondazione Teatro della Pergola.
The festival’s exciting film and literature programmes will be announced over the next several weeks.

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For further information, contact:

Tristen Hennigs, International Press
thennigs@imgartists.com

Laura Ruggieri, Italian Press
l.r.comunicazione@libero.it

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