Roberto Abbado (born 30 December 1954 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 ...

) is an Italian opera and symphonic music conductor. Currently he is an Artistic Partner of The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. In 2015 he has been appointed music director of Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia in

Valencia, Spain Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

. From 2018 he's Music Director of the Festival Verdi in

Parma Parma (; ) is a city in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna known for its architecture, Giuseppe Verdi, music, art, prosciutto (ham), Parmesan, cheese and surrounding countryside. With a population of 198,986 inhabitants as of 2025, ...

. Previously he held the position of Chief Conductor of Münchner Rundfunkorchester ( Munich Radio Orchestra).

Childhood and education

Born into a musical family, Abbado is a son of the pianist and composer

Marcello Abbado Marcello Abbado (7 October 19264 June 2020) was an Italian pianist, composer, conductor and academic teacher. His compositions include several orchestral works, two ballets, numerous pieces for solo piano, and chamber music. As a pianist, he pla ...

, for more than twenty years Director of Conservatorio di Musica "Giuseppe Verdi" in Milan. His grandfather was the violinist and teacher Michelangelo Abbado and his uncle the conductor

Claudio Abbado Claudio Abbado (; 26 June 1933 – 20 January 2014) was an Italian conductor who was one of the leading conductors of his generation. He served as music director of the La Scala opera house in Milan, principal conductor of the Berlin Philharm ...

. In his teens, Roberto studied at Conservatorio "G. Rossini" in Pesaro and then piano with Paolo Bordoni and composition with Bruno Bettinelli at Milan Conservatory. He studied conducting with Mario Gusella in Milan and Franco Ferrara at

Teatro La Fenice Teatro La Fenice (; "The Phoenix (mythology), Phoenix Theatre") is a historic opera house in Venice, Italy. It is one of "the most famous and renowned landmarks in the history of Italian theatre" and in the history of opera as a whole. Especial ...

in Venice and Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome. He also attended the last summer course of Hans Swarowsky in Vienna in 1975.

Career

In 1975, Piero Farulli funded the "Vincenzo Galilei" Orchestra and Chorus at Scuola Normale Superiore in

Pisa Pisa ( ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Tuscany, Central Italy, straddling the Arno just before it empties into the Ligurian Sea. It is the capital city of the Province of Pisa. Although Pisa is known worldwide for the Leaning Tow ...

to perform Bach Cantatas. Mario Gusella recommended Abbado to Piero Farulli in order to conduct the orchestra in a series of concerts. In 1977, the musicians of Accademia di Santa Cecilia Symphony Orchestra asked Abbado to conduct a concert in Rieti, while he was still studying at Accademia, for a fellow student a privilege never to be. In the same year, he won the Second Prize at the Malko Competition for young conductors in

Copenhagen Copenhagen ( ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a population of 1.4 million in the Urban area of Copenhagen, urban area. The city is situated on the islands of Zealand and Amager, separated from Malmö, Sweden, by the ...

, promoted by Danish Radio and Television. In 1978, he conducted concerts with leading Italian and Scandinavian orchestras such as Orchestra del

, Orchestra Sinfonica della Rai di Milano, Helsingborg Symphony Orchestra, Aalborg Symphony Orchestra. His first appearance as an opera conductor, aged 23, was in Macerata, Arena Sferisterio in 1978, in a new production of Verdi's '' Simon Boccanegra'', featuring Renato Bruson, Cesare Siepi and Ilva Ligabue. He conducted the season-opening night at Teatro La Fenice in December 1979 with a new production of Rossini's '' Il Turco in Italia''. In 1980, he conducted Verdi's '' Aida'' at Teatro Massimo in

Palermo Palermo ( ; ; , locally also or ) is a city in southern Italy, the capital (political), capital of both the autonomous area, autonomous region of Sicily and the Metropolitan City of Palermo, the city's surrounding metropolitan province. The ...

: one of the performance was attended by the Intendant of Wiener Staatsoper Seefelner, who immediately engaged Mr. Abbado. In 1981, he conducted the world première of Flavio Testi's ''Il sosia'' at Piccola Scala in Milan. In the same year he conducted a new production of Rossini's '' La Cenerentola'' at Wiener Staatsoper, staged by

Gian Carlo Menotti Gian Carlo Menotti (, ; July 7, 1911 – February 1, 2007) was an Italian-American composer, libretto, librettist, director, and playwright who is primarily known for his output of 25 operas. Although he often referred to himself as an American ...

and featuring Agnes Baltsa, Francisco Araiza, Enzo Dara, and Giuseppe Taddei. In 1982, he conducted Rossini's '' Il barbiere di Siviglia'' at Opernhaus in

Zurich Zurich (; ) is the list of cities in Switzerland, largest city in Switzerland and the capital of the canton of Zurich. It is in north-central Switzerland, at the northwestern tip of Lake Zurich. , the municipality had 448,664 inhabitants. The ...

with Edita Gruberova and Araiza. In the summer he conducted at

Edinburgh Festival __NOTOC__ This is a list of Arts festival, arts and cultural festivals regularly taking place in Edinburgh, Scotland. The city has become known for its festivals since the establishment in 1947 of the Edinburgh International Festival and the ...

