Born in Giovinazzo, Bari, where she undertook her musical studies, in 1988 Maria Pia Piscitelli won the ASLICO competition in Milan and made her début at the Teatro Olimpico of Vicenza as the protagonist of Cavalli's La Calisto, recorded on CD. In 1990 she was a finalist in the Maria Callas International Contest and in 1991 she won the Schwetzingen Gioachino Rossini International Competition. Her career has taken her to houses throughout Europe and the Americas and in Japan, with leading rôles in operas from Mozart to Prokofiev. In addition, she enjoys a busy concert schedule, with repertoire ranging from Schubert and Mendelssohn to Richard Strauss.

JANUARY 2009