Ivan Fedele

Ivan Fedele was born in Lecce in 1953. He studied piano with B. Canino, V. Vitale and I. Deckers, and composition under the guidance of R. Dionisi, A. Corghi and F. Donatoni. At the same time, he studied philosophy at the University of Milan, with E. Paci, L. Geymonat, R. Mangione and R. Cantoni. He owns to his father, a mathematician, the passion for mathematics, as it becomes evident in his compositional researches, including the examination and use of the concept of “spatialisation” (Duo en résonance, Ali di Cantor, Donacis Ambra), the formulation of a “library” of creative processes and the definition of a prototype of “granular synthesizer”, like the one used for the realization of the electronic part of Richiamo (for brass, percussions and electronics - IRCAM 1993). His piece Capt-Actions (for string quartet, accordion and electronics) uses for the first time a new system of “capteurs”, which are able to send all data regarding the contours of a musical gesture directly to the computer, which, in turn, interprets this information, on real time, according to the archetypes of modulation set a priori by the composer. Capt-Actions has been premiered at the Arsenale in Metz, in April 2005. This new technology, which has been developed by Thierry Coduys in the “Kitchen” studios of Paris, opens up new compositional perspectives, yet unexplored.

Ivan Fedele carries also an intense academic activity, which has seen him participating to the activities of important institutions, like Harvard University, University of Barcelona, Sorbonne and IRCAM in Paris, Sibelius Academy of Helsinki, Chopin Academy of Warsaw, Centre Acanthes in Avignon, CNSM in Lyon and CNR of Strasbourg as well as Italian Conservatoires, namely Milan, Bologna and Turin. In 2000 he has been awarded the honour of “Chevalier de l’Ordre des Lettres et des Arts” by the French Ministry of Culture. In 2005 Fedele has been appointed Member of the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome. In 2007 the Italian Ministry of Culture entrusted him with the Professorship of Composition for the “Corsi di Perfezionamento in Studi Musicali” at the same Accademia. From 2009 to 2011 he has been the Artistic Director of the Orchestra I Pomeriggi Musicali of Milan. He is appointed Director of the Music section of the Venice Biennale for the five-year period 2012-2016, and has been reappointed until 2019. In 2016, the Fondation de France awarded him the Prix International "Arthur Honegger", for all of his work.