Bianca D'Aponte Award, Mauro Pagani Receives Lifetime Achievement Award from the City of Aversa

On October 27th and 28th the final of the contest reserved for female singer-songwriters, with godmother Nina Zilli and guests of the calibre of Cristiano Godano.

The City of Aversa's Lifetime Achievement Award, which was given in recent years to Nuova Compagnia di Canto Popolare, Peppino di Capri and Paola Pitagora, will go to Mauro Pagani. The award is given as part of the Bianca d'Aponte Award, the contest for female singer-songwriters now in its 19th edition, scheduled at the Cimarosa theater in Aversa on October 27 and 28, 2023, under the artistic direction of Ferruccio Spinetti.

In addition to Pagani, guests on stage will include Cristiano Godano, Flo, Moa (last year's winner, who will traditionally open the two evenings) and various other leading artists on the Italian music scene, who will be announced soon.

The godmother of this edition is already known: Nina Zilli, who will be responsible for singing a song by Bianca d'Aponte, the singer-songwriter to whom the Award is dedicated, and for presiding over the competition's jury.

A series of new proposals of Italian singer-songwriter will compete, namely: Ilaria Argiolas (Rome), Arianna Battilana of Mockingjay (Varese), Irene Buselli (Genoa), Cristina Cafiero (Naples), Veronica Di Nocera (Caserta), Francesca Giannizzari (Potenza), Chiara Ianniciello (Salerno), Alessandra Nazzaro (Naples), Santanna (L'Aquila).

A resident band, coordinated and directed by Alessandro Crescenzo, will accompany some competitors and some guests.

The Bianca d'Aponte Award is organized by the Bianca d'Aponte Association, in collaboration with Rete Doc, and is also supported by SIAE – Italian Society of Authors and Publishers and NuovoImaie.

The hosting of the two evenings is entrusted to Carlotta Scarlatto and Ottavio Nieddu.

The finalists were selected, in a month and a half of work, by the Award Guarantee Committee, made up of dozens of producers, record companies, managers, singers, authors, musicians, journalists among the most accredited in the Italian music world. Many of the members of the Committee will also be part of the two juries, the general one and the critics' one, which will award the prizes during the final evenings.

The winner of the overall prize will receive a scholarship of €1.000, while the winner of the “Fausto Mesolella” Critics’ Award (in homage to the event’s historic artistic director) will receive a scholarship of €800. The general jury will also award plaques for the best text (this year dedicated to Oscar Avogadro), the best music and the best interpretation. As every year, there will also be several other prizes and bonuses proposed by individual members of the jury or by organizations and associations close to d'Aponte, such as concerts, participation in other festivals, production and publication of songs, creation of videos, legal and managerial assistance, artistic collaborations. Among the various bonuses, a new feature is the possibility for the winner to participate as a guest in the 2024 edition of Music for Change, organized by Musica contro le Mafie, while, like last year, the winner of the Critics’ Award will be a guest of the Nilla Pizzi Award.

Meanwhile, NuovoImaie has confirmed the economic contribution (thanks to the funds of art. 7 L. 93/92) aimed at creating a tour of six concerts for the winner of the 2022 edition.

Festival partners include Emergency, MAU, SIAE – Italian Society of Authors and Publishers, NuovoImaie, Doclive, Rete Doc, the Andrea Parodi Award, Sounds from Italy, “Pem! Festival – Words and Music in Monferrato,” L'isola che non c'era, Blogfoolk, the Italian Cultural Institute of Madrid, Officina Pasolini (a creative laboratory for advanced training and cultural hub of the Lazio Region), Maieutica Dischi, Siedas, the Virginia Musto Award, Virus Studio, Soundinside, and the Nilla Pizzi Award.

For more information: 336 694666 – 335 5383937; info@biancadaponte.it