Davide Rossi
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Davide Rossi (born 7 August 1970) is an Italian violinist, string arranger, orchestrator, songwriter, composer and conductor, perhaps best known for having been the electric violinist and multi-instrumentalist for the British electronic music duo
Goldfrapp Goldfrapp were an English electronic music duo from London, formed in 1999. The duo consisted of Alison Goldfrapp (vocals, synthesiser) and Will Gregory (synthesiser). Despite favourable reviews and a short-listing for the Mercury Prize, thei ...
from 2000 until 2013, and for his large contribution of electric violin parts and for most of the string arrangements on all
Coldplay Coldplay are a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer and percussionist Will Champion, and manager Phil Harvey (band m ...
's albums since ''
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends ''Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends'', often referred to as simply ''Viva la Vida'', is the fourth studio album by the British Rock music, rock band Coldplay, released on 12 June 2008 by Parlophone in the United Kingdom. "Viva la vida" ...
'' (2008).


Biography


Early career – Italy

Rossi began playing music at the age of four and, encouraged by his mother, started to study violin at the age of ten. He entered the Conservatory
Giuseppe Verdi Giuseppe Fortunino Francesco Verdi ( ; ; 9 or 10 October 1813 – 27 January 1901) was an Italian composer best known for List of compositions by Giuseppe Verdi, his operas. He was born near Busseto, a small town in the province of Parma ...
of
Torino Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...
in 1981 and began studying under the guidance of
Maestro Maestro (; from the Italian '' maestro'' , meaning " master" or "teacher," plural: maestros or maestri) is an honorific title of respect, sometimes abbreviated Mo. The term is most commonly used in the context of Western classical music and oper ...
Ivan Krivensky, who remained his violin teacher until his passing in 2019. Rossi received his Diploma in 1992 at the homonymous school in
Milan Milan ( , , ; ) is a city in northern Italy, regional capital of Lombardy, the largest city in Italy by urban area and the List of cities in Italy, second-most-populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of nea ...
. Alongside formal classical studies he started to work with bands at the age of fifteen, mainly in the Turin area. After his Diploma in 1992 he joined Mau Mau full-time; a folk-rock band from Turin with whom he recorded many albums and toured most of Europe and the
Middle-East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...
. Other Italian bands that featured his work are Casino Royale, Afterhours, La Crus, Cristina Donà,
Bluvertigo Bluvertigo are an Italian alternative rock band from the Milan metropolitan area. History Originally formed in 1992 with the name Golden Age, the band switched to the name Bluvertigo shortly before recording their first album. The founding member ...
and the singer songwriter
Vinicio Capossela Vinicio Capossela (born 14 December 1965) is an Italian singer-songwriter, poet and novelist. Capossela is renowned for the highly original and poetic lyrics of his songs. Many of them draw from traditions of Italian folk music, especially thos ...
.


