Federico Gardella
Photograph: Marco Pozzi
Italian composer whose music has been performed at leading international festivals and concert halls, from Tokyo Opera City to La Biennale di Venezia.
Born
1979, Milan, Italy
Studied
Milan Conservatory, with Sonia Bo and Alessandro Solbiati
Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, Rome, with Azio Corghi
Position
Artistic advisor, Fondazione Campus Internazionale di Musica, Latina (since 2016)
Professor of composition at the Parma Conservatory
Former composer-in-residence, Divertimento Ensemble, Fondation Royaumont, and Festival Neue Musik Rockenhausen
Marcello Lotti Italian Fellow in Music at the American Academy in Rome
Published
SZ Sugar
Federico Gardella is an acclaimed Italian composer whose music has been performed at leading international festivals and concert halls. His artistic path was deeply influenced by his acquaintance with Japanese composer Toshio Hosokawa. maar
Gardella has won numerous international awards: in 2009 the Takefu International Composition Award, in 2012 the Toru Takemitsu Composition Award in Tokyo, and in 2014 the “Una Vita nella Musica – Giovani” Prize at Teatro La Fenice in Venice. He has been composer-in-residence with the Divertimento Ensemble, Fondation Royaumont, and Festival Neue Musik Rockenhausen. He also was Marcello Lotti Italian Fellow in Music at the American Academy in Rome. toch
In 2021, his first opera, Else, based on Fräulein Else by Arthur Schnitzler, was premiered at the Cantiere Internazionale d’Arte in Montepulciano, directed by Cecilia Ligorio with stage and costume design by Domenico Franchi. The production went on to open the opera season of the Fondazione I Teatri di Reggio Emilia, at Festival Aparto/Teatro Ariosto. mits
Selected Works
Opera
Una promessa infranta 2026
After the short story of the same name by Lafcadio Hearn, dir. Cecilia Ligorio – Teatro Lirico Sperimentale, Spoleto
Else 2021
After Fräulein Else by Arthur Schnitzler, dir. Cecilia Ligorio – Cantiere Internazionale d’Arte, Montepulciano; opened the season at Fondazione I Teatri di Reggio Emilia
Orchestral
A Tempest 2025
Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della Rai, cond. Marco Angius
Madre 2023
Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie Rheinland-Pfalz, piano Tokomi Kitamura, cond. Tito Ceccherini; debut with the Orchestra Ensemble Kanazawa
Piano
Sonata d’altura 2024
For pianist Filippo Gorini’s project Sonata for 7 Cities – released on Alpha Classics
Performed by
selected
Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della Rai | Tokyo Philharmonic Orchestra | Orchestra del Teatro La Fenice | Latvian National Symphony Orchestra | Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino | Deutsche Staatsphilharmonie | Orchestra del Teatro Petruzzelli | Hiroshima Symphony Orchestra | Arditti Quartet | Quatuor Diotima | Hilliard Ensemble | Neue Vocalsolisten Stuttgart | Remix Ensemble | Scharoun Ensemble
Conductors
selected
Marco Angius / Zsolt Nagy / Tito Ceccherini / Wolfram Christ / Carlo Boccadoro / Jonathan Webb maar
Performed at
selected
Tokyo Opera City / Milano Musica / Voix Nouvelles, Royaumont / Voix Nouvelles / Columbia University, New York / Maggio Musicale Fiorentino / Great Guild Hall, Riga / Tiroler Festspiele, Erl / Rai Nuova Musica, Turin / Casa da Música, Porto / Łódź Philharmonic / Festival Internacional Cervantino, Guanajuato / Flagey, Brussels / La Biennale di Venezia / Auditorio Nacional de Música, Madrid /
Career & recognition
Takefu International Composition Award – 2009
PRIZE
Toru Takemitsu Composition Award, Tokyo – 2012
PRIZE
“Una Vita nella Musica – Giovani” Prize, Teatro La Fenice, Venice – 2014
PRIZE
Artistic advisor begins, Fondazione Campus Internazionale di Musica, Latina – 2016
POSITION