Biography

ROBERTO MOLINELLI – Conductor, composer and violist.
A versatile and eclectic musician, unanimously appreciated for over 20 years in the national and international scene for his ability to create, compose and realize projects of every musical genre from classical to jazz, pop, and rock, seeking to build a dialogue between different genres and styles.

Born in Ancona, he graduated in viola with highest honors and praise at the Conservatory "G.Rossini" in Pesaro.
He then perfected his skills in Geneva with the prestigious violinist and conductor Alberto Lysy, winner of the Queen Elisabeth Prize, collaborating with his string orchestra, the Camerata Lysy.
He attended composition courses with Maestros Luca Lombardi, Fulvio Delli Pizzi, Edgar Alandia, and then began studying orchestral conducting with Maestro Gustav Kuhn.
In 1978, together with a group of musician friends, he founded the Marche Philharmonic Orchestra, playing viola at the debut concert of the newly formed ensemble, held at the Teatro dell'Aquila in Fermo.
Until the early 2000s, he served as Principal Viola of the OFM, then dedicated himself to a career as conductor, arranger and composer.
Always with the Marche Philharmonic Orchestra and in collaboration with the Polytechnic University of Marche, he produced the compact disc "America!" with his original compositions for soloists and symphony orchestra.
From a very young age, he performed as solo violist with orchestras and in recitals with piano, simultaneously winning first absolute prizes in national and international competitions and performing in some of the most prestigious concert halls in Italy and abroad.
Constantly invited by institutions and concert halls around the world, he has performed chamber music tours in America, performing in New York, Washington and other states such as Connecticut and Texas, in collaboration with the Italian Embassy.
He began a fruitful collaboration with the Italian Cultural Institutes of Moscow, New York, Cairo and Brussels, performing in their respective countries and producing a recording for the celebrations of the 700th anniversary of Dante Alighieri.
As conductor, composer and arranger over the years he has collaborated with numerous artists, including José Carreras, Andrea Bocelli, Celine Byrne, Gaston Rivero, Erwin Schrott, Gustav Kuhn, Cecilia Gasdia, Anna Caterina Antonacci, Nicola Alaimo, Anna Maria Chiuri, Desiree Rancatore, Valeria Esposito, Giovanni Sollima, Andrea Griminelli, Valeria Moriconi, Federico Mondelci, Enrico Dindo, Domenico Nordio, Anna Serova, Lorenzo Bavaj, Corrado Giuffredi, Danilo Rossi, Giorgio Zagnoni.
Many of his compositions, such as the concerto for Saxophone and orchestra "Four Pictures From New York", the concertos for Cello and orchestra "Twin Legends" and "Iconogramma", the concerto for Accordion and orchestra "Il Bosco della Musica", commissioned by the International Accordion Prize of Castelfidardo, have expanded the repertoire of their respective instruments and are currently performed worldwide.
Particular attention has been given to his transcription of Paganini's 24 Caprices for Violin and orchestra, performed for the first time during the inauguration of Parma Capital of Culture 2020, with violinist Yuri Revich and the Arturo Toscanini Symphony Orchestra.

His opera "Montessoriana", commissioned in 2000 by the Opera Nazionale Montessori and the Montessori Birthplace - Municipality of Chiaravalle, after the historic interpretation by actress Valeria Moriconi in the role of the protagonist, on the occasion of the Centenary celebrations for Maria Montessori 1907-2007, was conducted and represented by him in Sweden, United States of America and in Rome, in the Sinopoli Hall of the Auditorium Parco della Musica.
Many of his premieres have been performed by some of the most important international symphony orchestras in illustrious venues: Carnegie Hall in New York, La Scala Philharmonic Orchestra, Kremerata Baltica by Gidon Kremer, Moscow Chamber Orchestra, Euroradio Concerts, Teatro Comunale di Bologna, Pavarotti Theater in Modena, Ravello Festival, Ministry of Cultural Heritage-Rome, Hermitage Theater in St. Petersburg, Ural Philharmonic Orchestra, National Chamber Orchestra Of Armenia, Norwalk Symphony Orchestra, Teatro de Las Bellas Artes in Mexico City, Auditorium RadioTV Slovenia, The Presidential Symphony Orchestra Concert Hall in Ankara, Netherlands Symphony Orchestra, I Suoni delle Dolomiti, Naples Theater Festival.
Numerous are his collaborations with famous artists from the world of cinema, theater and popular music. With actor Enrico Montesano he created and conducted a successful show, one year after the death of the famous pianist and composer Armando Trovajoli. With singer and showgirl Serena Autieri he created the first symphonic tribute to Raffaella Carrà ever produced in Italy.