Robert Fripp – Guitar Craft

In 1990 Rossi became a student of legendary guitarist
Robert Fripp Robert Fripp (born 16 May 1946) is an English musician, composer, record producer, and author, best known as the guitarist, founder and longest-lasting member of the progressive rock band King Crimson. He has worked extensively as a session mu ...
and followed intensively his
Guitar Craft Guitar Craft (GC) was a series of guitar and personal-development classes, founded and often presented by Robert Fripp, who is best known for his work with the rock band King Crimson. Guitar Craft courses introduc ...
courses all over the world for a period of nearly four years. In 1995 he moved to the UK and began a period of study where he completed a BA in
Composition Composition or Compositions may refer to: Arts and literature *Composition (dance), practice and teaching of choreography * Composition (language), in literature and rhetoric, producing a work in spoken tradition and written discourse, to include ...
at Bath Spa University College and a MSC in
Digital Digital usually refers to something using discrete digits, often binary digits. Businesses *Digital bank, a form of financial institution *Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) or Digital, a computer company *Digital Research (DR or DRI), a software ...
Music Technology Music technology is the study or the use of any device, mechanism, machine or tool by a musician or composer to make or perform music; to musical composition, compose, music notation, notate, playback or record songs or pieces; or to Music infor ...
at
Keele University Keele University is a Public university#United Kingdom, public research university in Keele, approximately from Newcastle-under-Lyme, Staffordshire, England. Founded in 1949 as the University College of North Staffordshire, it was granted uni ...
. In 1999 he attended a music course by German composer
Karlheinz Stockhausen Karlheinz Stockhausen (; 22 August 1928 – 5 December 2007) was a German composer, widely acknowledged by critics as one of the most important but also controversial composers of the 20th and early 21st centuries. He is known for his groun ...
in
Kürten Kürten () is a village and a municipality in the Rheinisch-Bergischer Kreis, in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Geography Kürten is situated approximately 25 km east of Cologne. Neighbouring places Nearby cities include Bergisch Gladb ...
, near
Cologne Cologne ( ; ; ) is the largest city of the States of Germany, German state of North Rhine-Westphalia and the List of cities in Germany by population, fourth-most populous city of Germany with nearly 1.1 million inhabitants in the city pr ...
, Germany. This two week period, coupled with Guitar Craft, was highly influential on Rossi's future musical career.


Goldfrapp

In 2000 Rossi was invited by musician
Will Gregory William Owen Gregory (born 17 September 1959) is an English musician and record producer. He is best known as the lead keyboardist, producer, and composer of the electronic music duo Goldfrapp. Early life Gregory was born in Bristol, the son ...
, whom he had met two years previously, to join his new band
Goldfrapp Goldfrapp were an English electronic music duo from London, formed in 1999. The duo consisted of Alison Goldfrapp (vocals, synthesiser) and Will Gregory (synthesiser). Despite favourable reviews and a short-listing for the Mercury Prize, thei ...
. Since then Rossi has been part of all the live incarnations of the band, touring most of the world during the '' Felt Mountain'' Tour (2000–2002), ''
Black Cherry ''Prunus serotina'', commonly called black cherry,World Economic Plants: A Standard Reference, Second Edition'. CRC Press; 19 April 2016. . p. 833–. wild black cherry, rum cherry, or mountain black cherry, is a deciduous tree or shrub in the r ...
'' Tour (2003–2004), '' Supernature'' Tour (2005–2006), ''
Seventh Tree ''Seventh Tree'' is the fourth studio album by English electronic music duo Goldfrapp, released on 22 February 2008 by Mute Records. It was named after a dream Alison Goldfrapp had about a "very large tree". Taking inspiration from paganism and ...
'' Tour (2008) and '' Head First'' Tour (2010). Although before '' Head First'' he has never played on any Goldfrapp's studio albums, he has recorded several b-sides, acoustic and live recordings of the band and a live DVD. In September 2013 Rossi announced that the performance at the Beacon Theatre in New York City was going to be his last with the band, in order to pursue his own arranging and composing career and the increasing commitment with his own band
Black Submarine Black Submarine, previously known as The Black Ships until mid-2012, were an English rock supergroup formed in November 2008 by former Verve members Nick McCabe and Simon Jones, Coldplay/Goldfrapp collaborator and former The Verve touring mus ...
.


