Giuseppe Blanco

Giuseppe Blanco (b. 1995) is an Italian jazz pianist and composer. He earned his Bachelor's degree in Jazz Piano in 2017 from the Civici Corsi di Jazz with a thesis titled “The Piano as an Orchestra: From Stride Piano to Contemporary Developments.” In 2021, he completed his Master’s degree at the Conservatorio G. Verdi in Milan, with a thesis on Chick Corea’s music for ten instruments titled “To Chick Corea – Music Without Boundaries.”

Blanco has studied with prominent musicians including Alberto Alibrandi, Seby Burgio, Giovanni Mazzarino, Enrico Intra, Paolo Tomelleri, Tony Arco, and Gabriele Comeglio. He has also participated in masterclasses with Barry Harris, Dave Liebman, Lenny White, Joe Lovano, Peter Bernstein, Gerald Cannon, Peter Erskine, and Valery Piassetsky.

His early accolades include being named “Eccellenza Iblea, Talento in carriera” by Ibla Classica International in 2012 and receiving the “Eccellenza Musicale Iblea” award in 2012, 2013, and 2014. In 2014, he won first prize at the International Piano Competition “Giuseppe Ierna” in Floridia and received the Young Talent Special Mention at the Ibla Grand Prize, presided over by Marcello Abbado. In 2015, he toured the U.S., performing at venues such as the New York University and Carnegie Hall, and received positive reviews from critic Jeffrey James (Sound Word Sight). That same year, he was awarded the New York University Audience Award and the Villa Anna Audience Award.

Since 2016, he has performed with Enrico Intra’s Civica Jazz Band, collaborating with artists such as Paolo Fresu, Tiziana Ghiglioni, Pietro Tonolo, Claudio Fasoli, Roberto Ottaviano, and Maurizio Giammarco. In 2017, he recorded the album Milanology with bassist Masatoshi Shoji and Davide Borgonovo.

Selected in 2018 by Dado Moroni for the international Medinea project at Nuoro Jazz, Blanco later placed second at the Conservatory Prize in both 2019 and 2021 with projects dedicated to Herbie Hancock and Chick Corea.

Blanco is a founding member of DÀIEN5, an Italo-Finnish hard bop quintet. With the group, he has released three albums of original compositions: First Pick (2021), Live at Philly Joe’s (2022), and Teatro Sociale (2024). The band has toured extensively in Italy and Northern Europe, performing at SaloJazz, Kalott Jazz, Dolomiti Ski Jazz, Lagarina Jazz Festival, and Riva del Garda Jazz. In 2023, he also recorded Time Chamber with Monique Chao’s orchestra and his first solo piano album Nubi sul mare, focused on original compositions, odd meters, and orchestral approaches to the piano.

Blanco has performed at venues such as Teatro Arcimboldi, Teatro Dal Verme, Teatro Piccolo Strehler, Palazzina Liberty, Castello Sforzesco, Carnegie Hall (NYC), Palazzo Ducale (Venice), and Atelier des Lumières (Paris). He has played at major festivals including Umbria Jazz, Siena Jazz, Nuoro Jazz, Novara Jazz, Crema Jazz Art, and Iseo Jazz, and has toured in France, Estonia, Finland, Hungary, the UAE, and Bahrain.

He has collaborated with numerous musicians including Paolo Tomelleri, Tino Tracanna, Giulio Visibelli, Tony Arco, Marco Vaggi, Emilio Soana, Robert Bonisolo, Joyce Yuille, and Vanessa Rubin.