Lorenzo Colitto

Lorenzo Colitto
Born in Rome, he studied at the Conservatorio di Santa Cecilia. In 1993 he began studying historical performance practice and from 1994 to 1997 furthered his studies at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis in Switzerland with Thomas Hengelbrock and Chiara Banchini.

In 1994 he performed with the European Union Baroque Orchestra under the direction of Roy Goodman, Andrew Manze and Ton Koopman. His extensive concert activity includes performances in the most prestigious halls and festivals throughout the world. He was a member and leader of Europa Galante under the direction of Fabio Biondi, concertmaster of the New York Collegium (leading programs under the direction of Fabio Biondi, Reinhard Goebel, Andrew Parrott, Eduardo Lopez-Banzo and Bernard Labadie), as well as soloist and director, and leader of New York Baroque Incorporated (a conductor-less ensemble formed by the first generation of graduates from the Department of Early Music of the prestigious Juilliard School in New York). Together with the NYBI he performed as music director, soloist and concertmaster in New York City and at the Spoleto Festival USA in Charleston (S. Carolina) and he transcribed the score and conducted the first USA modern day performance of the oratorio “Santa Rosalia” by Bonaventura Aliotti. The performance was broadcasted live and recorded. He introduced the performance in the pre-concert lecture moderated by David Garland, the well known radio host of WQXR and WNYC. With them he also performed the USA modern day premiere of the violin concerto “Tempesta di Mare”, op.1 no.12, by Lorenzo Zavateri. He has appeared as guest leader of many important early music ensembles and has collaborated with the most prestigious interpreters across all the continents. He can also be heard in award winning recordings under labels such as Harmonia Mundi, Virgin EMI, Opus 111, Tactus, Ambroisie, K617, Brilliant, Amadeus and Alpha, among others. In 2005 Lorenzo Colitto created his own ensemble Archipelago to synthesize his musical experiences that now span more than 30 years. Through this ensemble he aims to perform the music of the 17th and 18th centuries, with special emphasis on lesser known repertoire. He has rediscovered some works by Bolognese composers of the early 18th century which have already aroused the interest of theatres, festivals and music publishers. Archipelago has performed in Rome - Italy (Teatro Olimpico), Hong Kong (as a part of the “Made in Italy” celebrations promoted by the Italian Chamber of Commerce), Bridgetown - Australia (Blackriver Chamber Music Festival), Melbourne - Australia, Zemono - Slovenia (for a series of cultural events at the 17th century Belvedere Lantieri), Festival de Musique Ancienne de Callas - France, Faro - Portugal (Festival Internacional de Música Barroca), Tsuyama - Japan, Santa Fe and Albuquerque – USA and on various occasions for the early music festivals “Libera la Musica” and “I concerti dell'Accademia”, organized by Accademia Bizantina in Ravenna and Bagnacavallo – Italy. The trio sonatas op.5 by Giuseppe A.V. Aldrovandini, subject of the present CD, recorded in November 2022 in Portugal, were already partly performed as world premieres in Italy, Portugal and the United States. He is Professor of Baroque Violin in the Early Music Department of the Conservatorio di Verona, Italy and holds a professional pizza making diploma from the Italian Pizzeria Association of Rome.