Biography

Regarded as one of the most influential figures in historically informed performance, Rinaldo Alessandrini has transformed the way we understand and listen to Italian music of the 16th, 17th, and 18th centuries. Harpsichordist, organist, conductor, and researcher, he has devoted more than four decades to rediscovering the extraordinary musical heritage of the Italian Renaissance and Baroque, becoming an indispensable point of reference for performers, musicologists, and audiences around the world.

In 1984 he founded Concerto Italiano, an ensemble with which he revolutionized the performance of Italian vocal and instrumental repertoire through deep research into historical sources and an interpretive approach marked by expressiveness, stylistic rigor, and musical vitality. Under his direction, the ensemble has played a decisive role in reviving madrigals, operas, cantatas, oratorios, and sacred music by composers such as Claudio Monteverdi, Antonio Vivaldi, Girolamo Frescobaldi, and Alessandro Scarlatti.

His extensive discography, honored with some of the most important international distinctions—including Gramophone Awards, the Diapason d’Or, and the Choc de la Musique—includes the celebrated complete recording of Claudio Monteverdi’s Madrigals, regarded as one of the great recorded landmarks of our time.

As guest conductor he has collaborated with prestigious orchestras and specialist ensembles in Europe, America, and Asia, while carrying out intense work as a teacher and lecturer, sharing a vision of early music that combines musicological rigor with extraordinary expressive power.

In the 21st edition of the Cartagena Music Festival, Rinaldo Alessandrini brings the experience and musical thought of one of the artists who has most profoundly helped renew the performance of the Baroque repertoire, inspiring several generations of musicians and transforming the way we listen to Italian music.