In September 26th, date of birth of the composer, I will perform in Bologna at MAMBo – Museo d’Arte Moderna di Bologna a recital dedicated to Giuseppe Chiari. MAMBo offers in fact the first complete retrospective exhibit of the work of Chiari in occasion of his centennial.
My musical contribution, Fluxus Cardboards for Giuseppe Chiari, will revolve around his long-date relationship with Fluxus group members and shared attitude. Besides Chiari’s compositions from different creative periods – before, during and after the crucial Gesti sul piano – there will be pieces by Philip Corner (inspired by Chiari), Giancarlo Cardini (friend, interpreter and creative fellow of him) and Mieko Shiomi, whose composition represents the performative and poetic side of Fluxus attitude. More soon!
Thanks to the invitation of Mario Chiari, the son of the artist, and of MAMBo – Museo d’Arte Moderna di Bologna, I have the worderful opportunity to immerse myself in the work of Giuseppe Chiari.
I already knew Gesti sul Piano, his most famous and experimental work on the keyboard. Watching the video artworks of his hands, dialoguing as individual characters with the piano and with each other, left me enchanted and moved at the same time. I also had the feeling that this was the poetic output of a rigorous critical reflection, though. It was correct; now I’m diving into critical essays, conceptual art statements, art books, photographic series of his performances, videos, recordings and finally, yes, scores (in standard, verbal, graphic notation) of this prolific composer, performer, artist welcomed by the Fluxus movement as well as by the conceptual art milieu.
In the occasion of his centennial (Chiari was born in Florence in 1926) several detailed books about him have been published, precious maps to navigate into his constantly-in-progress work.
This is the case with Gesti sul Piano, whose first score was written in 1962 and undergone many transformations, following the creativity of his author who became soon the performer of the piece (before him the dedicatee, Frederic Rzewski, and Giancarlo Cardini). From paper – verbal and graphic scores – to pictures and videos, from open composition to performance and improvisation, the life of this work left many different traces. Collecting them makes me feel as in a kind of treasure hunt – I’ll write more about this later.
And now it comes the funniest part: playing “with” Gesti sul piano. A playfully serious way of opening doors… what will be on the other side?
“The man is unaware that the keys exist to him / the keyboard is just a long white strip he realized however that his hands and arms can leave an imprint on the keyboard just as they would on sand he realized that his anger his anxiety his tension his rigidity his apathy his tenderness would leave for a moment a furious tender imprint on the white keys…
he has never seen anyone play the piano he cannot conceive that a single finger is meant for a single key“ Giuseppe Chiari, 1969
Playing with Giuseppe Chiari’s Gesti sul Piano
Front image: Photo from the exhibition “Party Chiari & Amicizie Fluxus” at Galleria Susanna Orlando – Pietrasanta, 2026
