Tonin Guraziu: The Pioneer of the Albanian Piano
– On the occasion of his 118th birth anniversary: March 30, 1908 – January 09, 1999 –
Memorie.al / Born in Shkodër, on the street of the Gurazezt (“Gjuhadol”) on March 30, 1908, Tonin Guraziu moved with his family to Italy in 1912. There, he completed his primary and secondary education, followed by his studies at the Philharmonic Academy (The Royal Philharmonic Academy of Bologna). Enchanted by Italian art and the classical concerts he was able to attend thanks to his family’s progressive vision, Tonin Guraziu showed early signs of talent, forming a lifelong bond with music – a love that would never betray him. After graduating from the Royal Academy in Bologna in 1931, where he was awarded the maximum grade (30/30), he returned to Albania. This marked the beginning of his first series of concerts and the dawn of the first generation of professional Albanian artists.
- Tonin Guraziu is the first Albanian pianist to graduate from a European Philharmonic Academy (La Regia Accademia Filarmonica di Bologna, 29.03.1931).
- Together with the soprano Marije Paluca Kraja, he was a pioneer of the first classical music concerts in the history of Albanian music (Rozafa Cinema, March 1936, Shkodër).
- He is the founder of the Piano Department at the “Liceu Artistik” (Artistic Lyceum) in Tirana.
- He served as the Concertmaster for the first staged operatic productions in Albania.
- He was the first Albanian pianist to perform Grieg’s Piano Concerto in collaboration with the Tirana Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra at the People’s Theatre in 1954.
- He is the founder of the Piano Department at the Higher Institute of Arts.
- He is the first Albanian composer to write music for classical ballet: ‘Rozafa – Ballet in one act’, 1951.
The collapse of the communist dictatorship found the first Albanian pianist, Tonin Guraziu, at 82 years old. Nevertheless, the stage remained his kingdom. Defying his advanced years, at the age of 88, he commanded the stage of the “Migjeni” Theatre in his hometown, performing a piano concert to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the first classical music concert in Albanian history (Shkodër, March 1936). At the age of 90 (April 1998), he successfully performed his final concert on the prestigious stage of the Theatre of Opera and Ballet in Tirana. Leaning against his piano, these irreversible moments were captured on film, marking a definitive chapter in the history of music.
The First Concert, alongside Marije Kraja
It was the distant year of 1936, in the month of March. Thanks to the magazine ‘Cirka’, the organization of the first classical music concert in Albania was recorded. The hall of the “Rozafa” Cinema in Shkodër was packed to capacity. Before a distinguished and highly enthusiastic audience, soprano Marie Paluca (Kraja) and pianist Tonin Guraziu performed. Thus it began! The first concert of classical music in Albania was established.
The repertoire included not only great world composers like Liszt and Chopin but also Shkodran folk songs arranged for the piano. It was an indisputable success! The celebration continued at “Kafja e Madhe,” where the people of Shkodër were not only pioneers but also witnesses to this turning point in the history of music in Albania. The path was now open. The concert did not remain only in Shkodër but traveled to another corner of Albania where culture was highly developed: in Korçë, the success was equally undeniable.
The Magic of Tefta Tashko Koço
The first time Tonin Guraziu heard her voice was in 1936. He was present in the hall when Tefta Tashko was giving a concert in Tirana. Tonin confided to his diary: “She sang very well; she was elegant and educated in Paris.” A year later, alongside soprano Tefta Tashko, they performed a concert at Radio Bari, Italy, on the occasion of the opening of the “Fiera di Levante” trade fair.
In 1938, they gave another concert together in Elbasan, and in early 1939 – on the eve of the fascist occupation of Albania – they undertook a tour of Southern Albania (Durrës, Kavajë, Fier, and Vlorë). The pianist continuously shared his thoughts with his diary, and after this tour, he wrote: “In Vlorë, the audience was the warmest.” These concerts in Albania were followed by broad artistic participation in the international activity “Maggio Fiorentino” in May 1939, in Florence.
Compositions Published for the First Time
Although for decades the pianist Tonin Guraziu – a 1931 graduate of the Bologna Philharmonic Academy—was a professor at our conservatory, his compositions were rarely staged. These were piano pieces intentionally created to exclude lyrics, thus silently refusing to compose hymns of praise for communism.
The piano pieces composed by Guraziu during the period of the communist dictatorship in Albania were published for the first time in the book “Tonin Guraziu: A Life at the Piano” by author Filip Guraziu, in collaboration with renowned artists Robert Radoja and Adelina Hoxha, in 2007. / Memorie.al
List of Works:
- “Oh sa pranë të dy jemi” (Oh, How Close We Both Are) – Romance
- “Rozafa” – Ballet in 1 Act
- “Vallja e zanave” (Dance of the Fairies) – Valse Lento
- “Mbrritja e Rozafës” (The Arrival of Rozafa) – Allegretto
- “Vokalica e Rozafës” – Lento
- “Vallja e burrave” (Men’s Dance) – Lento
- “Lumi i Matit” (The Mat River) – Allegro
- “Kruja” – The Epic of Gjergj Kastrioti
- “Gjirokastra” – Fantasy
- “Fantazi malcore” (Highland Fantasy) – May 1952
- “Humoreska” – Allegro
- “Kanga e fyellit” (Song of the Flute) – Dedicated to his granddaughter
- “Pastorale” – Lento
- “Skerco” (Scherzo) – Allegretto, November 1956
