The online magazine Odkano has published in full the interview that appeared on Gazzetta del Sud by Mafalda Meduri. You can read the full interview (in english) here>>

Here’s a translated excerpt.

There are boundaries that are merely an illusion. Like the one between science and music. Between the precision of a theorem and the emotion of a note. Ingrid Carbone lives and creates in that land of light where opposites speak and complement each other. They generate a new language. She is a pianist from Cosenza with an international career. She is a researcher in Mathematical Analysis at the University of Calabria.

Two souls? No, a single consciousness that explores the world with the dual tools of logic and intuition. From university classrooms to Middle Eastern theaters, she dispels the prejudice that classical music—and mathematics—are for the select few. And she does so with her “concert-conversations,” where, between narrative and music, the explanation does not precede the performance, but permeates it, guiding the audience in a conscious listening experience, rich in history, images, and poetry.
We asked Ingrid Carbone to reveal the behind-the-scenes story of this alchemy. With the same clarity with which he explains a function to students and the same passion with which he evokes the waves of the Strait of Messina on the piano. Because his is always a single, splendid lesson: the need to go beyond the surface. To fish, without settling for what you catch.

“Conversation-concert” method: what is the founding principle of this innovative format, and how do you balance words and music to guide the audience toward conscious listening?

“The goal is to break the stereotype of classical music as reserved for the few, a prejudice that persists in Italy, alongside the prejudice about mathematics. I demonstrate the beauty of music by connecting it to the context that generates it. My idea is to provide images, suggestions, to show the audience what I see and hear when I study a piece. I do this by playing the piano, exemplifying passages, drawing people into my world. It’s a conscious listening experience born from rigorous, almost scientific study, which requires research: understanding the historical context, the biography, and the poetry that inspired the piece. It’s a comprehensive dissemination of music and culture.”

Rapid cultural consumption is an undeniable current trend. How do your activities counteract the tendency to “skip the line” and stimulate critical thinking?

“It’s a crucial point. The viewer experiences the fruit of months, years of complex, multidimensional work. And they perceive it. I don’t administer cultural “pills,” but a coherent narrative that takes time to prepare and, upon listening, takes time to savor. The viewer immerses themselves in a story with a beginning, a middle, and its own atmosphere. My work stands in stark contrast to the trend toward speed: I could have done what I do today twenty years ago, without current technology. In those moments, time as we understand it ceases to exist. It inspires curiosity, a patience that cannot be exhausted in a slogan.”