Alessandro Benazzo

Born in Lugano, he began studying the euphonium at the age of nine. At fourteen, he began trombone studies with Giancarlo Corsini, principal trombone of the RAI Orchestra in Milan. He quickly earned his Advanced Diploma in Trombone from the"Arrigo Boito" Conservatory in Parma, followed by a Diploma of Advanced Specialization from the "Lorenzo Perosi" International Academy of Music in Biella under Jacques Mauger, principal trombone of the Opéra National de Paris.

He further honed his skills in the solo repertoire in Switzerland and Italy with Christian Lindberg and Michel Becquet.

As a performer, he has won prizes at the Stresa International Music Competition, the European Music Competition (Turin), Swiss Parade (RSI-SRG-SSR), the Chieri International Trombone Competition, the FE.BA.TI. Competition (Switzerland), and the "Lario in Musica" International Competition.

From the age of 16 until 2015, he held positions as an orchestral musician with various institutions and ensembles, including the G. Verdi Symphony Orchestra of Milan, the I Pomeriggi Musicali Orchestra of Milan, the Sanremo Symphony Orchestra, the G. Cantelli Symphony Orchestra of Milan, the European Sinfonietta London, the Ensemble900 of Italian Switzerland, the Youth Chamber Orchestra of Italian Switzerland, the Lugano Chamber Orchestra, the F. Fenaroli International Youth Orchestra, and the International Orchestra of the Landesakademie für die Musizierende in Baden-Württemberg. 

He has collaborated, in exclusive roles, with conductors such as R.Chailly, Ch. Lindberg, Yutaka Sado, Ulf Schirmer, O. Vänska, A. Veronesi, P. Hinkinen, V. Globokar, V. Ponkin, D. Renzetti, A.Cadario, A.Veronesi, A. Tamayo.

He starred with Christian Lindberg and Hakan Hardenberger in "The Ballade of KitBone" by F. Högberg at the 39th Festival de Musique De Sion-Valais (CH). In 2014, he appeared on the television program Paganini - RSI - for the production of the multimedia tragedy "Kraanerg" by Iannis Xenakis, conducted by Arturo Tamayo.

From 1989 to 2016, he developed significant solo and chamber music activities, dedicating himself to the promotion of the often little-known solo repertoire. 

Several composers dedicated new works to him: Renato Grisoni (Capriccio for trombone and piano, 1995); Angelo Bellisario (Concerto for Trombone and Orchestra - 2001); Meinrad Schmitt (Tchaikovsky – Paraphrase for trombone, violin, and piano - 2002); Ennio Cominetti (Variations on a Theme by Van Eyck for trombone and organ, Ave Maria, Clarissima Mater for voice, trombone, and organ, and The Passion of the Christ, for trombone and orchestra - 2013/14); and Pietro Damiani (*Impromptu pour Trombone Seul* and *Tema e Variazioni* for trombone and band – 2015). 

He has performed major works for trombone and orchestra with numerous ensembles, including the Orchestra Cameristica Lombarda, the Lugano Chamber Orchestra, the Arcadia Orchestra of Italian Switzerland,  the Youth Camerata of Italian Switzerland, the Orchestra d’Archi dell’Assunta (Milan), and Ensemble900 of Italian Switzerland, as well as various chamber music and wind band ensembles.

Alongside his trombone studies, he began studying orchestral conducting and composition at the age of 15, initially in Switzerland under F. Ghilardotti (a student of Rota, Stravinsky, and F. Ferrara) and Liutauras Balciunas (a student of Ilya Musin).

He subsequently pursued studies in contemporary repertoire conducting at the Conservatory of Italian Switzerland (CSI) under Arturo Tamayo.

In the choral field, he studied Gregorian chant and Gregorian choir conducting in Lugano (CSI), Arco di Trento, Assisi, and Cremona (AISCGRE) with G. Conti, R. Zoia, A. De Lillo, Matteo Ferraldeschi, and Mariusz Bialkowski.

