Bolognese mother, Neapolitan father, Ettore Pagano grew up in the Sabina countryside, in Poggio Mirteto, in a family of six children. He approached the cello at the age of nine, self-taught, picking up an instrument found at home and “given up” by one of his brothers. His was a gradual, spontaneous approach, which had no (at least in the initial phase) academic projects. And yet, from that moment on, Ettore Pagano turned everything he touched into gold. At fourteen, he had his first audition at the Stauffer Academy with Antonio Meneses, who immediately understood the incredible potential of that very young talent, raw and undisciplined, but already overwhelming. Today, at just twenty-two, Ettore Pagano is a virtuoso with the career of a forty-year-old, who bewitches and sends into raptures the audiences of all the theaters in which he debuts. After the first prize at the Brahms Competition in Pörtschach, the first prize at the Khachaturian Cello Competition in Yerevan and the second prize — as well as two special prizes, including the Audience Award — at the Enescu Cello Competition in Bucharest, in 2025 Ettore Pagano adds the ICMA-Classeek Award to his already prestigious list of awards, thanks to which he will perform on March 19 at the Tonhalle in Düsseldorf, Germany.

Let’s start with congratulations for this latest laurel, which crowns a long series of successes. How do you feel?
I confess that I did not expect it. It was a surprise, which I welcomed with enthusiasm and great gratitude. It is an acknowledgement that in itself is an important calling card, furthermore thanks to this award I will have the opportunity to play as a soloist a piece by Popper with the Düsseldorfer Symphoniker at the local Tonhalle, in the gala concert that will be held on March 19. For a young man like me, who has just begun his career, these are important things.

I appreciate the modesty, but your career has been going strong for a while now…
Actually, for a couple of years, after the victories at the Khachaturian and Enescu. But this award is something different, it has a special value. You win a competition if you have a competitive personality, if you are a stage animal, able to handle stress and tension, but being a musician is a different story. The ICMA-Classeek Award rewards the artist, and that is why it is particularly dear to me. And then among the winners there will be incredible musicians like Gidon Kremer: they are really great company!

Let’s go back to the competitions. Which one was the one that launched you the most?
In terms of importance, I would say Enescu. But, you see, even the “smaller” competitions can be significant stages in the life of a young artist. The Khachaturian, for example, is the one that gave me the most impetus, because after the victory I started working hard. Then, if I think of the sixteen-year-old Ettore, a competition like the Brahms, which is certainly smaller than the Khachaturian or the Enescu, was equally important, because it made me become aware of myself, and made me understand that I could make the cello my life and my work.

You have won more than forty competitions. When did you start?
From the very beginning, but I don’t want to be associated only with competitions, my musical path has also been much more. I did many because as a child I was very shy, I was ashamed to play in public… today if I think about it it’s incredible, but I almost struggled to shoot the bow. So, my mother, who is a musician, encouraged me to do many, just to give me opportunities to play, to unblock myself. Let’s say that doing competitions helped me to compare myself with very good guys, it gave me motivation.

In your experience, is this the only way to be successful in the concert world?
No, it’s not the only one, but it’s certainly the most meritocratic. I have an average background, my mother is a music teacher, so I didn’t have any particular contacts. It was the competitions that brought me here. Even if, as I was saying, these aren’t enough to establish yourself as an artist. Competitions are useful for gaining visibility, for being heard, but then other qualities come into play. And the phantom « mafia » doesn’t exist for me, or rather, it’s something physiological in the world of music as in other worlds.

Can you explain it better?
The world of music is made of knowledge, in the sense of human contact. It is obvious that I play better if I am on stage with musicians with whom I feel good also humanly, with whom I am at ease. A career is not made only by studying your part perfectly. You also need to know how to manage interpersonal relationships, be reliable, know how to manage yourself with an orchestra where there are dozens of other musicians, possibly without making yourself unpleasant.

You are very young, and you are already enjoying extraordinary success. How are you managing this period of your life?
I have to be honest: it’s a golden moment, I really should jump for joy, but my head tells me to keep my feet on the ground. I’m continuing to study, with humility, because I know that if I changed my attitude, I would also cause a change in everything else. I’m focusing on my artistic personality: on the one hand I would like to remain myself, on the other I know that true maturation will come with time. Let’s say that my dream is to become a great person as well as a great musician.

Let’s talk about your education. Did you start as a self-taught artist?
Yes, at nine years old. I have five brothers; one was a cellist. He stopped, I took the cello from him, and I started, just like that, on my own. Zero technique, zero setting, just a great desire to play. It was a natural thing, instinctive, more than a game I would say a physical challenge between me and the instrument. Then I had some private teachers in Rome, and I joined a boys’ orchestra.

And then there was the first, important, passage at the Accademia Stauffer, with Antonio Meneses.
Yes, I had been wanting to audition with him for a year. The first lessons were traumatic, once he kicked me out of class. I was technically very messy, there was no school in my playing, no rigor. Plus, I was repulsed by any kind of academicism. Meneses was able to transform my raw talent into something more orderly, structured.

