Free and open to all.
The concert will also stream live at https://youtube.com/live/Qw5rHZfHm54
The Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra will perform in Madison at the Hamel Music Center on Sunday, September 14. The event is sponsored by the Department of French and Italian and the Mead Witter School of Music at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, the Italian Cultural Institute of Chicago, the Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra, and the Fondazione Ravenna Manifestazioni. The project has also been made possible thanks to the support of the Ministry of Culture and SIAE, as part of the “Per Chi Crea” program.
The Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra, a quartet of young and talented cellists—Francesco Angelico, Matteo Bodini, Luca Dondi, and Luigi Visco—will perform for the first time before an American audience, in a tour that will touch five Midwest cities: Milwaukee, WI (September 9), Urbana, IN (September 10), Chicago, IL (September 11), Minneapolis, MN (September 13), and Madison, WI (September 14).
Founded by Maestro Riccardo Muti in 2004, the Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra brings together gifted young musicians selected through auditions by a panel of professionals from prestigious European orchestras. The quartet was formed in 2024 thanks to the members’ shared experience in the orchestra and their desire to explore and expand the musical possibilities offered by this type of ensemble. Since its inception, the group has performed a variety of programs ranging from the original repertoire for cello quartet to adaptations of classical works and operatic repertoire, showcasing the virtuosity of the four musicians.
The program combines original repertoire with masterpieces of Italian opera. The first part features elegant compositions by Fitzenhagen, Goltermann, Klengel, and Sollima, designed to highlight the expressive range of the quartet. The second part is a tribute to Italy’s operatic tradition, with transcriptions for four cellos of famous arias and preludes from Monteverdi to Puccini, including works by Donizetti, Mascagni, Rossini, and a rich selection of pieces by Giuseppe Verdi.
“The collaboration with the L. Cherubini Orchestra is of great prestige for our Institute,” comments Mario A. Bartoli, Consul General and Interim Director of the Italian Cultural Institute of Chicago. “Maestro Riccardo Muti’s strong commitment, as Music Director Emeritus of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra, to the internationalization of the Italian music industry complements the strategic objectives of the cultural programming of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation, offering opportunities and visibility to young Italian talents such as the extraordinary musicians of the Cherubini Orchestra. The youth of the musicians, the exceptional quality of their music, and the institutional framework accompanying their U.S. tour are elements that can only enrich and further strengthen cultural relations between Italy and the United States.”
The Midwest tour will conclude in Madison, WI, with the quartet’s participation in the “Live from the Mead Witter School of Music” project, through which the concert will be broadcast on PBS Wisconsin. This is an important opportunity that will allow the talent of the four young artists to reach an even wider audience across the region.
LUIGI CHERUBINI YOUTH ORCHESTRA
Founded by Riccardo Muti in 2004, the Luigi Cherubini Youth Orchestra brings together talented young musicians selected through auditions by top European professionals. Named after the renowned composer Luigi Cherubini, the ensemble reflects both a strong Italian identity and a European cultural vision. Members serve for three years, creating a constantly renewed group that bridges conservatoires and the professional music world. With a regular summer residency at the Ravenna Festival and participation in Muti’s Italian Opera Academy, the Cherubini continues to grow in prestige. In 2024, it celebrated its 20th anniversary with major concerts in Vienna and Lucca, both conducted by Muti.