Giovanni Verrando (Sanremo, 1965), composer and writer of musical essays, holds the first european course on ‘Chamber music with new lutherie”, since 2016-17, in Conservatory of Lugano, Switzerland.
In the ’90s and later he received many prizes in prestigious international competitions: IRCAM/Ensemble Intercontemporain Reading Panel (1st prize, 1995), Gaudeamus Music Week in Amsterdam (Special Mention, 1995), Festival International d’Art lyrique in Aix-en-Provence (1st prize, 1999), ISCM World New Music Days (2009) and other prizes.
In 2011 he received the Silver Lion of the 55th Biennale di Venezia, as RepertorioZero’s deviser and founder, the ensemble and international group of musicians founded in 2008 that carried out research into new lutherie.
He quit RepertorioZero in 2018.
In 2015-16 he was appointed ‘visiting professor’ at the Sibelius Academy of Helsinki.
His research on language, orchestration and electronics has led to his receiving commissions from european institutions (French Ministry of Culture, Biennale of Venice, IRCAM in Paris, MaerzMusik in Berlin, Orchestra Sinfonica della RAI, Holland Festival, Ernst von Siemens Musikstiftung and many others) and his works have been performed by orchestras, ensembles and soloists of international fame (Arditti String Quartet, Ensemble Intercontemporain, Orchestra Sinfonica della RAI, Kroumata, Les Percussions de Strasbourg, and many others).
In these years, his music has been presented at festivals and seasons all over the world: Wien Modern, Centre G. Pompidou – Paris, Berliner Festspiele, Festival Musica – Strasbourg, Opera Bastille – Paris, Biennale di Venezia, Tonhalle – Zürich, Milano Musica, Stockholm New Music, Roma Europa, Huddersfield Contemporary Music Festival, Archipel de Geneve, Festival Ultima – Oslo, Shangai, Varsavia, Tokyo, Royaumont, Köln, New York, Amsterdam, Warsaw, Los Angeles, etc.
His musical production is characterized by two different periods. During the first one his works were developed mostly through harmonic domains (works as “Alex Brücke Langer”, “Sottile”, “Il ruvido dettaglio celebrato da Aby Warburg” are part of the first phase). Then, starting from 2005, his musical research is focused on new lutherie (“Triptych”, “Dulle Griet”, “Keekee Bouba”).
He began his musical studies in France at a very early age with the piano and classical guitar. He later studied composition at the Conservatorio “G. Verdi” in Milan with G. Manzoni, N. Castiglioni and G. Zosi, and philosophy at the State University in Milan.
He continued his training at the Accademia Chigiana in Siena with F. Donatoni, receiving Siae Prize and Diploma di Merito in 1990.
In 1993 he moved to Paris, where he attended the “Cursus annuel d’informatique musicale” of IRCAM and the composition class of T. Murail. He lived here until 1997, developing as a composer his research on musical informatics.
Among the cds on his music, “Orchestral works”, with the Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della Rai conducted by Pierre-André Valade, issued in 2008, and “Dulle Griet”, cd ÆON, with Mdi Ensemble, RepertorioZero and P.A. Valade, issued in 2013.
He has written many musical texts and essays, and his book “New lutherie: orchestration, grammar, aesthetics” was published by Ed. Suvini Zerboni in 2013.
Actually, he leads orchestration and theory of composition courses in the Master of Arts in Composition and Music Theory of Conservatory of Lugano, Switzerland, composition courses at the Scuola Civica in Milano and seminars in Italy and abroad.
His music is published by Edizioni Suvini Zerboni, Milano.