AKANTHOS ENSEMBLE

project powered by Key Sound

in cooperation with Rai Trade

Akanthos Ensemble is an Italian group of contemporary music constituted by interpreters of reputation and prestige. Its name wants to honor Iannis Xenakis. Its main objective is to constitute a chamber music group able to distinguish itself interpreting and programming the best aspects of the international scene.Akanthos Ensemble promotes, participates and encourages collaborations with various musicians and was invited from festivals and European seasons such as Festival "Ars Musica" della SWF Rottenburg, Sonopolis - Teatro La Fenice Venezia, Bucarest, Fondazione Scelsi Roma, La Spezia, Musica Verticale - Goethe Institut Roma, Perspektiven Heilbronn, Würzburg, Freiburg, Teatro Pergolesi Jesi, etc.  

Project 2005 - 2006

The plan is born like cultural homage to East Europe and in particular to Hungary by some Italian authors whose music is able to compare the two musical spirits.

Components

Monica BENVENUTI, voice Andrea CECCOMORI, flute Pierluigi RUGGIERO, cello Maurizio BEN OMAR, percussion Silvia BELFIORE, piano

Programs

Program 1 Ivan Vandor – Visione (I performance) for ensemble Hollós Máté - I wander the world for bass flute, piano and

tape Hollós Máté - Canto nostalgico for cello Iván Madarász - J.J.Jatekai for flute, cello and piano Giovanni Guaccero - Madrigaletti (I performance) for ensemble Sugár Miklós - Percupicsy for percussion and tape Stefano Taglietti - Ancestral Human Hymn for ensemble

(I performance)

Program 2 Ivan Vandor - Visione (I performance) for ensemble Luca Lombardi - Flatus for flute Aldo Clementi - new work (I performance) for piano and percussion Sylvano Bussotti - Justine /Juliette for voice

(solo from “Passion selon Sade”) Giovanni Guaccero - Madrigaletti (I performance) for ensemble Luciano Berio - Les mots sont allées for cello solo Stefano Taglietti - Ancestral Human Hymn for ensemble

(I performance)

MONICA BENVENUTIvoice

Born in Florence, after the bachelor in Letters and Philosophy, she has undertaken the singing studies, dedicating herself to the lyric repertory and to the chamber music

From 1993, year of her debut like protagonist of L’incoronazione di Poppea of Monteverdi, she has interpreted (always in main roles) the following works: Orfeo e Il ritorno di Ulisse in patria of Monteverdi, Euridice of Peri, La rappresentazione di Anima e di Corpo of Cavalieri, Dido and Aeneas of Purcell, Venus and Adonis of Blow, Il palazzo incantato di Atlante of Rossi, Tamerlano of Haendel, La serva padrona e Livietta e Tracollo of Pergolesi, Giannina e Bernardone of Cimarosa, Bastiano e Bastiana of Mozart, Prima la musica e poi le parole of Salieri, L’eroismo ridicolo of Spontini, Haensel e Gretel of Humperdinck, Il segreto di Susanna of Wolf-Ferrari.

Frequent are the incursions in the chamber and symphonic repertory, between which Ah, perfido! and the IX Sinfonia of Beethoven, the Petite Messe Solemnelle of Rossini, the Requiem, the Kronugsmesse and several concert arias of Mozart, the Wesendonk lieder of Wagner, and vary song cycles, between which are to remember Des knaben Wunderhorn of Mahler, Harawi of Messiaen and a monographic concert dedicated to Luigi Dallapiccola for the Amici della Musica of Firenze.

She has developed, later on, a specific interest for the 1900's and contemporary music that brought her to explore the potentialities of the human voice in connection with the various musical languages and to the electronic experimentations. To confirm her job-search, numerous authors entrust her their own jobs: Steve Reich, Sylvano Bussotti, etc. In the last years, after numerous experiences like singer-actress, she dedicated herself to a repertory of musical theatre that includes works like: La voix humaine of Poulenc, Mahagonny Songspiel of Weill, La tragèdie de Carmen from Bizet, beside works especially dedicated to her.

She has performed a concert Italy, Köln, Tokio, Brazil. In June 2003 in partnership with the Association of Classic Culture of La Spezia, she has

performed (in first absolute) with the actress Milena Vukotic, a show of music theatre on texts of Sofocle’s text and music of Britten, Strauss, Strawinsky and other jobs in first absolute execution.

She has realized a very large record production and several radio and television recordings, between them: L’incoronazione di Poppea to the Teatro antico di Sabbioneta and a recital in memory of Cathy Berberian.

ANDREA CECCOMORIflute

Graduated at the Conservatory "Morlacchi" in Perugia, and completed his study with other important flutists and musicians: S.Gazzelloni at Accademia Musicale Chigiana of Siena, M. Ancillotti, A. Persichilli, M. Larrieu, S. Palm, R. Fabbriciani, M. Stockhausen and so many others.

He plays classic and contemporary music and he has collaborated with the most important italian and international festivals (Cagliari, Rome, Darmstadt, Zagreb, Paris, Stockholm, Prague, Helsiniki, Germany, Spain, USA, African tour, Brasil tour.