Since 2016, he has dedicated himself to musical and artistic direction, as well as composition for both instrumental and vocal ensembles.

Drawn to 20th-century and contemporary art music, he has conducted works by Mahler (Symphony No. 4), Schoenberg (*Pierrot Lunaire*, *Verklärte Nacht*,

*Erwartung*), Schoenberg/Webern (Chamber Symphony Op. 9), Stravinsky (Octet for Wind Instruments, *Petrushka*, and *Pastorale*), Berio (*Folk Songs*), K. Stockhausen (*Zeitmaße*), Boulez (*Dérive I*), Ligeti (Chamber Concerto), Donatoni (*Etwas Ruhiger im Ausdruck*), and Bartók (*The Miraculous Mandarin*).

In 2025, serving as music and artistic director, he staged G.B. Mantegazzi’s *Sacra Terra del Ticino* (with a libretto by G. Calgari) at the Palazzo dei Congressi in Lugano; the production—presented in its original, complete version—achieved unprecedented success with both the public and the media.

He has conducted numerous vocal and instrumental ensembles, serving in both permanent and guest capacities.

He is currently the music director of the Filarmonica Cittadina Alessandro Volta (Como) and *maestro di cappella* of the Schola Cantorum Ambrosiana (Porlezza, Diocese of Milan).

He also serves as the permanent conductor of the Filarmonica di Agno (Switzerland), Filarmonica S. Cecilia di Porlezza (Italy), Canterini di Lugano (Switzerland), Voci di Canobbio (Switzerland), and the newly formed Filarmonica Centro Valle Intelvi (Italy).

As a conductor and soloist, he has performed at prestigious venues and festivals, including the Stresa International Festival, Volkshaus Theater Zürich, Teatro Sociale di Como, Festival de Musique de Sion-Valais (Switzerland), the Pantheon (Rome), Festival de Música de Vic (Barcelona), Musik Forum München (Germany), Concerts de Riells at the Abbey of Sant Martí (Spain), the Castrocaro Festival, Teatro LAC Lugano, the Sala G. Verdi at the Milan Conservatory, Società di Concerti Corona Ferrea (Monza), HungaroFest Budapest, Teatro Apollonio (Varese), Auditorium Stelio Molo (Lugano), Palazzo dei Congressi (Lugano), the Serassi International Festival, the Fogazzaro Prize, the Centro Culturale Filologico (Milan), Teatro Cittadella (Lugano), and for broadcasters RAI, RSI, SRG, and SSR.

His recording work includes releases for DECCA, ARTS, and RSI, such as *Rossini Discoveries* (Riccardo Chailly – Orchestra Sinfonica G. Verdi di Milano), *Shostakovich: The Complete Symphonies* (Oleg Caetani – Orchestra Sinfonica G. Verdi di Milano), *Kraanerg* (Xenakis, A. Tamayo – Ensemble 900), *Quanti Nocc* (Davide Van De Sfroos – Canterini di Lugano), *Spontaneous Trombone* (A. Benazzo – G. Scheuerer), and *Concerto* (F. Scheuerer Jr. – G. Scheuerer – A. Benazzo).

Since 2019, he has collaborated as a guest—serving as a choir director and arranger—with the renowned Italian singer-songwriter Davide Van De Sfroos on concerts and recording projects. 

These collaborations have resulted in sold-out performances at Teatro Sociale di Como, LAC Lugano, and Teatro Openjobmetis (Varese), as well as at RSI for the presentation of the *Quanti Nocc* CD/LP, hosted by Gianluca Verga.

From 2017 to 2024, he served as artistic director of the *InCanto a Castagnola* (Switzerland) choral festival. 

Since 2026, he has been the artistic director of the *CantaLugano* festival, now in its inaugural edition.

In the literary sphere, in 2015 he presented an essay on Arnold Schoenberg (available at www.fondazionelindenberg.org); commissioned by the E. Lindenberg Foundation (Switzerland), it was published in both Italian and English in the catalogue *Reto Rigassi – Dodecafonia*.