A 17-year-old cello student from Villa Guardia has been selected as first cello in the European Youth Orchestra Academy, an intensive music program based in Mannheim, Germany, that assembles young musicians from across Europe for rehearsals and concerts of symphonic and jazz repertoire.
La Provincia di Como reported that Edoardo Mantellassi, who began studying cello at age 4, was the only Italian cellist in the academy from Sept. 3 to 13. During that period he served as first cello for performances in Heidelberg and at the Rosengarten in Mannheim, playing Tchaikovsky’s Concerto in D major, Mendelssohn’s Overture in C major and Beethoven’s Symphony No. 8.
According to the report, Mantellassi is the son of musicians and currently attends the second year of the three-year academic program at the Conservatorio di Como while also enrolled at the Liceo classico Volta di Como. He studies at the Accademia di Pinerolo and has won several national and international competitions.
The publication noted that his early orchestral experience came as a child with the children’s orchestra of the Scuola di musica di Villa Guardia under director Gioacchino Genovese, followed by work with the Orchestra giovanile della Svizzera italiana. The academy operates under the patronage of the European Parliament.
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