Rossini's '' La pietra del paragone'' staged by

Eduardo De Filippo Eduardo De Filippo OMRI (; 26 May 1900 – 31 October 1984), also known simply as ''Eduardo'', was an Italian actor, director, screenwriter, and playwright, best known for his Neapolitan language, Neapolitan works ''Filumena Marturano'' and ...

with Orchestra and Chorus of Teatro alla Scala. In November he conducted Verdi's '' Don Carlo'' at Gran Teatre del Liceu in

Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...

with a stunning cast including

Montserrat Caballé María de Montserrat Bibiana Concepción Caballé i Folch or Folc (12 April 1933 – 6 October 2018), also known as Montserrat Caballé (i Folch), was a Spanish operatic soprano from Catalonia. Widely considered to be one of the best sopranos ...

, Elena Obraztsova,

José Carreras Josep Maria Carreras Coll (; born 5 December 1946), better known as José Carreras (, ), is a Catalan operatic tenor from Spain who is particularly known for his performances in the operas of Donizetti, Verdi and Puccini. Born in Barcelona, ...

Leo Nucci Leo Nucci (born 16 April 1942) is an Italian operatic baritone, particularly associated with Verdi and '' Verismo'' roles. Biography Born at Castiglione dei Pepoli, near Bologna, Nucci studied with Giuseppe Marchese. He made his stage debut ...

and

Martti Talvela Martti Olavi Talvela (4 February 1935 – 23 July 1989) was a Finnish operatic bass. Born in Hiitola, Finland (now in the Republic of Karelia), the eighth of ten children

. He made his debut at Teatro alla Scala in 1984 conducting Donizetti's ''

Don Pasquale ''Don Pasquale'' () is a Gaetano Donizetti opera buffa, or comic opera, in three acts, with an Italian libretto completed largely by Giovanni Ruffini as well as the composer. It was based on a libretto by Angelo Anelli for Stefano Pavesi's oper ...

'', in a production featuring

Sesto Bruscantini Sesto Bruscantini (10 December 1919 – 4 May 2003) was an Italian baritone, one of the greatest buffo singers of the post-war era, especially renowned in Mozart and Rossini. Biography and career Bruscantini was born in Civitanova Marche, M ...

in the title role and Lucia Aliberti. In the same house he also conducted the world première of Testi's ''Riccardo III'' in 1987, Ponchielli's '' La Gioconda'' in 1997, Donizetti's '' Lucia di Lammermoor'' in 2006, the world première of Fabio Vacchi's '' Teneke'' in 2007 and Rossini's '' La donna del lago'' with Joyce DiDonato, Daniela Barcellona and Juan Diego Flórez in 2011. In 1985, he made his

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

debut with

Orchestre National de France The Orchestre National de France (; ; abbr. ONF) is a French symphony orchestra based in Paris, founded in 1934. Placed under the administration of the French national radio (named Radio France since 1975), the ONF performs mainly in the Grand ...

and Yo Yo Ma as soloist. He has conducted many leading orchestras in Europe, including Royal Concertgebouw Amsterdam,

Orchestre de Paris The Orchestre de Paris () is a French orchestra based in Paris. The orchestra currently performs most of its concerts at the Philharmonie de Paris. History In 1967, following the dissolution of the Orchestre de la Société des Concerts du ...

, Filarmonica della Scala, Orchestra dell'Accademia di Santa Cecilia, Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della Rai, Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Dresden Staatskapelle, Gewandhaus Orchester Leipzig, Israel Philharmonic Orchestra, NDR Symphony Orchestra (Hamburg), Rotterdam Philharmonic Orchestra, Vienna Symphony Orchestra, Swedish Radio Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Orchestra of Europe. In 1987, he was appointed music director of the

Municipal Theatre of Santiago The Teatro Municipal, National Opera of Chile is the most important stage theatre and opera house in Santiago, Chile. History and overview The Chilean government ceded a significant parcel of land in downtown Santiago to the municipality, in 184 ...

in Chile, a position he held till 1989. In 1989, he made his debut at Münchner Opernfestspiele of Bayerisches Staatsoper with Francesco Cilea's '' Adriana Lecouvreur'' with

Mirella Freni Mirella Freni (born Mirella Fregni, 27February 19359February 2020) was an Italian operatic soprano who had a career of 50 years and appeared at major international opera houses. She received international attention at the Glyndebourne Festiva ...

and

Plácido Domingo José Plácido Domingo Embil (born 21 January 1941) is a Spanish opera singer, conductor, and arts administrator. He has recorded over a hundred complete operas and is well known for his versatility, regularly performing in Italian, French, ...

