BIOGRAPHY
Harpsichordist, organist and conductor, Andrea Buccarella is one of the most admired musicians and early music specialists of his generation. In 2018 he was awarded First Prize at the International Harpsichord Competition Musica Antiqua Bruges, where he also won the Outhere Award. Since then, a busy concert schedule has taken him to major festivals and concert halls in Europe, the United States, Colombia, Korea and Japan, both as a soloist on the harpsichord, organ and fortepiano, and as a conductor.
He was born in Rome in 1987 and undertakes his first musical studies as Puer Cantor in the prestigious Sistine Chapel Choir (1997-2000). After obtaining the diploma in organ and organ composition at the Santa Cecilia Conservatory in Rome, he graduates cum laude in harpsichord and historical keyboards under Enrico Baiano. He concludes his musical studies at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, where he achieves with full marks and distinction two Masters in harpsichord and historical keyboards, under the guidance of Andrea Marcon.
In 2012 Andrea became the artistic director and conductor of Abchordis Ensemble. Since then, Andrea dedicated himself to a conscientious activity of research, aiming for the discovery of musical masterpieces of the past which are not performed in modern times, with special focus on the sacred, instrumental and operatic repertoire of 18th-century Italy. Under his guidance the Abchordis Ensemble won the First Prize at the International Händel Competition 2015 in Göttingen.
In September 2019 he released his debut album TOCCATA for the renowned label Ricercar (Outhere Music), which explores the history of the most emblematic form of Baroque music, from Claudio Merulo up to its apotheosis in Johann Sebastian Bach. Toccata has received high international critical acclaim and has been awarded with 5 stars on BBC Music Magazine (December 2019) and with the prestigious Diapason d’Or Découverte on Diapason Magazine (January 2020).
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Among his solo recordings there are J.S. Bach’s Concerts for two harpsichords and strings BWV 1060-1062, with Francesco Corti and il Pomo d’Oro, J.S. Bach’s concert for 4 harpsichords and strings, with Rinaldo Alessandrini and Concerto Italiano. In autumn 2023 he released his second solo album FANTASIA, second chapter dedicated to musical forms for keyboards. As conductor he has recorded for SONY Deutsche Harmonia Mundi (Stabat Mater and Dies Irae), Challenge Classics (Cieco Amor and L’Aureo serto), The Vivaldi Edition (Vivaldi, Cantate per Soprano I and Vivaldi, Serenata a tre RV 690) and Glossa (Amate stelle).
Andrea has been invited to conduct several vocal and instrumental ensembles, including the Venice Baroque Orchestra, La Cetra Barockorchester Basel, il Pomo d’Oro, Solistenensemble Kaleidoskop, Kore Orchestra and others. In February 2020 he made his debut as conductor at the Musikverein Wien with the Venice Baroque Orchestra and Julia Lezhneva. In May 2022 he conducted from the harpsichord J.S. Bach’s 6 Brandenburg Concerts BWV 1046-1051, on an Italian tour with the Frau Musika Orchestra. In May 2023 he has been invited, again to conduct Frau Musika Orchestra for a tour with the complete performance of J.S.Bach’s harpsichord concertos for 2, 3 and 4 harpsichords and strings.
Andrea Buccarella is also very active as a teacher and has given several masterclasses for harpsichord, basso continuo, organ and ensemble music. Since the academic year 2022/2023 he is teacher at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis, as assistant in Prof. Andrea Marcon’s harpsichord class.
Andrea Buccarella, very solid and musical, an already very accomplished performer […] who proved to be the current great promise of the Italian harpsichord school.
AGENDA
2023 -2024
UNDER CONSTRUCTION
DISCOGRAPHY
MEDIA
PRESS
El clavecinista italiano Andrea Buccarella, es una de las figuras jóvenes de mayor proyección en la actualidad, reciente ganador, además, del Concurso Internacional de MA Brugge, uno de los de mayor prestigio a nivel mundial […] Ofreció, además, una esplendorosa versión del maravilloso Rondo en do menor para clave, Wq 59/4, dominando con impecable soltura la compleja escritura rítmica y construyendo una visión muy sólida de una obra que presenta tantos segmentos contrastantes.
Andrea Buccarella, muy sólido y musical, un intérprete ya muy hecho que en su programa mixto (Greco, Durante y Fago) se reivindicó como la gran promesa actual de la escuela clavecinística italiana.
Andrea Buccarella, actor fundamental do discurso musical e ao mesmo tempo acompanhante atento aos detalhes. A sua musicalidade, sentido rítmico e transparência das texturas foram fundamentais nas cantatas de Vivaldi, mas foi nos Concertos do compositor veneziano transcritos por J.S. Bach – BWV 978, em Fá Maior, e BWV 976, em Dó Maior – que tocou a solo que podemos admirar em pleno o seu domínio do instrumento, no qual evocou, através de uma ampla paleta de articulações, uma verdadeira orquestra e os múltiplos contrastes e planos sonoros inerentes ao género do concerto.
TOCCATA
This is a thoroughly enjoyable debut from harpsichordist Andrea Buccarella, who won the International Competition Musica Antiqua in 2018. (…) Buccarella skilfully and thoughtfully exploits rhythm and tempos in articulate, virtuosic playing. It reaps dividends from Giovanni Picchi’s ecstatic curtains of falling notes to the exhilarating phrases of Bach’s Toccata in D.
TOCCATA
[Buccarella] uses flexible tempi and emphasises the improvisatory quality of much of the music, while never losing the pulse. Among his fine performances I was struck by Giovanni Picchi’s toccata from the Fitzwilliam Virginal Book and that by Michelangelo Rossi with its adventurous chromatic scales – but all have aspects of interest. Bach’s D major toccata (BWV 912) is given a masterly execution which brings out the composer’s youthful exuberance, particularly in an almost aggressive approach to the opening flourishes […] This is a highly-assured debut and I look forward to hearing more.
TOCCATA
La toccata en ré de Bach se hisse au rang des meilleures de la discographie: récits expressifs, virtuosité solide et élégante, évidence d’un phrasé particulièrement fluide captivent autant que la sonorité de rêve de l’imposant clavecin d’après Gräbner […] La tranquille hauteur de vue et la pertinence de la conduite musicale révèlent un artiste hors du commun ‑ qu’il faudra suivre.
TOCCATA
La précision et la fluidité de son toucher, sa conduite limpide des polyphonies y compris les plus complexes, sa capacité à architecturer le discours musical de façon à la fois cohérente et dynamique (la Toccata BWV 912 du jeune Bach en offre un exemple saisissant) constituent autant d’atouts mis au service d’une approche fine et sensible des œuvres qui leur apporte un charme assez irrésistible, fait d’un subtil mélange de chant, d’ardeur et de surprise. Creusant les contrastes des partitions et soulignant leurs irrégularités et dissonances avec une volupté de fin gourmet, Andrea Buccarella leur insuffle une vie intense qui les éloigne de l’aridité de l’exercice de style.
TOCCATA
Buccarella’s playing is superb, and he is fully at home with all of his instruments, instinctively knowing the characteristic sound of each. He exploits the registration to bring out the varying degrees of fantasy in each of these works. The sound is generous and full-bodied, and he knows how to develop each of the pieces to bring out their nuances. As a disc, this presents an excellent historical sequence of the development of this genre, and should be a part of any keyboard collection. Highly recommended.
TOCCATA
Buccarella’s fluency with his music is inspiring […] He is clearly a brilliant and well-prepared performer and ready for a big career.
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