“A Bolt From the Blue”

Tony Cicoria was a successful orthopedic surgeon at the time he was struck by lightning, and had little to no experience with classical music. Rock & roll and motorcycles were more to his liking. To learn piano in one’s 40s is remarkably difficult – not to speak of mastering the idiom so as to compose a score that will stand the test of time. Tony devoted himself – night and day, for over a decade – to bringing the Lightning Sonata to life. Indeed, it became his life. Famed neurologist Oliver Sacks described Tony’s newfound genius in a 2007 article in the New Yorker, and featured Tony’s story in the first chapter of his book Musicophilia.

Tony believes that a higher power returned him to this earth in order to share this beautiful music. We agree!