. He also conducted their new productions of '' La Traviata'' and '' Aida'', furthermore '' Manon Lescaut'', ''

'', ''

Carmen ''Carmen'' () is an opera in four acts by the French composer Georges Bizet. The libretto was written by Henri Meilhac and Ludovic Halévy, based on the novella of the same title by Prosper Mérimée. The opera was first performed by the O ...

'' and Prokofiev's '' The Love for Three Oranges''. From 1991 to 1998 he served as Chief Conductor of Münchner Rundfunkorchester (Munich Radio Orchestra). In 1993, he toured in Japan with Teatro Comunale di Bologna. In 1994, he made his debut at

Metropolitan Opera The Metropolitan Opera is an American opera company based in New York City, currently resident at the Metropolitan Opera House (Lincoln Center), Metropolitan Opera House at Lincoln Center, situated on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. Referred ...

in New York with '' Adriana Lecouvreur''. He also conducted there Giordano's '' Fedora'' with Freni and Domingo (new production) in 1997, Verdi's ''La Traviata'' in 2000, Verdi's ''Ernani'' in 2008. In the USA he also conducted operas in San Francisco, Washington D.C., and Houston. In 1995, he made his debut at Opéra Bastille with ''Lucia di Lammermoor'' featuring Mariella Devia. He conducted his

Carnegie Hall Carnegie Hall ( ) is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan, New York City. It is at 881 Seventh Avenue (Manhattan), Seventh Avenue, occupying the east side of Seventh Avenue between 56th Street (Manhattan), 56th and 57th Street (Manhattan), 57t ...

debut in 1996 with The Orchestra of St. Luke's, further, he also conducted there the Philadelphia Orchestra and the Boston Symphony. Portrait of Roberto Abbado

In 1998 he conducted a new production of Verdi's '' I vespri siciliani'' at Wiener Staatsoper, staged by Herbert Wernicke. In the same year, he made his debut at Maggio Musicale Fiorentino conducting Rossini's '' Le comte Ory''. He also conducted in Florence Verdi's ''

Attila Attila ( or ; ), frequently called Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns from 434 until his death in early 453. He was also the leader of an empire consisting of Huns, Ostrogoths, Alans, and Gepids, among others, in Central Europe, C ...

'' and '' I Lombardi alla prima crociata'', Henze's ''

Phaedra Phaedra may refer to: Mythology * Phaedra (mythology), Cretan princess, daughter of Minos and Pasiphaë, wife of Theseus Arts and entertainment * Phaedra (Cabanel), ''Phaedra'' (Cabanel), an 1880 painting by Alexandre Cabanel *House of Phaedra ...

'' and Donizetti's '' Anna Bolena''. In 1998, he made a successful Boston Symphony Orchestra debut, opening his symphonic career in the USA. He also conducted many concerts with The Philadelphia Orchestra, Chicago Symphony Orchestra, San Francisco Symphony Orchestra, Cleveland Orchestra, New York Philharmonic Orchestra, Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, National Symphony Washington D.C., Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, Minnesota Orchestra, Houston Symphony Orchestra, St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, Seattle Symphony Orchestra, Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Pittsburgh Symphony Orchestra, Detroit Symphony Orchestra, Montreal Symphony Orchestra, Toronto Symphony Orchestra. In 1999, he made his debut with The Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra. In 2005 he became Artistic Partner of the Orchestra, the longest position in an artistic team ranking Jeremy Denk, Patricia Kopatchinskaja, Edo de Waart, Christian Zacharias and Thomas Zehetmeir. In 2003, he conducted a new production of Verdi's ''Simon Boccanegra'' at Teatro Regio (Turin), staged by

Graham Vick Sir Graham Vick (30 December 1953 – 17 July 2021) was an English opera director known for his experimental and revisionist stagings of traditional and modern operas. He worked in many of the world's leading opera houses and was artistic di ...

. He worked again with the English stage director in Turin for

Mozart Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (27 January 1756 – 5 December 1791) was a prolific and influential composer of the Classical period (music), Classical period. Despite his short life, his rapid pace of composition and proficiency from an early age ...

