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Renato Diz

Renato Diz is a Portuguese pianist, composer and producer based in New York.

Born in Porto, Portugal, Renato studied classical piano exclusively for 12 years, under the tutelage of Dr. Rui Pintão, at Fundação Conservatório Regional de Gaia.

A chance encounter with jazz at a concert by pianist and composer Carlos Azevedo, introduced him to the world of improvised music and he decided to pursue his studies in this art. In 2004 he became a private student of Carlos Azevedo and in 2006 he was accepted in the leading jazz program on the Iberian Peninsula at the time, for a Bachelor’s Degree in Musical Performance at ESMAE - IPP in Porto. His main teachers were Michael Lauren and Abe Rábade in jazz, and Sofia Lourenço and José Parra in classical piano. Also, during the same period he had private lessons with the acclaimed pianist Mário Laginha.

During these years in Portugal, Renato Diz worked throughout the country with several projects of his own and collaborations with other artists, namely a trio with Alberto Jorge and Acácio Salero with whom he toured extensively and the experimental project IALASPI. In 2009 he co-wrote and recorded the soundtrack for the documentary "Memórias De Um Lugar", awarded Official Selection at Curtas Vila do Conde Festival. In 2010 he won the International Art Projects Competition of the Fundação Serralves with his multimedia project Poema Visual Em Forma De Concerto A Partir Do Conto “O Fascínio Do Pequeno Lago” De Virginia Woolf, with which he held an artistic residency at the Serralves em Festa Festival.

In 2011, Renato Diz moved to New York to pursue a Master's Degree in Music Performance at the prestigious New York University, which he concluded Summa Cum Laude. His mentors were Ralph Alessi, Jean-Michel Pilc, Tony Moreno and Andy Milne in jazz, and Marilyn Nonken and José Ramón Mendez in classical and postmodern piano. During this period, he received a scholarship from New York University for Extraordinary Performance, a scholarship from Ella Fitzgerald Foundation for Unique Performance in the Area of Improvised Music, and a Leake & Watts Citizenship Award for Artistic Contributions to the American Society. He was also Assistant Professor in the departments of Jazz and Classical Piano at New York University.

In 2013 he began a duo collaboration with saxophonist Zulfugar Baghirov, a modern and innovative interpretation for duo of selected symphonic works by Azeri / Soviet composers Qara Qarayev, Zakir Baghirov, Faradj Qarayev and Uzeyir Hajibayov. Sponsored entirely by the Karabakh Foundation, the album "QaraBag" was engineered by Joseph Patrych and mixed/mastered by multi Grammy-Award Winner Silas Brown. "QaraBag" was released in 2014, its first physical edition sold out in just two weeks and holds 14 uncanny 5-star reviews on Amazon.

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"Stunning... Piercing... Enchanting!!!" - Huffington Post

"...reveals mastery in shaping sonic contortions that draw mystery and uneasiness. Only open-minded creators are capable of feeling so comfortable within these atmospheres, where everything is strange and yet nothing is out of place." - JazzTrail

“Sensibility, humor, virtuosity, ears and heart... Renato has it all. I always learn something when I hear him play. An exhilarating experience!” - Jean-Michel Pilc

“A talented young pianist who is creating a nicely hybridized style of piano playing drawing from the pools of jazz, free improvisation and contemporary classical music.” - Ralph Alessi

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Photos

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Breathing Taiwan

W&J Productions
2017

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EARPRINTS

W&J Productions
2016

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Poetics Of Sight

W&J Productions
2016

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Distance Chemistry

W&J Productions
2016

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Karachacha: Aire...

Saponegro Records
2015

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QaraBag

ZulfiqaRenatuS
2014

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Videos

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