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Carmelo Caruso – Biography
Italian conductor Carmelo Caruso is the founding Music Director of the Symphonic Orchestra of the Conservatory "Vincenzo Bellini” in Palermo, where he is full professor of Orchestral Conducting. He served as Director of the Conservatory from 2000 to 2011, which underwent a period of phenomenal artistic growth under his leadership. He is also the founding Artistic and Permanent Director of the “Sicilian Philharmonic Orchestra Franco Ferrara”. His symphonic collaborations have included well-known international soloists such as Aaron Rosand, Eugene Sarbu, Mischa Maisky, Sharon Isbin, Alexander Toradze and Francois-Joel Thiollier, as well as prominent contemporary figures such as Paul McCartney and Jon Lord (Deep Purple). With a broad repertoire, he has substantial experience conducting opera and musical theatre.
Carmelo Caruso was born in Messina on November 23, 1956. At the age of six he began studying piano with Antonio Trombone, already showing an aptitude for singing and composition. Since that time he has performed in important Italian theaters and in national festivals such as Sanremo performing alongside the top pop stars of Italian music (Gianni Morandi, Luigi Tenco [notably the 1966 gala for the flood victims of Florence] and Rita Pavone), and in recording studios of labels such as RCA, Philips and EMI. He graduated with the highest marks and honors at the Conservatory "Vincenzo Bellini" in Palermo. Later he studied composition with Eliodoro Sollima, conducting with Bruno Aprea at the “Santa Cecilia” Conservatory in Rome, and advanced conducting studies with Franco Ferrara at the “Accademia Chigiana” in Siena. He is the composer of numerous symphonic, vocal and chamber music pieces, performed in concert seasons and in national television events. He collaborated with writers and directors to the creation of dramatic works and he received awards for his activities.
In 1985, he founded the Symphonic Orchestra of the Conservatory "Vincenzo Bellini” in Palermo, conducting it in several tours in Sicily and abroad. With this group he recorded live concerts for RAI network Three (Radio/Television Italy), and presented the modern edition of the Messa da Requiem of Peter Platania in premiere in the context of the events organized by the C. I. M. S. for the first conference on musical activities of the Mediterranean.
Carmelo Caruso – Biography
From 2000 to 2011, he held the position of Director of the Conservatory "Vincenzo Bellini" in Palermo, where he currently is full professor of Orchestral Conducting. Under his Artistic Direction the concert activity developed at the Conservatory has reached levels of quality and productivity equal to the professional level of the Lyric-Symphonic Foundations in Italy. The Season Series Concerts planned during these years have become very popular events. The Conservatory held over 80 concerts during the year including symphonic music, chamber music, choral works and solo recitals, which have represented important moments for discussion and indispensable training for the growth of young talents. The presence of renowned artists, in concert seasons, has consistently strengthened the prestige of the institution and given further artistic importance to the initiative itself.
Among the artists who performed in the concert seasons were Aaron Rosand, Mischa Maisky, Rudolph Koelmann, Adam Rudolph, Michele Campanella, Monica Leone, Enzo Dara, Sharon Isbin, Calogero Palermo, Elena Zaniboni, Adele Profeta, Eva Wimola, Macha Januchevakaia, Bruno Pedros, Mauro Maur, Eleonore Pameijer, Francois-Joel Thiollier and Micaela Ursuleasa.
Many cooperative agreements were signed during these years; of particular importance was the educational and artistic activity developed and agreed with the University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) for the production of the opera "La Traviata" by Giuseppe Verdi in Duluth during the Italian American Festival in 2004 and the American musical "Guys and Dolls” by Frank Loesser performed in January 2004 at “Politeama-Garibaldi” theater in Palermo. The collaboration also multiple protagonists of the events at the University in Palermo, the “Accademia di Belle Arti” in Palermo, the USA Consular Agency in Palermo, the Tweed Museum of Art and the Department of Art and Design of the UMD.
Under Carmelo Caruso’s artistic direction the concert activity made during these years, as well as having jointly engaged teachers and students, has pursued the dual objective of entrenching and consolidating the image of the Conservatory in the region, thus managing to greatly expand recruitment. It should be
Carmelo Caruso – Biography emphasized the attention that the Institution has had and has, to the mandate of addressing the great social issues summarized as follows: culture, art, law. Caruso arranged participation by the Conservatory in a day in memory of Judge Paolo Borsellino which took place on January 18, 2003 (the 63rd anniversary of his birthday) under the patronage of the Presidency of the Republic at the Cathedral of Monreale in the presence of civil, military and religious authorities. As a guest, he has led and directed concerts for important musical organizations and institutions including “RAI” (Radio/Television Italy), the “Teatro Massimo” Foundation in Palermo, the “Angelicum” in Milan, the Symphonic Orchestra in Sanremo, the Sicilian Symphonic Orchestra Foundation, the Experimental Laboratory Orchestra in Alexandria, the Symphonic Orchestra of the Conservatory "Vincenzo Bellini" in Palermo, the "Amici della Musica" in Palermo, and the “Rendano” theater in Cosenza.