Coldplay

From the autumn of 2006 until February 2008, Rossi's career focussed mainly on studio work and string arranging. At the time of writing this is once again his focus. He uses his acoustic violins, violas, cellos and contrabass to re-create a whole orchestra. His work is featured in six songs of the
Coldplay Coldplay are a British Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1997. They consist of vocalist and pianist Chris Martin, guitarist Jonny Buckland, bassist Guy Berryman, drummer and percussionist Will Champion, and manager Phil Harvey (band m ...
album ''
Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends ''Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends'', often referred to as simply ''Viva la Vida'', is the fourth studio album by the British Rock music, rock band Coldplay, released on 12 June 2008 by Parlophone in the United Kingdom. "Viva la vida" ...
'', produced by
Brian Eno Brian Peter George Jean-Baptiste de la Salle Eno (, born 15 May 1948), also mononymously known as Eno, is an English musician, songwriter, record producer, visual artist, and activist. He is best known for his pioneering contributions to ambien ...
, Markus Dravs and Rik Simpson. "
Violet Hill "Violet Hill" is a song by British rock band Coldplay. It was written by all members of the band for their fourth album, ''Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends'' (2008). Built around a repeating guitar sound, it utilises a marching tempo, ...
", first single released by the band on iTunes, features a soundscapes intro-like, which originally was an improvisation that Rossi and keyboard player
Jon Hopkins Jonathan Julian Hopkins (born 15 August 1979) is an English musician and producer who writes and performs electronic music. He began his career playing keyboards for Imogen Heap, and has produced but also contributed to albums by Brian Eno, Co ...
did together during an early session with the band at their studio in London. Others songs where Rossi's electric violin can be heard are: ''Life In Technicolor'', ''42'', ''Yes'' and ''Strawberry Swing'' (the chunky bass groove,
didgeridoo The didgeridoo (;()), also spelt didjeridu, among other variants, is a wind instrument, played with vibrating lips to produce a continuous Drone (music), drone while using a special breathing technique called circular breathing. The didgerido ...
's like that comes a little while after the beginning of the song, is one of the many examples of the sound of his Violectra). In ''Yes'', the electric violin takes shape as a John Cale-ish riff almost monotonically throughout the verses, while full and sometimes Arabic string arrangements are heavily featured at the beginning and during the song's breaks. "
Viva La Vida (, ; ) is a song by British rock band Coldplay. It was written by all members of the band for their fourth album, ''Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends'' (2008). The lyrics contain historical and Christian references (King Louis XVI of ...
" however, is the tune where Rossi's work is featured in its fullest. His strings are the driving force throughout the whole song: with an unforgettable opening loop supporting Martin's voice, that builds in the choruses where the symphonic power of the orchestra is in full effect. In November 2008, Coldplay released an EP titled ''
Prospekt's March ''Prospekt's March'' is the seventh extended play by British rock band Coldplay and their first since ''Remixes'' (2003). It was released on 21 November 2008 in Europe and Japan, later released globally the following week. The EP features sev ...
'', in which Rossi contributes to the songs: ''
Life in Technicolor II "Life in Technicolor II" (stylised as "Life in Technicolor ii") is a song by British rock band Coldplay released as the first single from the '' Prospekt's March EP.'' It is the full-vocal version of the instrumental track "Life in Technicolor ...
'', ''Rainy Day'' and ''Prospekt's March/Poppyfields''. December 2010 saw Rossi back in the studio with Coldplay, to start on a yet very long session for the album ''
Mylo Xyloto ''Mylo Xyloto'' (pronounced ) is the fifth studio album by British Rock music, rock band Coldplay. It was released on 19 October 2011 in Japan and on 24 October 2011 in the rest of the world. The band worked closely with producer Brian Eno fo ...
'', which was released in October 2011. His string arrangements are presents on 10 tracks of the album: ''
Paradise In religion and folklore, paradise is a place of everlasting happiness, delight, and bliss. Paradisiacal notions are often laden with pastoral imagery, and may be cosmogonical, eschatological, or both, often contrasted with the miseries of human ...
'', ''
Charlie Brown Charles "Charlie" Brown is the Protagonist, principal character of the comic strip ''Peanuts'', syndicated in daily newspaper, daily and Sunday newspapers in numerous countries all over the world. Depicted as a "lovable loser", Charlie Brown ...
'', '' Us Against the World'', '' U.F.O.'', ''
Every Teardrop is a Waterfall "Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall" is a song by British rock band Coldplay. It was released as the lead single for their fifth studio album ''Mylo Xyloto'' on 3 June 2011. An exclusive digital EP version of it, with the B-sides " Major Minus" and " ...
'', '' Up in Flames'', ''A Hopeful Transmission'', ''
Princess of China "Princess of China" is a duet recorded by British rock band Coldplay and Barbadian singer Rihanna for Coldplay's fifth studio album ''Mylo Xyloto''. The song was written by band members Guy Berryman, Jonny Buckland, Will Champion, and Chris M ...
'', ''Don't Let It Break Your Heart'' and ''Up with the Birds''. In July 2011, Coldplay released the ''
Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall "Every Teardrop Is a Waterfall" is a song by British rock band Coldplay. It was released as the lead single for their fifth studio album ''Mylo Xyloto'' on 3 June 2011. An exclusive digital EP version of it, with the B-sides " Major Minus" and " ...
'' EP where Rossi is present in the title song and on a B side called ''Moving To Mars''. Although Coldplay has an unspoken rule of not allowing any extra musician on stage besides the 4 members of the band, Rossi's strings feature live heavily by means of backing tape. Coldplay half-broke that rule allowing Rossi to perform 'in shadow' and just behind them on the song ''A Message 2010'', at the Hope For Haiti benefit concert, which took place in the UK and US as a TV marathon gig. The song was later released on iTunes. Rossi did also some occasional appearances with
Chris Martin Christopher Anthony John Martin (born 2 March 1977) is an English singer, songwriter, musician and producer. He is best known as the vocalist, pianist and co-founder of the rock band Coldplay. Born in Exeter, Martin went to University Colleg ...
during some charity events; in November 2006, for the Mencap Charity Concert at the Union Chapel in London and in October 2009 at the Bridge School Benefit in San Francisco, where Rossi performed also with
Neil Young Neil Percival Young (born November 12, 1945) is a Canadian and American singer-songwriter. After embarking on a music career in Winnipeg in the 1960s, Young moved to Los Angeles, forming the folk rock group Buffalo Springfield. Since the begi ...
the song '' Comes a Time''.