He has performed so many premiers of the following composers: Baggiani, Battista, Porena, D'Amico, Luporini, Sbacco, Pappalardo, Bianchini, Bazan, Cocco, Garcia, D’Antò, Festa, Piacentini, Sollazzi, Reiner, Andriessen, Piva, Ceccarelli, Mendoza, Rendine, Garau, De Rossi Re, Francia, Ghezzo, Cresta, D'Alfornso, Perez, Ermirio, Fellegara, Romani.

He was awarded prizes at international competition of Stresa (for contemporary music) and recorded for the Amiata records (New Music Master 1996,The celestine Suite 1999),BMG/Ricordi and Edipan. Recorded by RaiUno Television, Ria RadioUno and RadioTre. He works with RaiTrade to spreading for contemporary Italian music.

He plays all flutes family.

PIERLUIGI RUGGIEROcello

He was born in November 1974 in L’Aquila. He graduated with full marks with George Schultis, and he attended also the

Composition course of Paolo Arcà at the Conservatory of L’Aquila. He attended several specialization courses.

1994 to 1996 he was a member of the Orchestra Giovanile Italiana. He holds concerts in Italy and abroad as a soloist and in chamber music groups.

Recently he has been in tour in Pakistan ( Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad), India (Bombay, Calcutta, Goa and New Delhi) Sweden (Stockholm, Goteborg and Boras) Brazil ( Sao Paulo, Rio de Janeiro, Bertioca, Foz de Iguaçu e Curitiba).

He won several contests in a duo with a piano: 1st Prize at the National Contest «Città di Ruvo di Puglia»,1994; 2nd Prize at the National Contest «A.M.A. Calabria»,1994; 1st Prize at the National Contest «Città di Civita D’Antino»,1995; 1st Prize at the International Chamber Music Contest « Città di Acqui Terme»,1996.

As a member of the Camerata Anxanum he has been in tour in Belgium, Holland, England and France and has recorded two CD for the Bongiovanni Record Company. As a cellist in the Quartetto Mediterraneo he has recorded also for RAI and Radio Vaticana.

He’s an active member of the Orchestra Giovanile of the National Accademy of S. Cecilia, conducted by Myung-Whun Chung. He’s also the Artistic Director of the Cultural Association “Espressione D’Arte” and he is the person in charge of the internal group “Italian Modern Ensemble”.

MAURIZIO BEN OMARpercussion

Graduated in percussion with full marks, he studied piano and composition, too. He played in the most important orchestras in Italy and he has held concerts like soloist and in chamber music in the five continents with ensembles, soloists and conductors like: Quartetto Arditti, P.Y. Artaud, Kees Boeke, Mario Brunello, Bruno Canino, Ensemble Intercontemporain, Jill Feldmann, Andrea Lucchesini, Giuseppe Sinopoli. Composers like Bussotti, Corghi, Donatoni, Einaudi, Gorli, Manca, Melchiorre, Mosca, Sciarrino, Pisati, Solbiati, Taglietti have dedicated own works to him. He has collaborated with Giacinto Scelsi.

He’s teacher of percussion in the Milan Conservatory and his students won national and international competitions. He recorded like soloist for Ricordi, Bmg Ariola and Salabert.

In 1984 he founded the percussions ensemble Naqqâra.

SILVIA BELFIOREpiano

Silvia Belfiore was born in Alessandria (Italy) on 1967. She studied piano with Massimo Paderni (graduated at the "Vivaldi"

conservatory of Alessandria, 1989), Roberto Szidon, Marianne Schröder, Aloys Kontarsky, Jean Micault, Enrica Cavallo, Massimiliano Damerini, Pier Narciso Masi. Graduated in Musicology at the Bologna University (1991) with full marks, she frequented workshops with Sergiu Celibidache, Piero Rattalino.

She obtained a scholarship by the "Ferienkurse für neue Musik" (1990 and 1992). She got various honours.

She was teacher of piano and music history in various conservatory of music in Italy (1992-93 and 1996-2005) and in Portugal (1993-95).

She recorded for the Moldavian and Brazilian television, Bavarian Radio and six CDs for solo piano or chamber music with classical and contemporary repertory.

Composers like Helmut Bieler, Mauro Bortolotti, Aldo Brizzi, Nicola Cisternino, Gianvincenzo Cresta, Giorgio Ghisetti, Hosrt Lohse, Martin Kürshner, Biagio Putignano, Gerardo Tristano, Anatol Vieru have dedicated own works to her.

Silvia Belfiore, interested to the most various shapes of expression and artistic collaboration, has held beyond 330 concerts like soloist and in chamber music in Europe, America and Asia.

She is the artistic director of “Omaggio a ...”, international festival of Contemporary Music in Acqui Terme (AL).

Concerts

Hungary (Budapest Philharmonic and Radio)

Italy (Rome, Venice, Turin, Rovigo, Miland, Ancona, Teramo, L’Aquila, Perugia, Acqui Terme)

French (Nice, Aix en Provence). Spain Holland Portugal

Percussion instruments required

vibraphone - glockenspiel - 2 bongos - 6 tom-toms – bass drum - 5 cymbals - 2 tam-tam, little e medium - 3 wood blocks - 6 temple blocks

Contacts

KeySound sncviale Giulio Cesare 71 - 00192 ROMA - Italy

www.keysound.it

e-mail: keysound@keysound.it

tel. e fax: +39 06 8183579

utenti.lycos.it/akanthosensemble