Carlo Zecchi

Carlo Zecchi (8 July 1903, Rome – 31 August 1984, Salzburg) was an Italian pianist and conductor. He studied in Rome and later in Berlin with Ferruccio Busoni and Artur Schnabel.

He made his debut as a pianist in 1920 and toured in Europe from 1922, gaining a reputation by the end of the 1920s as an outstanding pianist. The core of his repertoire included works by Robert Schumann and Franz Liszt, as well as early Italian music.

After a car accident in 1939 he abandoned his solo career, but continued to perform as a pianist in chamber ensembles, including demanding parts. He was particularly known for his duo with the cellist Enrico Mainardi.

From 1941 he appeared as a guest conductor with major orchestras in Europe, as well as in the United States, South American countries, and Japan. He performed in the USSR on multiple occasions, first as a pianist in 1928 and later as a conductor in 1949.

From 1964 to 1976 Zecchi led the Vienna Chamber Orchestra. He taught at the Santa Cecilia Academy in Rome and at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, and from 1945 to 1947 served as managing commissioner of the Rossini Conservatory in Pesaro.

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