In 1995, he founded the “Sicilian Philharmonic Orchestra Franco Ferrara” and he became Artistic and permanent Director in order to promote the growth of young Sicilian musicians. The orchestra in fact sets for itself, as its main purpose, the promotion of musicians from conservatories and music schools from Sicily, deepening the experience of training acquired during the years and combining them with the love for music and its professional aspect (all qualities of the term “philharmonic”). All musicians are founding members of the orchestra: first of all this allows the players to hear it as something intimately its own, but then mainly to socialize around a concrete musical project. Inside the orchestra there are small-groups, chamber ensembles, self experiences which have only one purpose: to improve as much as possible the overall quality. Within a few seasons, the orchestra achieved its objectives with regular season concerts at the Orion Theater, skilled execution of the most significant and challenging pages of the repertoire, gaining favor with the public and praise from the critics, with recordings on Bongiovanni and KiccoMusic.
On December 28, 2001 the group received particular success in the first performance in Sicily, of the “Liverpool Oratorio” by Paul McCartney at the Cathedral in Monreale, and on December 29 of the same year at the Cathedral in Palermo in the presence of important personalities from the institutional,
Carmelo Caruso – Biography cultural and entertainment world, including Sir Alan Crowder, the private secretary of Paul McCartney.
He conducted the work “Salvo D'Acquisto" by Antonio Fortunato and Bruno Forti at the Teatro Massimo in Palermo in 2002, realized in collaboration with the l’Arma dei Carabinieri, the Fondazione Teatro Massimo, the Conservatory of Music "Vincenzo Bellini" in Palermo and the Sicilian Philharmonic Orchestra Franco Ferrara.
In the summer of 2003, he directed the operetta "The Merry Widow" by Franz Lehar with the Orchestra, Choir and the Corps de Ballet of the Fondazione Teatro Massimo in Palermo at the Teatro di Verdura Palermo. In May 2004, has led the opera "La Scala di Seta" of Gioacchino Rossini at the Teatro Massimo.
Another important and prolific activity for Caruso was his role as both conductor and musical consultant at the “Teatro Stabile Biondo” Association in Palermo under the direction of Maestro Pietro Carriglio, where he conducted the “Three Penny Opera” (Opera da Tre Soldi) by Bertold Brecht and Kurt Weill at the “Teatro Massimo” in Palermo and on tour in Italy.
He has been frequent guest in the concert program of the Sicilian Symphonic Orchestra Foundation where he performed a concert dedicated to Ennio Morricone (composer) and Giuseppe Tornatore (director) during the presentation of the movie "Baaria" (2009) of the Sicilian director.
Particular attention can be focused on Caruso’s time spent on the performance of the contemporary and pop-culture repertoire. It includes the significant experience with Jon Lord, co-founder of Deep Purple and composer of "Concerto for Group and Orchestra", performed for the first time in Italy on April 28, 2011 at the Golden Theater in Palermo, and violinist and composer Mauro Pagani, co-founder of the progressive rock band Premiata Forneria Marconi ("PFM"), with whom he performed the "Concert for the Republic Day" on June 1, 2011 at the “Politeama-Garibaldi” theater in Palermo.
Carmelo Caruso – Biography
As a composer of symphonic, chamber and vocal pieces, his compositions have been performed on concert seasons of many organizations including the Fondazione Teatro Massimo in Palermo and Musicus Concentus of Florence, with specific commissions from the Friends Of Music Of Palermo, Ars Nova of Palermo, Orchestra Sinfonica Siciliana, Nuova Consonanza of Rome, Trio Stabern, and other nationally-known performing groups.
During his time of teaching at the school of theater "Teates" in Palermo, he had a close artistic collaboration with the writer and theater director Michele Perriera, resulting in a thorough study on the experimental use of the voice. He wrote "Il Flauto Di Vertebre” (The Flute Of Vertebrae) for six actors and chamber orchestra, and the musical-theater opera “I Pavoni” (The Peacocks) commissioned by the Friends Of Music Of Palermo on the occasion of the events organized for the centenary of the birth of Igor Stravinsky, Anton Webern and Edgard Varese.
Carmelo Caruso has been Chair since 1984 of the association for contemporary music "Nostro Novecento" founded by him and with whom he has kept renewed the traditional interest that Palermo has always manifested in regard to "New Music". The organization has won, among other things, a Citation Of Merit in the report made by the Regional Council Of Cultural Heritage, for work carried out in 1985.
On behalf of the Association Of Friends Of Music of Palermo, he has directed the orchestra "Giovani Cameristi Siciliani" with which he recorded for the network television RAI One the program “Voglia di Musica” (Desire For Music).
