Biography
Fabio Biondi (born 1961) is an Italian violinist and conductor. Born in Palermo, Sicily, Biondi began his international career at the age of 12 playing a concerto with the RAI Symphony Orchestra. When he was 16, he performed Bach's violin concertos at the Musikverein in Vienna. Since then, he has performed with a number of baroque ensembles including La Capella Reial, Musica Antiqua Wien, Seminario Musicale, La Chapelle Royale and Les Musiciens du Louvre. In 1990 Biondi founded Europa Galante, an Italian ensemble specializing in baroque music, that he directs. Biondi's recordings include Antonio Vivaldi's The Four Seasons and the opera Bajazet, Arcangelo Corelli's concerti grossi, the works of Alessandro Scarlatti and George Frideric Handel, the 18th-century Italian violin repertoire (Vivaldi, Francesco Maria Veracini, Pietro Locatelli, Giuseppe Tartini) and sonatas by Bach, Franz Schubert and Robert Schumann. Biondi also performs in duos with keyboard (piano, harpsichord or fortepiano). In 2005 Biondi became artistic director for baroque music of the Stavanger Symphony Orchestra. He plays a 1766 Carlo Ferdinando Gagliano violin lent him by the Salvatore Cicero Foundation in Palermo.
Europa Galante is an Italian period-instrument baroque chamber orchestra founded by violinist Fabio Biondi in 1990 and directed by him since that time.
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The ensemble has been invited to play at important festivals and concert halls and has performed at La Scala in Milan, the Accademia di Santa Cecilia in Rome, the Suntory Hall in Tokyo, the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam, the Royal Albert Hall in London, the Musikverein in Vienna, Lincoln Center in New York and the Sydney Opera House.
Europa Galante is well known for its spirited interpretations of baroque classics such as Vivaldi's The Four Seasons. Europa Galante used to record for the OPUS 111 label, but now releases albums under Virgin Classics. Their records have won numerous prizes. For example, their record of Vivaldi's opera Bajazet was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2006.
Europa Galante tours with mostly Italian Baroque programms with soloists like Sandrine Piau (Soprano), Maurice Steger (Recorder), David Daniels (Countertenor) or Dorothea Röschmann (Soprano).
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fabio_Biondi
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Europa_Galante
Biography text from Last.fm, available under CC BY-SA.