Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana
Encyclopedia
The Orchestra della Svizzera Italiana (OSI; literal translation, Orchestra of Italian Switzerland) is a Swiss orchestra based in Lugano
Lugano
Lugano is a city of inhabitants in the city proper and a total of over 145,000 people in the agglomeration/city region, in the south of Switzerland, in the Italian-speaking canton of Ticino, which borders Italy...

. The orchestra's primary concert venue is the Auditorio RSI.

The precursor ensemble of the OSI, consisting of approximately 30 musicians, was founded in 1933 under the auspices of the Italian Swiss Radio. In 1935, the orchestra acquired the name Orchestra della Radio Svizzera Italiana, giving its first concert on 2 January 1935. Later, with the advent of television, the orchestra's name evolved to Orchestra della Radiotelevisione della Svizzera Italiana (Radio Television Orchestra of Italian Switzerland). The orchestra took on its current name in 1991.

For the orchestra, Richard Strauss
Richard Strauss
Richard Georg Strauss was a leading German composer of the late Romantic and early modern eras. He is known for his operas, which include Der Rosenkavalier and Salome; his Lieder, especially his Four Last Songs; and his tone poems and orchestral works, such as Death and Transfiguration, Till...

 composed his Duet-Concertino in F major, TrV 293 (o.op.AV 147). Other composers who directed their compositions with the OSI included Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari
Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari
Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari was an Italian composer and teacher. He is best known for his comic operas such as Il segreto di Susanna...

, Frank Martin
Frank Martin (composer)
Frank Martin was a Swiss composer, who lived a large part of his life in the Netherlands.-Childhood and youth:...

, Paul Hindemith
Paul Hindemith
Paul Hindemith was a German composer, violist, violinist, teacher, music theorist and conductor.- Biography :Born in Hanau, near Frankfurt, Hindemith was taught the violin as a child...

, Luciano Berio
Luciano Berio
Luciano Berio, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI was an Italian composer. He is noted for his experimental work and also for his pioneering work in electronic music.-Biography:Berio was born at Oneglia Luciano Berio, Cavaliere di Gran Croce OMRI (October 24, 1925 – May 27, 2003) was an Italian...

, Darius Milhaud
Darius Milhaud
Darius Milhaud was a French composer and teacher. He was a member of Les Six—also known as The Group of Six—and one of the most prolific composers of the 20th century. His compositions are influenced by jazz and make use of polytonality...

, Hans Werner Henze
Hans Werner Henze
Hans Werner Henze is a German composer of prodigious output best known for "his consistent cultivation of music for the theatre throughout his life"...

 and Igor Stravinsky
Igor Stravinsky
Igor Fyodorovich Stravinsky ; 6 April 1971) was a Russian, later naturalized French, and then naturalized American composer, pianist, and conductor....

. The orchestra has participated in the Settimane Musicali in Ascona (since 1946), the Concerti of Lugano (from 1953 to 1976) and the Primavera Concertistica of Lugano (since 1982).

Leopoldo Casella was the first principal conductor of the orchestra, beginning his affiliation with the ensemble back to the precursor ensemble in 1933. Casella continued to work with the orchestra until 1968. The most recent principal conductor was Alain Lombard
Alain Lombard
Alain Lombard is a French conductor.-Career:Lombard attended the Conservatoire de Paris, where his studied violin with Line Talleul and conducting with Gaston Poulet. He subsequently secured an appointment at the Opéra National de Lyon in 1961, and later became principal conductor from 1961 to 1965...

, from 1999 to 2005. Lombard now has the title of honorary conductor of the orchestra. Principal guest conductors have included Mikhail Pletnev
Mikhail Pletnev
Mikhail Vasilievich Pletnev is a Russian pianist, conductor, and composer.-Life and career:Pletnev was born into a very musical family in Arkhangelsk, then part of the Soviet Union; his father played and taught the bayan, and his mother the piano...

 (2008-2010).

Principal Conductors

  • Leopoldo Casella (1933–1938)
  • Otmar Nussio (1938–1968)
  • Marc Andreae (permanent conductor, 1969–1990)
  • Nicholas Carthy (1993–1996)
  • Serge Baudo
    Serge Baudo
    Serge Baudo is a French conductor, the son of the oboist Étienne Baudo. He is the nephew of the cellist Paul Tortelier....

     (1997–2000)
  • Alain Lombard
    Alain Lombard
    Alain Lombard is a French conductor.-Career:Lombard attended the Conservatoire de Paris, where his studied violin with Line Talleul and conducting with Gaston Poulet. He subsequently secured an appointment at the Opéra National de Lyon in 1961, and later became principal conductor from 1961 to 1965...

     (1999–2005)

Members

  • First Violins
    • Anthony Flint Concertmaster
    • Tamas Major Concertmaster
    • Walter Zagato Assistant Concertmaster
    • Cristina Andreae-Ferrarini
    • Chun He Gao
    • Piotr Nikiforoff
    • Fabio Arnaboldi
    • Katie Vitalie (Ekatarina Bolotova)
    • Denis Monighetti

  • Second Violins
    • Andreas Laake Principal
    • Hans Liviabella Principal
    • Barbara Ciannamea-Monté Rizzi Associate Principal
    • Duilio Galfetti
    • Irina Roukavitsina
    • Cristina Savoldo-Tavazzi
    • Vacant
  • Violas
    • Monica Benda Principal
    • Ivan Vukcevic Principal
    • Matthias Müller Associate Principal
    • Andriy Burko
    • Aurélie Adolphe


    • Cellos
      • Johann Sebastian Paetsch
        Johann Sebastian Paetsch
        Johann Sebastian Paetsch is an American cellist and musician.-Early musical education:Paetsch began his cello studies with his father, Günther Paetsch , at the age of 5, and gave his first recital when he was 6 years old...

        Principal
      • Taisuke Yamashita Principal
      • Felix Vogelsang Associate Principal
      • Beat Helfenberger

    • Basses
      • Enrico Fagone Principal
      • Ermanno Ferrari Principal
      • Anton Uhle

    • Flutes
      • Alfred Rutz Principal
      • Bruno Grossi Principal
  • Oboes
    • Marco Schiavon Principal
    • Federico Cicoria Principal



    • Bassoons
      • Vincente Godel Principal
      • Alberto Biano Principal


    • Horns
      • Zora Slokar Principal
      • Georges Alvarez

    • Trumpets
      • Milko Raspanti Principal
      • Sébastien Galley

    • Timpani and Percussion
      • Louis Sauvêtre

    External links

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