Stefano Gatta

He began his musical studies in clarinet, harmony, and counterpoint in Forlì and completed them at the Conservatory of Music “G.B. Martini” of Bologna under the guidance of Costante Fantini. Thereafter, he graduated with degrees in instrumentation for wind band with Luigi Giacomini (1987), in choral music and conducting with Tito Gotti (1989), in composition with Paolo Ugoletti and Ivan Vandor (1991), and in orchestra conducting with Maurizio Benini (1992). Besides music, he also completed a doctorate in philosophy at the University of Bologna in 1987. He further specialized in composition with Giacomo Manzoni, orchestra conducting with Gyorghy Dimitrov, and took part in composition masterclasses with Azio Corghi and Alessandro Solbiati, as well as conducting masterclasses with Ferenc Nagy, Moshe Atzmon, Alun Francis, and Nicola Rescigno. Renowned soloists, such as soprano Luisa Castellani in Bologna, San Marino, and at the Contemporary Music Festival of Biel (Switzerlad) in 1993, have performed his compositions. He has conducted a repertory from classical to contemporary works with various chamber ensembles and symphonic orchestras in Italy, the State Philharmonic of Plovdiv and the Symphonic Orchestra of Shoumen (Bulgaria), and the Chamber Orchestra of the Center for Musical Studies of the Republic of San Marino. Since 1990 he has been in charge of the musical direction of the Military Band of the Republic of San Marino. With this ensemble, besides an intense official activity in the small republic, he has toured Italy and participated in international festivals of military music, organized in France, the Czech Republic, and Italy (Modena, Military Academy of the Army). He collaborated in conducting masterclasses held in San Marino by Daniele Carnevali in 2001 and himself in 2005. He has also held courses and masterclasses in various schools and institutions in Italy, including at the Conservatory of Music “L.Refice” of Frosinone (Lazio) in 2014. He is also a composer of wind band music, which has been published by such editions as Eufonia, Marani, and Eurarte. In 2009 he was awarded by the President of the Italian Republic the Star of Solidarity (with the title of Knight of O.S.S.I.), an honor attributed to Italians who stand abroad for social and artistic merits. In 2011 and in 2014 he was a member of the jury of the International Wind Band Competition “Flicorno d’Oro” in Riva del Garda (Trento). In 2014 and 2015 he was the president of the jury of the competition “AMA Calabria-Suoni d’Aspromonte” and guest conductor of the Melicucco Concert Band.