Collection: De Innocentis, Antonio

Antonio De Innocentis 

Antonio De Innocentis was born in Naples in 1961. In 1985 he graduated Summa cum Laude from Cimarosa Conservatory in Avellino, Italy. He subsequently attended summer courses at the Vienna Conservatory and the Salzburg Mozarteum. 

De Innocentis gave his first concert in 1980, followed by engagements all over Europe and the USA. He was the first guitarist in the world to have performed the entire ‘24 Caprices’ by Paganini in a single concert (Avellino, Italy, 1992) with a repeat performance at The Old Malthouse Music Society in Sawbridgeworth, England, in 1996. The outstanding success of this concert prompted the society organiser Chris Dell to write in the Classical Guitar Magazine: “This guitarist is world class, of that there can be no doubt”.

Many composers have written and dedicated works to him including John W. Duarte, Ursula Ditchburn, Neil Smith and Colin Tommis from the UK; John Bent, Pasquale Bifulco, and John Oster from the USA; Jonatas Batista‐ Neto from Brazil; Luigi Arbolino, Marcello Parisi, Giovanni Zaccari and Giuseppe Torrisi from Italy.

In addition to performing, Antonio has given masterclasses in Italy, Norway, France, Spain, the UK and USA. In October 1999 Antonio took part in John Duarte’s 80th birthday tribute concerts first at the Old Malthouse Music Society in Sawbridgeworth then at the Bolivar Hall in London.  Duarte wrote of him "Antonio De Innocentis is in all respects a remarkable artist, one who must be included in the upper echelon of today's guitarists..." In June 2009 in Norwich, invited by the late composer’s son Chris Duarte, De Innocentis performed two guitar concertos – “A Tudor Fancy” by J. Duarte and “Fantasia para un Gentilhombre” by Rodrigo in a concert with the Academy of St. Thomas Orchestra conducted by Roger Coull. In  October 2019 he took part, together with her daughter Fiammetta (singer), in the "John W. Duarte Centenary Concert", held at Kings Place, London.

De Innocentis has recorded seven CDs for Fiammant Records: “Guitar Recital” (1997); “Premiere!” (2004); “Live at Kellie Castle” (2005), “Return to Glenmore” (2005), “The 24 Caprices op. 1 by Paganini” (2010), “Vive la France!” in collaboration with GiZa Records (2011) and “Dialogues” (2013). His Paganini recording was reissued by Italian web label Dot Guitar in 2014 and marketed on the major international digital platforms such as iTunes, Amazon, E-music, and Napster.

Intimate, refined, with sweet affecting melodies and subtle harmonies, De Innocentis’s Suite per Giuseppina, published by Bergmann Edition, is a delight for player and listener.