Maestro Maurizio Billi
Maurizio Billi studied at the Conservatory of Music of Santa
Cecilia in Rome, graduating with first-class honours in Composition, Choral Music, Choral Direction, Instrumentation for Band, Clarinet and
Orchestra Direction. Then he continued his studies at Santa Cecilia in a Master Class in Composition under the guidance of Franco Donatoni.
Billi also has a degree in Literature from the University of Rome "La Sapienza", and has been carrying out musicology research with publications specializing in this field. In 2004 he won the "Mario Soldati Award for Journalism and Critics" with his essay on Goffredo Petrassi published by Sellerio.
His work as a composer has won him many prizes and accolades both at national and international level. His works, published and recorded by Edipan, Sonzogno, Berben, Fonè, Quadrivium, Pentaphon, and Rugginenti, have been performed in Italy and abroad, broadcast on TV and radio by the RAI. Among many other professional acknowledgments he received the prestigious "Premio Personalità Europea" award in 2000 and 2009.
He is considered a point of reference on the international scene for wind orchestras. He is a member of the W.E.M.A. (Wind European Music Association) and is the Artistic Director of the "Romualdo Marenco International Festival and Competition for Composers". He is frequently invited as a jury member to musical composition and performance contests, both on national and international level. In 2004 he was awarded the prestigious title of "Accademico Corrispondente" by the Academy of Music of Valencia.
He has been professor of "Musical Analysis" (Upper Level Course) at the Conservatory of Music of Teramo, and of "Conducting and Instrumental Practice for Wind Instrument Orchestra" (Two-year Upper Level Course) at the Conservatory of Music of Santa Cecilia in Rome.
He has been guest conductor of such prestigious symphonic orchestras as the Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI, the Filarmonica '900 of the Teatro Regio of Turin and the Turin Philharmonic, the Teatro Carlo Felice of Genoa, I Solisti of Perugia, the Roma Sinfonietta, the Symphonic Orchestra of Botosani and Oradea, the Orchestra of the Teatro Olimpico of Vicenza, the Symphonic Orchestra of the State of Adana in Turkey, and the National Philharmonic Orchestra "Sergei Prokofiev".
Since 1992 he has been the Director/Conductor of the Banda Musicale della Polizia di Stato, appearing in more than 500 concerts in Italy and abroad. His interest in symphonic and choral music has led him to collaborate in numerous productions with artists from the major operatic and symphonic institutions in Italy, e.g. the Accademia di Santa Cecilia, the Rome Opera, the Comunale of Florence, the Teatro Regio of Turin and Parma, and the Teatro Massimo of Palermo. With the "Banda Musicale della Polizia di Stato", considered one of the best wind orchestras internationally, Billi is actively engaged in promoting and bringing to public attention original music, both contemporary and of the last century, written specifically for wind instruments.