As conductor and arranger he has undertaken collaborations with Tony Hadley, Amii Stewart, Arisa, Mahamood, Lady Blackbird, Luca Barbarossa, Antonella Ruggiero, Lucio Dalla, Enrico Ruggeri, Alexia, Mario Lavezzi, Extraliscio, Giò Di Tonno, Fabrizio Bosso, Eddie Daniels, and has composed music for Cinema and TV.
With actor and singer Neri Marcorè and the GNU Quartet, he conducted "Come una specie di sorriso", symphonic tribute to Fabrizio De Andrè.
With Rocco Papaleo he paid tribute to Luigi Tenco 50 years after his death; with Michele Riondino and Alessandro Haber he created "The fool on the hill", rereading the history of the Beatles in music.
With the famous sports journalist Marino Bartoletti, he created "Musica a pedali", a musical theater show with orchestra, on the history of cycling and the Giro d'Italia.
He orchestrated some of Andrea Bocelli's most important international successes, such as Con te partirò, Romanza and Canto della Terra, performed worldwide.
He arranged and conducted the opening piece of the final concert of the Tenco Prize 2016, held at the Ariston Theater in Sanremo, with RAI recording and broadcast.

One of his original compositions was chosen as the soundtrack for the Barilla advertising campaign, broadcast continuously from 1999 to 2006, on TV, radio, cinemas, in Italy and abroad.
He arranged and conducted the RAI Orchestra of the Sanremo Festival in various editions, obtaining first place in the voting of the Festival's Quality Jury for the best arrangement for "Biancaneve" (Mogol – Lavezzi). At the Sanremo Festival 2021, he conducted and arranged "Bianca Luce Nera" and "Medley Rosamunda" for "Extraliscio", obtaining 3rd place in the ranking voted by the Festival Orchestra.
He was member and President of the Jury of "SanremoLab – Sanremo Song Academy" for three consecutive years, selecting new proposals for the Sanremo Festival, among many young singers from all over Italy.

Since 2020 he has collaborated with Elisabetta Sgarbi for the realization of innovative cultural projects that combine tradition with musical innovation and experimentation, such as the artistic project of Extraliscio that combines popular tradition with musical innovation.
In 2021 he curated the orchestral arrangements of the album "Barcelona" by Freddie Mercury and Montserrat Caballé, one of the most significant examples of the union of popular music with the classical world of opera, performed for the first time in live version in its entirety in Italy in the suggestive setting of the Valley of the Temples in Agrigento.

His monographic recording on composer Carl Reinecke, including the first absolute recording of the "Drei Phantasiestucke" for Viola and Piano, published by the Bongiovanni label, was chosen as "CD of the Month" by the prestigious magazine "CD Classica", leader in the sector, in addition to receiving unanimous critical success from the major international specialized magazines, such as "Piano Time" (Italy), "Diapason" (France), "Fanfare" (U.S.A.), and others.
In 2020, a monographic CD on American composer Ney Rosauro was released for the Stradivarius label, with the Haydn Orchestra of Bolzano and Trento conducted by Roberto Molinelli.
As composer and arranger he publishes the CD "Favorite Italian Movie Music" for the Delos International label, with music by Ennio Morricone and Roberto Molinelli performed by Federico Mondelci and the Moscow Chamber Orchestra.
In the field of popular music, he produces, for the Sony Music label, the two discographic works of Extraliscio: "E' bello perdersi" (2021) and "Romantic Robot" (2022), for which he takes care of all the orchestral arrangements.
Since 1998 he has collaborated consistently as conductor, composer and arranger with Concert Orchestral Institutions such as the Orchestra della Magna Grecia, the Orchestra of the Abruzzese Symphony Institution, the Haydn Orchestra of Bolzano and Trento, the Sanremo Symphony Orchestra, the Sicilian Symphony Orchestra, Arturo Toscanini Orchestra and the FORM – Marche Philharmonic Orchestra.

Since 2009 he has been Director for Innovation of the G.Rossini Symphony Orchestra of Pesaro in Italy.
Since 2019 he has been Principal Guest Conductor of the Russian Philharmonic Orchestra, Moscow (Russia).
Since 2021 he has been Director for Special Projects of the Abruzzese Symphony Institution in Italy.
He teaches Viola at the Conservatory "G.B.Martini" in Bologna.