As the Director of the Conservatory "Vincenzo Bellini" in Palermo from June 14, 2000 to October 31, 2011, the ever-increasing rapport established with Sicilian institutions was in the spotlight when Carmelo Caruso was invited by the President of the Sicilian Assembly, the Honorable Francesco Lo Cascio, to share the podium of the symphony orchestra of the Conservatory "Vincenzo Bellini" on the occasion of the reopening to the public of the Sala d'Ercole of Palazzo dei Normanni, seat of the Sicilian Parliament, in December 2009. Caruso’s accomplishments as the head of the prestigious and renowned Sicilian
Carmelo Caruso – Biography institution has been appreciated and recognized through numerous attestations of esteem, among which are those of: Agnes Borsellino, the former Palermo Police Chief Dr. Francesco Cirillo, Pietro Cartiglio, Aldo Ciccolini, Pietro De Maria, Enzo Dara, Rudoph Koelmann, Franz Koegel, Aldo Ceccato, Anita Cerquetti, Pippo Made, Adam Rudolph, Roberto Lagalla, Rita Cedrini, former Commissioner of the State of Sicily Prefect Gianfranco Romagnoli, Alexander Toradze, the Bishop of Monreale Salvatore Di Gristina and Giuseppe Liberto.
The momentum of progress from the year of his inauguration to today, has allowed the Conservatory to be placed at the center of artistic-cultural initiatives on the island and beyond. A policy of developing wide-ranging looks with ever more attention to Europe has enhanced the reputation of the Conservatory and solidified its educational foundation by attracting a growing number of students. Culmination of this activity can certainly be confirmed by their hosting the organization of the International Congress of the Association of European Conservatories for the first time in Italy, in November of 2013.
The same attention has been paid to the initiatives that relate to the issue of legality with the series of "Notes della Legalita" attended by important exponents of the institutional, cultural and political world. In a particularly significant and touching moment, Carmelo Caruso represented the Conservatory at its director and orchestra conductor by his participation at the Prison House Bunker in Palermo on May 23, 2010, to commemorate the Capaci Massacre of 23 May 1992, when Judge Giovanni Falcone was murdered, and the via d’Amelio Massacre of 19 July 1992 (57 days later), when Judge Paolo Borsellino was murdered. The opening event included the symphony orchestra and choir of treble voices, with the presence of Government Ministers Angelino Alfano, Maria Stella Gemini, and Roberto Maroni.
In 1990, Carmelo Caruso was awarded the culture prize "Giacalone di Monreale" for his language of music with the following reasons: “The universal and unifying language of music punctuates the province of the soul with its rhythms and harmonies and gives warmth and mystery to the sublime phoenix of reality. An example of this is the creative depth of M° Caruso, who, in addition to leading the Conservatory ‘Vincenzo Bellini’ in Palermo, teaches orchestral conducting,
Carmelo Caruso – Biography reveals his talent, expressing with interpretive symbols well-versed in contemporary music cultures, a personal quality, congenial to his own artistic temperament.”
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Carmelo Caruso – Recommendations
”The young musician Carmelo Caruso has attended various courses of Orchestra Conducting held by me, proving his outstanding directorial qualities, temperament and a very strong sensitivity”. Franco Ferrara
“During the course of the conducting classes and at public events he has shown considerable musical gifts both as regards his general preparation as a composer and pianist of talent, as well as his specific aptitude as director, always supported by an intense sensitivity and clarity. I recommend to give attention to him as a musical talent worthy of important statements.” Bruno Aprea
Carmelo Caruso – Testimonials
“I thank Maestro Carmelo Caruso and the entire Board of the Conservatory; I appreciate so much the initiative promoted by you expressing my deep regret for not being able to attend the meeting dedicated to the "notes of the law” that, in a day so sad for our country, joins past and present tragedies, in memory and celebration of the values of peace and solidarity in defense of civil coexistence among men. This meeting offers a point of meditation on the need to repudiate all forms of violence in order to build a better society, that does not require the painful tribute to others martyrs and who achieves the highest goal of a true social justice. I am spiritually close to you”. Palermo, 18 Novembre 2003 – Agnese Borsellino
“I wish to express sincere esteem for the initiative that involves me with the performance of Liverpool-Oratorio, and I hope you get the same great joy that I felt when I composed it. Gratefully” London, 27 December 2001 Paul McCartney
“Dear Mr. Caruso, I would like to express my sincere gratitude for your visit at the Latvian Academy of Music and interest in our future collaboration. We would be certainly interested to establish closet relations between our two institutions – especially vocal departments. We would appreciate if Console Onorario Dottore Francesco Bambina would assist us in developing fruitful collaboration in near future. We shall be looking forward to your response regarding proposals expressed during our discussion”. Yours sincerely, 14 September 2001 Prof. Arvids Imamts Luste Vice-Provost for Academic Affairs, Chairman of Vocal Department