Danilo Rea has made the piano his inner voice and improvisation his natural language.
Born in Vicenza and adopted by Rome, he graduated in Classical Piano from the Conservatory of Santa Cecilia. Yet from a very young age he chose the path of jazz, quickly finding himself sharing the stage with giants of the international music scene.
His collaborations with artists such as Lee Konitz, Chet Baker, Art Farmer, Johnny Griffin, the trio featuring John Scofield and John Patitucci, as well as David Liebman, Bobby Hutcherson, Curtis Fuller, Bob Berg, Steve Grossman, Michael Brecker, Randy Brecker, Billy Cobham, Albert Mangelsdorff and Dannie Richmond were not merely encounters, but formative experiences that shaped a unique musical sensibility, balancing discipline and instinct.
He has always nurtured a deep passion for the piano duo format, which has led him to share the stage with masters such as Brad Mehldau, Danilo Pérez and Michel Camilo, creating intense musical dialogues and fascinating stylistic cross-pollinations.
At the same time, Rea developed a profound connection with the great tradition of Italian song. He worked alongside Mina for more than fifteen albums, accompanying her with rare intensity.
He has collaborated with Claudio Baglioni, Pino Daniele, Fiorella Mannoia, Rino Gaetano, Riccardo Cocciante, Fabio Concato, Gianni Morandi, Adriano Celentano and Gino Paoli, with whom he recorded three piano-and-voice duo albums and one quintet album.
With Fiorella Mannoia he recorded a duo album and performed extensively in concert, just as he did with Gino Paoli, creating artistic partnerships of remarkable depth and poetic intensity.
His artistic exploration extends beyond music. Danilo Rea is deeply fascinated by the interaction between different art forms.
He has collaborated with actors, writers and screenwriters in performances that unite word and sound, breath and thought. Among his artistic partners are Arnoldo Foà, Lella Costa, Valerio Mastandrea, Giorgio Albertazzi, Paola Cortellesi, Isa Danieli, Enrico Lo Verso, Fabrizio Gifuni, Sonia Bergamasco, Barbara Bovoli, Nino Manfredi and David Grossman.
He has composed film scores, collaborating with Carlo Verdone, Giuseppe Piccioni, Walter Veltroni and Umberto Contarello.
On television, he has appeared alongside international legends of music and cinema, including B. B. King, Tony Curtis, Cassandra Wilson, Sting, Dionne Warwick, Olivia Newton-John, Michael Bolton, Mireille Mathieu and Chaka Khan.
With the group Doctor 3, alongside Enzo Pietropaoli and Fabrizio Sferra, he won the annual Musica Jazz magazine critics’ poll several times as Best Group and for Best Italian Album of the Year.
Through his solo piano projects Lirico and Lost in Europe, Rea has opened a new chapter in solo piano performance. Improvising on opera arias and popular songs, he transforms collective memory into living sound, vibrating through his hands and becoming a shared narrative with his audience.
Awards and Honours
-Commander of the Italian Republic (Commendatore della Repubblica Italiana)
-Vittorio De Sica Award
-John Paul II Award
-Django d’Or Award
He is also featured in The Biographical Encyclopedia of Jazz by Leonard Feather and Ira Gitler, one of the most authoritative reference works in the world of jazz.
Yet despite decades of success and appearances on some of the world’s most prestigious stages, Rea remains the same passionate and enthusiastic young musician, still searching for truth in sound and a story in every note. It is this spirit that he continues to share with audiences, with unwavering integrity and passion.