[Provided by Keimyung University]
[Provided by Keimyung University]

Keimyung University conferred an honorary doctorate in music on Massimiliano Baggio, president of the Conservatorio di Musica Giuseppe Verdi in Milan, at a ceremony held Thursday in the Dongcheon Hall international seminar room.

The university said the degree recognized Baggio's contributions to arts education as a world-class pianist and educator, as well as his role in advancing cultural and academic exchange between South Korea and Italy.

Born in Naples in 1961, Baggio graduated at the top of his class from the piano department of the Milan conservatory.

He went on to win prizes at numerous international competitions, including the Gian Battista Viotti International Music Competition, establishing his reputation as a performer.

Since taking office as president in 2022, he has built an integrated curriculum combining music and performance planning, expanded international exchange programs, and strengthened the conservatory's capacity to train next-generation artists.

Baggio has also played a central role in developing the partnership with Keimyung University. Since the two institutions signed a cooperation agreement in 2018, he has driven ongoing personnel exchanges, joint concerts and masterclasses, and from 2022 has served as a special professor at Keimyung, deepening academic and artistic ties.

He also invited Keimyung — the only South Korean university involved — to join T4T (The Four Turandot), an international collaborative project marking the 100th anniversary of the world premiere of the opera "Turandot," and helped guide a successful production at the Keimyung Arts Center.

The project brought together 13 universities from four countries, and the collaboration between the two institutions has been cited as an international model for academic and artistic partnership.

In his remarks at the ceremony, Keimyung President Shin Il-hee called Baggio "an educator and leader who has connected world cultures through art," adding that the degree "is both an expression of respect for his artistic achievements and a symbol of our commitment to continue forward-looking cooperation built on deep mutual trust."

In his response, Baggio said the honor "is not mine alone, but the fruit of the collaboration that the Conservatorio di Musica Giuseppe Verdi and Keimyung University have built together," and added: "If Milan is my first home, I think of Keimyung and Daegu as my second."


kbj7653@heraldcorp.com