"Unforgettable musicianship of the highest order" The Washington Post"Extraordinarily sensitive, with effortless command and an almost unbearable delicacy of touch, the duo's playing was nothing less than rapturous... profound and unforgettable musicianship of the highest order." The Washington Post
From New York's Carnegie Hall to Vienna's Konzerthaus SoloDuo has been acclaimed to be one of the finest ensembles in the history of the classical guitar. Matteo Mela and Lorenzo Micheli met in the year 2000. Since then, they have shared a number of ideas, musical projects, and travels all over the world.
They have performed as a duo throughout Europe, Asia and North America. SoloDuo's June 2, 2012 Classical Guitar Weekend recital marks its much anticipated Cleveland debut.
SoloDuo has recorded
Solaria, an anthology of 20th century masterpieces for two guitars (Pomegranate), the
Duos Concertants by Antoine De Lhoyer (Naxos), a collection of chamber works by Mauro Giuliani (Amadeus), and a collection of 19th century pieces for two guitars,
Noesis (Pomegranate). In addition to classic, romantic and modern repertoire, SoloDuo, joined by lutenist Massimo Lonardi, enjoy exploring the early literature for baroque guitar and theorbo. Together with Massimo Lonardi they have recorded
François de Fossa's Three Quartets, op. 19 (Stradivarius), a CD of 17th century Italian music for baroque guitar, archlute and theorbo,
La Suave Melodia (Stradivarius).
Lorenzo Micheli has taken up a busy concert career since winning first prize in some of the most important guitar competitions in the world: Gargnano, 1996; Alessandria, 1997; Guitar Foundation of America, 1999. He has performed both as a soloist and with orchestra all over Europe, the US, Africa and Latin America. As a researcher and scholar, he has written articles for a number of music journals, and he has rediscovered, edited and published works by such composers as Miguel Llobet and Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco. His solo recordings, reflecting his interest in original guitar works, include the music of Dionisio Aguado (Stradivarius 2000), a selection of guitar works by Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco (Naxos 2000), the Three Quartets, op. 19, by the French composer François de Fossa (Stradivarius 2004), and the complete works for solo guitar by Miguel Llobet (Naxos 2004). Lorenzo Micheli is Professor of Guitar at the Conservatory of Aosta, Italy.
Matteo Mela regularly gives recitals and makes television and radio appearances across Europe and North America. Recent engagements have included performances in Rome, Milan, Bologna, Turin, Naples, Paris, Hamburg, Cologne, Warsaw, Oslo, and Houston. While Giovanni Puddu played a major role in his musical education, Matteo Mela also attended the classes of Angelo Gilardino, Alirio Diaz, Oscar Ghiglia, David Russell, and the Assad brothers. He studied chamber music at the Accademia Pianistica di Imola with Dario De Rosa, Alexander Lonquich, and Pier Narciso Masi. Matteo Mela has released a CD of Latin American Dances (Quadrivium, with G. Bandini) and the solo CD Italian Virtuosos of the Nineteenth Century (Kookaburra), as well as the Three Quartets, op. 19, by French composer François de Fossa (CD Stradivarius). His latest CD includes Astor Piazzolla's complete guitar music, featuring Ivan Rabaglia (violin), Lorenzo Micheli (guitar), Per Arne Glorvigen (bandoneon) and the Piazzolla String Ensemble. Matteo Mela teaches at the Accademia di Perfezionamento G. Caccini in ontopoli Val d'Arno and at the Accademia Musicale Tema in Milan.