's ''La clemenza di Tito'' in 2008, and at Rossini Opera Festival in Pesaro for '' Mosè in Egitto'' in 2011. He also conducted for the same Festival '' Ermione'' in 2008 and '' Zelmira'' in 2009. In 2008, he conducted the season-opening night at Teatro Comunale in Bologna with Marschner's '' Der Vampyr'', staged by Pier Luigi Pizzi. He also conducted the season-opening night in 2013 with Verdi's ''MacBeth'' staged by Bob Wilson and in 2014 with

Wagner Wilhelm Richard Wagner ( ; ; 22 May 181313 February 1883) was a German composer, theatre director, essayist, and conductor who is chiefly known for his operas (or, as some of his mature works were later known, "music dramas"). Unlike most o ...

's '' Parsifal'' staged by Romeo Castellucci. In 2012, he conducted a new production of Berlioz's '' La damnation de Faust'' staged by

Terry Gilliam Terrence Vance Gilliam ( ; born 22 November 1940) is an American-British filmmaker, comedian, collage film, collage animator, and actor. He gained stardom as a member of the Monty Python comedy troupe alongside John Cleese, Eric Idle, Michael Pa ...

at Teatro Massimo in Palermo. In 2013, he took the Neapolitan Teatro di San Carlo on tour to Hong Kong with ''La Traviata'' staged by Ferzan Ozpetek. In 2014, he made his Salzburg Festival debut with Donizetti's '' La favorite'' with Elina Garanča, Juan Diego Florez and Ludovic Tezier. In 2015, after his debut with ''Don Pasquale'', he was appointed music director of Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia in Valencia, Spain. Also in 2015, he conducted Donizetti's ''Lucia di Lammermoor'' staged by Luca Ronconi at

Teatro dell'Opera di Roma The Teatro dell'Opera di Roma (Rome Opera House) is an opera house in Rome, Italy. Originally opened in November 1880 as the 2,212 seat ''Costanzi Theatre'', it has undergone several changes of name as well modifications and improvements. The pres ...

with Jessica Pratt and Stefano Secco. At same house he previously conducted Rossini's '' Maometto II'' staged by Pier Luigi Pizzi in 2014, Ponchielli's '' La Gioconda'' in 2012, Verdi's '' Luisa Miller'' in 1990 and the world premiere of Ferrero's ''

Charlotte Corday Marie-Anne Charlotte de Corday d'Armont (27 July 1768 – 17 July 1793), known simply as Charlotte Corday (), was a figure of the French Revolution who assassinated revolutionary and Jacobins, Jacobin leader Jean-Paul Marat on 13 July 1793. Cor ...

'' in 1989. He also premiered many new orchestral works of leading composers, including

Claudio Ambrosini Claudio Ambrosini (born 9 April 1948) is an Italian composer and conductor. Biography He studied foreign languages and literature at the Università di Milano graduating with an MA in 1972. Afterwards, he studied electronic music with Alvise ...

, Giorgio Battistelli, Niccolò Castiglioni, Aldo Clementi, Azio Corghi, Michele dall'Ongaro, Luca Francesconi,

Ned Rorem Ned Miller Rorem (October 23, 1923 – November 18, 2022) was an American composer of contemporary classical music and a writer. Best known for his art songs, which number over 500, Rorem was considered the leading American of his time writing i ...

, Steven Stucky, Giampaolo Testoni, Fabio Vacchi, Charles Wuorinen, and new operas by Lorenzo Ferrero and Marco Tutino. More recently he was on the podium of the Opera di Roma with ''

Benvenuto Cellini Benvenuto Cellini (, ; 3 November 150013 February 1571) was an Italian goldsmith, sculptor, and author. His best-known extant works include the ''Cellini Salt Cellar'', the sculpture of ''Perseus with the Head of Medusa'', and his autobiography ...

'' and '' Andrea Chénier'', of the Palau de les Arts in

Valencia Valencia ( , ), formally València (), is the capital of the Province of Valencia, province and Autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Valencian Community, the same name in Spain. It is located on the banks of the Turia (r ...

with ''

A Midsummer Night's Dream ''A Midsummer Night's Dream'' is a Comedy (drama), comedy play written by William Shakespeare in about 1595 or 1596. The play is set in Athens, and consists of several subplots that revolve around the marriage of Theseus and Hippolyta. One s ...