Unfortunately he recently left us. What do you remember of him as an artist?
He was a hermetic person, who did not inspire confidence. There was never a real moment of human contact between us: we spoke, of course, but he was always very detached. He gave concrete advice, he supported the musician more than the person. His teaching method was particular, because you did not realize that you were improving. Sometimes it was difficult, because it seemed like you were always stuck at the starting point. You had to believe in it, trust him. But after a few months of intense study, you found yourself completely reshaped. And the extraordinary thing is that he was able to do it with everyone.

Besides Antonio Meneses, which other teachers were fundamental to your path?
Without a doubt David Geringas, with whom I studied at the Accademia Chigiana. Geringas has an approach diametrically opposed to that of Meneses. He gave me so much from a human point of view, then he has a huge experience, he was a student of Rostropovich, so each lesson was a condensation of anecdotes, of stories. With him I learned to be a more complete musician, to see the score in its entirety.

How would you define your way of playing?
Extreme. I don’t hold back, I take listeners from inside, from the stomach, rather than from a rational point of view. I realize that sometimes I do things that are interpretatively at the limit compared to what is written in the score. Obviously, this approach receives both praise and criticism. I accept criticism, but I take it into account up to a certain point, because when I play, I have to propose my interpretation, my vision of the piece I’m playing, and I want the performance to be overwhelming, to have impetus, passion.

How many hours do you dedicate to studying each day?
In a typical day, where there are no trips or concerts — which rarely happens, however — about six hours. Then I do something else. I read a book, watch a movie, I like to play chess. I dedicate time to my family, when I can reach them, and to my loved ones. I believe that studying compulsively for many hours a day is not the key to success. Discipline is important, but you also have to live your life, be balanced, have an overall vision of the things that happen. And, above all, know how to listen.

You touched on an important topic: how important is listening for you?
It is fundamental. For me, music is made for 90% listening. The risk, when you are a soloist, is to concentrate too much on yourself; instead you must always take into account that on stage you are not alone and knowing how to listen to what the orchestra is doing is a necessary condition for a good performance. But listening and listening to yourself is important at every level. For example, you must have the ability, after an intense practice session, to understand when the time has come to put the instrument down and stop. Know your physiological limit, beyond which you are just getting too carried away.

And what does Ettore Pagano do when he puts down his cello?
The first thing I do is sit down, take the score, observe it and analyze it without playing. I look above all at what the orchestra does. Then, you see, in my opinion, if you want to be musicians who have something to say, in addition to training to be perfect performers, you also have to do something else<three> know other art forms, cultivate friendships and human relationships, it is also important to know how to be good company when you are in front of a pizza. I repeat, it is only by living a life as « normal » as possible that you regenerate yourself, and it is from everyday life that you draw inspiration.

Speaking of inspiration, if we were to talk about other cellists, from yesterday and today, which are the ones you most admire?
If I think of the greats of the past, of course Rostropovich, but also Heinrich Schiff, who is a point of reference especially for Shostakovich’s Concertos. If instead you ask me two names among today’s cellists, I say Enrico Dindo and Mario Brunello, with whom I have a good relationship.

Nowadays the cello has been brought back into fashion to the general public also thanks to Stjepan Hauser, who offers a repertoire that is mainly pop and rock. Do you like it?
Let’s start by saying that Hauser has an incredible technique, and this is a point that cannot be questioned. Then, it is true, the cello is a less popular instrument than the piano and the violin. It is also thanks to Hauser if many young people have approached the cello, or if the public has begun to love its particularities. For the rest, I do not only listen to classical music, I believe that it is necessary to have a knowledge that ranges 360°. I am young, so I want to be updated on what is happening in our time. Of course, today the general trend is to valorize a type of music that involves you in the moment, but that is not able to offer anything lasting.

Among non-classical music, what is your favorite genre?
I think rap is an interesting genre. It has an ancient sense of rhythm, and it’s better than many corny songs.

Today you live in Berlin. How do you like it?
Very good, I am finishing a Master with Jens Peter Maintz at UdK Berlin. I am also studying a lot of German, a fundamental language for my work. Maintz is a very renowned musician throughout Europe, there are students who come from all over the world to study with him.

Do you think Germany is the best place for a young musician to find success nowadays?
It depends. My sister is a singer and lives in Vienna, a city that is perfect for opera singers and in general for the world of opera. For instrumental music and symphony, Berlin and Western Germany are definitely the right place.

And Italy?
It’s not that there aren’t extraordinary talents in Italy, but from a symphonic point of view, Italy is not considered first-rate. Too bad, I’m convinced that we Italians have more value than other countries give us.

One last question. Can you give us some previews of your upcoming debuts?
After my debut last February 28th at the Teatro Filarmonico in Verona, with Shostakovich’s Second and the Orchestra della Fondazione Arena, conducted by Dmitri Jurowski, another important event was in March, from 13th to 15th, at the Parco della Musica in Rome, with Brahms’s Double Concerto together with Sayaka Shoji and the Orchestra dell’Accademia di Santa Cecilia conducted by Thomas Guggeis. As a preview, I can tell you that on April 5th, at the Sale Apollinee of the Teatro La Fenice in Venice, I will receive the « Una vita nella Musica » Giovani 2025 award, together with Rudolf Buchbinder who will be awarded the main prize. Then I will be in Munich, with Arabella Steinbacher and the Quartetto di Cremona ; this summer, among other things, Cervo, Ravello, and the Chigiana with a program dedicated to Sciarrino are on the program.