The Verve

During the early part of 2008, Rossi met
The Verve The Verve were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Wigan in 1990 by lead vocalist Richard Ashcroft, guitarist Nick McCabe, bass guitarist Simon Jones (musician), Simon Jones and drummer Peter Salisbury. Guitarist and keyboard player Sim ...
's guitarist
Nick McCabe Nicholas John McCabe (born 14 July 1971) is an English musician, best known as being the lead guitarist of the rock group the Verve. Early life McCabe is the son of a bus driver father and a social worker mother and has two older brothers, Ala ...
who invited him to play on a session for what would become the album ''
Forth Forth or FORTH may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''forth'' magazine, an Internet magazine * ''Forth'' (album), by The Verve, 2008 * ''Forth'', a 2011 album by Proto-Kaw * Radio Forth, a group of independent local radio stations in Scotl ...
'', later released in the August of the same year. Rossi' s contribution to this album can be heard in six tracks. In '' Love Is Noise'', he contributes, with the lower strings of his electric violin, to the daunting sound of the famous loop upon which the whole song is then developed. ''Sit And Wonder'' is a ground-breaking collaboration of 'noises' with Nick McCabe, where guitar and electric violin play a dance of interweaving acid sounds and harmonies. More classic string arrangements can be heard on songs like ''Valium Skies'', ''Judas'', '' I See Houses'' and ''Rather Be''. Rossi has also performed with the Verve during several live and TV shows of their latest summer campaign. Some of them include
Glastonbury Glastonbury ( , ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbury is less than across the River ...
and the
V Festival V Festival, often referred to as V Fest or simply V, was an annual music festival held in the United Kingdom during the third weekend in August. The event was held at two parks simultaneously which shared the same bill; artists performed at one ...
.


Röyksopp

March 2009 sees the release of another important collaboration for Rossi. Norwegian band
Röyksopp Röyksopp () a Norwegian electronic music duo from Tromsø formed in 1998. The duo consists of childhood friends Svein Berge and Torbjørn Brundtland who formed Röyksopp during the Bergen Wave. After experimenting with different Electronic Mu ...
features his string arrangements in four of the eleven track of their new album '' Junior''. These are: ''The Girl and the Robot'', ''Röyksopp Forever'', ''You Don't Have a Clue'' and ''Silver Cruiser''. From the same session Röyksopp released in 2010 ''
Senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...
'', in which Rossi is featured on the song "Senior Living". Rossi has also appeared live with the band on various concerts around Europe and the UK in 2009.