'', ''I vespri siciliani'' and ''

Tancredi ''Tancredi'' is a ''melodramma eroico'' (''opera seria'' or heroic opera) in two acts by composer Gioachino Rossini and librettist Gaetano Rossi (who was also to write ''Semiramide'' ten years later), based on Voltaire's play ''Tancrède (traged ...

'', of the Teatro Real in

Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...

with '' Norma'', of the Shanghai Opera House with ''La traviata'', of the Rossini Opera Festival with '' Le Siège de Corinthe'' and of the Théâtre des Champs Elysées with ''Lucia di Lammermoor''. From 2015 Abbado has led the orchestras of

San Francisco San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...

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and

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, the New World Symphony, the MDR-Sinfonieorchester of Leipzig, the Saint Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Malaysian Philharmonic and the Orquestra Sinfónica de Madrid.

Prizes and awards

In 2009 Roberto Abbado was appointed Conductor of the Year – " Franco Abbiati" Award by Associazione Nazionale dei Critici musicali, an Italian top classical music award. In 2012, he won the "Franco Abbiati" Award - Best performance and production for Rossini Opera Festival '' Mosè in Egitto''.

CDs

*Verdi: Macbeth – Roberto Abbado/ Coro del Teatro Regio di Parma & Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini/ Parco Ducale di Parma, Italy, Festival Verdi 2020, Sept 2020 Dynamic CDS7915.02 DDD *Verdi: Le trouvère – Roberto Abbado/ Orchestra e Coro del Teatro Comunale di Bologna / Gipali/ Gipali/ Vassallo, Oct. 2018 Dynamic. *Verismo Arias – Roberto Abbado/ Orchestra del Teatro La Fenice / Mirella Freni, 1992 *Puccini: Turandot – Roberto Abbado/Münchner Rundfunkorchester/Eva Marton/Ben Heppner/Margaret Price, 1993 Sony/RCA *Donizetti: Don Pasquale – Roberto Abbado/Münchner Rundfunkorchester/Renato Bruson/Eva Mei/Frank Lopardo/Thomas Allen, 1994 Sony/RCA *Rossini: Tancredi – Roberto Abbado/Münchner Rundfunkorchester/ Vesselina Kasarova/Eva Mei/Ramón Vargas/Veronica Cangemi, 1996 Sony/RCA. Echo der Klassik 1997. *Bellini: I Capuleti e i Montecchi – Roberto Abbado/Münchner Rundfunkorchester/Vesselina Kasarova/Eva Mei/Ramón Vargas/Umberto Chiummo/Simone Alberghini, 1998 Sony/RCA. Pick of the Year 1999, BBC Music Magazine. *Luca Francesconi: Cobalt Scarlet – Rest - Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI/Anssi Karttunen/Roberto Abbado, 2005 Stradivarius *Florez, Arias for Rubini (Rossini/Bellini/Donizetti) – Roberto Abbado/S. Cecilia, 2007 Decca *Garanca, Bel Canto – Elīna Garanča/Filarmonica del Teatro Comunale di Bologna/Roberto Abbado, 2009 Deutsche Grammophon. Echo der Klassik 2010. *Flórez, L'amour – Roberto Abbado/Orch. Bologna, 2013 Decca. Diapason d'Or 2014. *Garanca, Revive (Arie da opere) – Roberto Abbado/Orch. Valencia, 2016 Deutsche Grammophon *Brahms: Hungarian Dances Nos. 1-21 – Roberto Abbado / Munich Radio Orchestra, studio recording 1996/1997, BR-KLASSIK 900360, 2025

DVDs and Blu-ray

*Giordano, Fedora – Abbado Roberto/Freni/Domingo, 1997 Deutsche Grammophon *New Year's Concert 2008 – Roberto Abbado/ Orch. e Coro del Teatro La Fenice/Frittoli/Fraccaro/Furlanetto/Ezralow, 2008 Hardy Classic Video *Rossini, Zelmira – Roberto Abbado/Florez/Aldrich/Kunde, 2009 Decca *Rossini, Ermione – Roberto Abbado/Ganassi/Kunde, 2009 Dynamic *Rossini, Mosé in Egitto – Roberto Abbado/Ganassi/Zanellato/Korchak, 2012 Opus Arte

Notes

References

* Pâris, Alain, ed. (2015). ''Le nouveau dictionnaire des interprètes''. Paris: Éditions Robert Laffont. {{DEFAULTSORT:Abbado, Roberto 1954 births Living people Italian male conductors (music) Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia alumni Musicians from Milan 21st-century Italian conductors (music) 21st-century Italian male musicians 20th-century Italian conductors (music) 20th-century Italian male musicians Milan Conservatory alumni Chief conductors of the Munich Radio Orchestra