Francesca Dego
Celebrated for her sonorous tone, compelling interpretations and flawless technique, Francesca Dego is one of the most sought after young violinists on the international scene. Recently signed to Chandos Records, her first disc on the label honours the legacy of Niccolò Paganini with a recording of works inspired by the great violinist and performed on his violin, the fabled “Il Cannone”. Past releases include her highly acclaimed first concerto disc featuring concertos by Paganini and Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari alongside the City of Birmingham Symphony Orchestra and Daniele Rustioni in 2017, the recital disc Suite Italienne, as well as a complete survey of the violin sonatas by Ludwig van Beethoven and of Paganini’s Caprices, all for Deutsche Grammophon.

Born in Lecco, Italy, to Italian and American parents, Francesca regularly appears with major orchestras worldwide, and recent and forthcoming highlights include performances with the Philharmonia, Hallé, Ulster, Royal Philharmonic and Royal Scottish National Orchestras, Gürzenich Orchestra Cologne, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo Metropolitan and Tokyo Symphony Orchestras, Orchestre Philharmonique de Nice, Orchestre de Chambre de Lausanne, Teatro Carlo Felice Genova at St Petersburg’s renowned Stars of the White Nights festival, Teatro Regio di Torino, Orquestra de Sevilla and de la Comunitat Valenciana at Palau de les Arts, Auckland Philharmonia, Las Vegas Philharmonic, Santa Barbara Symphony, Het Gelders Orkest, and the Orkest van het Oosten.

In Italy, this season’s highlights include opening the prestigious MITO Settembre Musica Festival with Milan’s “La Verdi” Orchestra in a performance of Tchaikovsky’s Souvenir d’un lieu cher, returns to the Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini in Parma, and to the main season of the “La Verdi” orchestra. She will also appear in recital at the Festival Valle d’Itria, and perform at the Gravedona Chamber Music Festival, which was co-founded by Francesca in 2018.

Her international career to date has allowed her to work alongside many esteemed conductors, Sir Roger Norrington, Fabio Luisi, Karen Durgaryan, Christopher Franklin, Lionel Bringuier, Dalia Stasevska, Paul Goodwin, Christopher Hogwood, Yoel Levi, Donato Renzetti, Grant Llewellyn, Wayne Marshall, Gianluigi Gelmetti, Diego Matheuz, Shlomo Mintz, Gemma New, Alpesh Chauhan and Xian Zhang, to name a few.

An outstanding collaborative artist, Francesca thrives in chamber settings, and she has performed with Salvatore Accardo, Alessandro Carbonare, Mahan Esfahani, Bruno Giuranna, Narek Hakhnazaryan, Piers Lane, Jan Lisiecki, Mischa Maisky, Antonio Meneses, Martin Owen, Roman Simovic and Kathryn Stott, as well as her regular recital partner, pianist Francesca Leonardi. Highlights of the 2020/21 season for the duo include performances at the Louvre in Paris, Lincoln Center New York, Washington DC, Siena, as well as the final concerts of their complete cycle of Beethoven’s violin sonatas at Unione Musicale, Torino.

Francesca is the winner of numerous national and international competitions, and in 2008 attracted widespread attention for being the first Italian female prize-winner of the renowned “Paganini Competition” in Genoa since 1961. In addition she was awarded the “Enrico Costa” prize for having been the youngest finalist. She was selected to perform as soloist at the 2014 and 2015 Remembrance Day concerts in Rome, broadcast worldwide by RAI. In June 2014 she performed at Rio de Janeiro’s Teatro Municipal at the opening of the Football World Cup in Brazil. She is a frequent contributor to specialist music magazines, penning a monthly column for Suonare News among others, and has written articles and opinion pieces for the BBC and Classical Music Magazines, The Strad, Musical Opinion and Strings Magazine. Francesca has also recently published her first book, Tra le Note. Classica: 24 chiavi di lettura, with Mondadori in which she explores how classical music can be listened to and better understood today.

Francesca is based in London, and plays on a precious Francesco Ruggeri violin (Cremona 1697).