Paolo Pandolfo is an Italian virtuoso player, composer, and teacher of music for the

viola da gamba The viol (), viola da gamba (), or informally gamba, is any one of a family of bowed, fretted, and stringed instruments with hollow wooden bodies and pegboxes where the tension on the strings can be increased or decreased to adjust the pitch ...

, born on January 31, 1964. He began his studies as a

double bass The double bass (), also known simply as the bass () (or by other names), is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed (or plucked) string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra (excluding unorthodox additions such as the octobass). Similar ...

and

guitar The guitar is a fretted musical instrument that typically has six string instrument, strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming or Plucked string instrument, plucking the strings with the dominant hand, w ...

player, becoming a skilled performer of

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major f ...

and

popular music Popular music is music with wide appeal that is typically distributed to large audiences through the music industry. These forms and styles can be enjoyed and performed by people with little or no musical training.Popular Music. (2015). ''Funk ...

.Ernesto Schmied, trans. by Yolanda Acker
"Interview: Paolo Pandolfo", ''Goldberg: The Early Music Portal'', p. 5.
Ernesto Schmied, trans. by Yolanda Acker
"Interview: Paolo Pandolfo", ''Goldberg: The Early Music Portal'', p. 7.
In the mid-late 1970s he studied viola da gamba at the Rome Conservatory. In 1979 he co-founded the

early music Early music generally comprises Medieval music (500–1400) and Renaissance music (1400–1600), but can also include Baroque music (1600–1750). Originating in Europe, early music is a broad musical era for the beginning of Western classical m ...

ensemble La Stravaganza, and then moved to

Basel , french: link=no, Bâlois(e), it, Basilese , neighboring_municipalities= Allschwil (BL), Hégenheim (FR-68), Binningen (BL), Birsfelden (BL), Bottmingen (BL), Huningue (FR-68), Münchenstein (BL), Muttenz (BL), Reinach (BL), Riehen (BS), ...

Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...

in 1981 where he studied with

Jordi Savall Jordi Savall i Bernadet (; born 1 August 1941) is a Spanish conductor, composer and viol player. He has been one of the major figures in the field of Western early music since the 1970s, largely responsible for popularizing the viol family of ...

at the

Schola Cantorum Basiliensis The Schola Cantorum Basiliensis (SCB) is a music academy and research institution located in Basel, Switzerland, that focuses on early music and historically informed performance. Faculty at the school have organized performing ensembles that have ...

. From 1982 to 1990 Pandolfo was a member of Jordi Savall's early music groups Hespèrion XX. Since 1989 Pandolfo has served as professor of viola da gamba at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis — a position previously held by maestros

August Wenzinger August Wenzinger (1905–1996) was a prominent cellist, viol player, conductor, teacher, and music scholar from Basel, Switzerland. He was a pioneer of historically informed performance, both as a master of the viola da gamba and as a conductor o ...

and Jordi Savall. He also directs, records, and performs regularly with his viola da gamba-oriented early music ensemble Labyrinto, which he co-founded. Pandolfo has recorded numerous CDs. For most of the 1980s he recorded primarily with Jordi Savall and others. His first recording as a soloist was in 1990 with the release of his highly acclaimed CD ''C. P. E. Bach: Sonatas for Viola da Gamba'' (Tactus). He has also recorded a viola da gamba interpretation of the cello suites of

J. S. Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque period. He is known for his orchestral music such as the ''Brandenburg Concertos''; instrumental compositions such as the Cello Suites; keyboard wor ...

. Pandolfo explains that the suites, although written for the cello, were conceived in the polyphonic style of the viola da gamba; further, the dance suite was a common form for viola da gamba music, and playing the Bach suites on the gamba is thus a way to reclaim this tradition for the viola da gamba.Ernesto Schmied, trans. by Yolanda Acker
"Interview: Paolo Pandolfo", ''Goldberg: The Early Music Portal'', p. 2.
Pandolfo has said that the patrimony of ancient music can be a powerful inspiration for the future of the Western musical tradition. Building bridges between past and present is therefore an important part of his work.

Discography

*C. P. E. Bach: Sonatas for Viola da Gamba (Tactus) *Forqueray - ''Pièces de viole avec la basse continuë'' (integrale, Glossa; 2 CDs) *J. S. Bach - Sonatas for Viola da Gamba and harpsichord (Harmonia Mundi) *Marin Marais - ''Le Labyrinth et autres Histoires'' (Glossa) *Marin Marais - ''Le Grand Ballet'' (Glossa) *J. S. Bach - ''The Six Suites'' (Glossa) *Tobias Hume - ''Spirit of Gambo'' (Glossa - Labyrinto, Emma Kirkby) *Le Sieur de St. Colombe - ''Pieces de Viole'' (Glossa) *A Solo - P. Pandolfo, T. Hume, Corkins, DeMachy, M. Marais, J. S. Bach, C. F. Abel - solo Recital with different Authors (Glossa) *''Io Canterei d'Amor'' - O. diLasso, T. Crequillon, Arcadelt, D. Ortiz, R. Rogniono, A. Gabrieli (Labirinto V. Ruffo - Harmonia Mundi) *Travel Notes - New music for the Viola da Gamba composed by Paolo Pandolfo (Glossa) *''Improvisando'' - (Glossa) *Heinrich Isaac, La Spagna - Includes D. Ortiz - Variations on La Spagna played by P. Pandolfo (Bongiovanni) *''Canzon del Principe'' (includes Oratio Bassani's Viola Bastarda solos - solos by Oratio Bassani played by P. Pandolfo (Divox Antiqua) Pandolfo is also a contributing performer on dozens of other recordings, collaborating with various well known artists, including: *Jordi Savall — Hespèrion XX and

Hespèrion XXI Hespèrion XXI is an international early music ensemble. The group was formed in Basel, Switzerland in 1974 as Hespèrion XX by Catalan musical director Jordi Savall (bowed string instruments, particularly the viola da gamba), his wife Montserr ...

(numerous titles)

References

External links

Paolo Pandolfo interviewPaolo Pandolfo's official web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pandolfo, Paolo Italian performers of early music Viol players Living people Year of birth missing (living people) Musicians from Basel-Stadt Place of birth missing (living people) Schola Cantorum Basiliensis faculty