Arranger, Orchestrator

Rossi's work as arranger and producer has been featured on records of artists such as Siouxsie,
Dido Dido ( ; , ), also known as Elissa ( , ), was the legendary founder and first queen of the Phoenician city-state of Carthage (located in Tunisia), in 814 BC. In most accounts, she was the queen of the Phoenician city-state of Tyre (located ...
,
Jon Hopkins Jonathan Julian Hopkins (born 15 August 1979) is an English musician and producer who writes and performs electronic music. He began his career playing keyboards for Imogen Heap, and has produced but also contributed to albums by Brian Eno, Co ...
,
The Proclaimers The Proclaimers are a Scottish Rock music, rock duo formed in 1983 by twin brothers Craig and Charlie Reid (born 5 March 1962). They came to attention with their 1987 single "Letter from America (song), Letter from America", which reached No. 3 ...
,
Chris Martin Christopher Anthony John Martin (born 2 March 1977) is an English singer, songwriter, musician and producer. He is best known as the vocalist, pianist and co-founder of the rock band Coldplay. Born in Exeter, Martin went to University Colleg ...
,
Eros Ramazzotti Eros Walter Luciano Ramazzotti (; born 28 October 1963) is an Italian Pop music, pop singer and songwriter. He is popular in Italy and most European countries, and throughout the Spanish-speaking world, as he has released most of his albums in bo ...
,
Alicia Keys Alicia Augello Cook (born January 25, 1981), known professionally as Alicia Keys, is an American singer and songwriter. A classically trained pianist, Keys began composing songs at the age of 12 and was signed by Columbia Records at 15. After d ...
,
Moby Richard Melville Hall (September 11, 1965), known professionally as Moby, is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, disc jockey, and animal rights activist. He has sold 20 million records worldwide. AllMusic considers him to be "amo ...
,
Jazmine Sullivan Jazmine Marie Sullivan (born April 9, 1987) is an American R&B singer and songwriter. She has won two Grammy Awards, a ''Billboard'' Women in Music Award, and two BET Awards over the course of her career. In 2022, ''Time'' placed her on their ...
,
Trentemøller Anders Trentemøller (; born 16 October 1972) is a Danish indie artist , producer and multi-instrumentalist based in Copenhagen, Denmark. History Trentemøller started music in the late 1990s with different indie rock projects. In 2006, follow ...
,
Zucchero Adelmo Fornaciari (; born 25 September 1955), known professionally as Zucchero Fornaciari or simply Zucchero (), is an Italian singer, musician and songwriter. His stage name is the Italian word for "sugar", as his primary school teacher used to ...
,
Rihanna Robyn Rihanna Fenty ( ; born February 20, 1988) is a Barbadian singer, businesswoman, and actress. One of the List of music artists by net worth, wealthiest musicians in the world, List of awards and nominations received by Rihanna, her vario ...
,
Duran Duran Duran Duran () are an English pop rock band formed in Birmingham in 1978 by singer Stephen Duffy, keyboardist Nick Rhodes and guitarist/bassist John Taylor (bass guitarist), John Taylor. After several early changes, the band's line-up settled ...
, Jack Savoretti,
Depeche Mode Depeche Mode are an English electronic music, electronic band formed in Basildon, Essex in 1980. Originally formed with the line-up of Dave Gahan, Martin Gore, Andy Fletcher (musician), Andy Fletcher and Vince Clarke, the band currently consists ...
, Lucio Corsi and many others.


Discography


Awards


Grammy Awards


References


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Rossi, Davide Living people 1970 births Italian male violinists Italian composers Italian male composers Alumni of Bath Spa University Alumni of Keele University 21st-century Italian violinists 21st-century Italian male musicians