Who we are
The Ferrara Musica Association was founded in 1989 by the Municipality of Ferrara and Maestro Claudio Abbado, quickly becoming one of Italy’s most important concert seasons, renowned worldwide for the depth and unparalleled quality of its artistic offerings.
Its uniqueness on the national scene has always been its ability to provide permanent residence to a dynamic, international orchestra. From 1989 to 1997, the resident orchestra was the Chamber Orchestra of Europe (COE), and since 1998, the Mahler Chamber Orchestra (MCO).
Both are among the most internationally established chamber orchestras and highly sought-after by the most prestigious concert halls around the world. Between 2018 and 2022, the European Union Youth Orchestra (EUYO), founded by Abbado in 1976, was Ferrara Musica’s resident orchestra. Since September 2022, the residency has been assigned to the Orchestra Mozart, for a three-year project dedicated to the complete performance of Beethoven’s symphonies with Maestro Daniele Gatti.
Ferrara Musica organizes a rich annual concert season from September to May, comprising approximately 20 events. The program features the world’s leading orchestras and a large number of brilliant soloists and acclaimed conductors, dedicating significant space to young talent, especially in chamber music.
The goal, as always, is to offer audiences concerts of the highest quality, with particular attention to accessibility and engaging young people.
Claudio Abbado
Claudio Abbado (1933 – 2014) was one of the greatest conductors of our time, a figure of great intellectual rigor, with a profoundly ethical conception of his work. Ferrara, more than any other city in Italy, has had the privilege of witnessing a full and sustained testimony to this civic commitment that characterized his artistic career.
Here, at the height of his international fame, Abbado returned to conducting in Italy after years of absence; here he nurtured institutions such as the Chamber Orchestra of Europe and the Mahler Chamber Orchestra; here, since 1989, he has been the protagonist of every concert season and has conducted opera productions that have brought Ferrado to international prominence; here, he has had as his companions on unforgettable adventures figures such as Luca Ronconi, Roberto Benigni, Luciano Pavarotti, and Martha Argerich.
In 1989, Claudio Abbado proposed establishing the Ferrara Musica Association, combining its activities with those of the Teatro Comunale, with the aim of creating a permanent Italian residence for orchestral ensembles composed of the best young European instrumentalists. He found a city rich in potential and a dynamic organization immediately open to exploring new horizons. The project materialized, with results perhaps exceeding initial expectations. Abbado’s presence was crucial in initiating a process that profoundly impacted the overall development of Ferrara and its Teatro, strengthening and developing its potential to the point of making it an internationally renowned landmark.
In May 2012, when the earthquake that struck Emilia Romagna put a significant portion of Ferrara’s artistic heritage at risk in a matter of moments,
While the entire community was still reeling from shock, Claudio Abbado understood that the city could only be protected and preserved through immediate mobilization. The Extraordinary Concert for the City of Ferrara, in which he conducted the Lucerne Festival Orchestra alongside Maurizio Pollini, was the catalyst for an unprecedented outpouring of solidarity, which was met by private individuals and institutions from Ferrara, throughout Italy, and around the world.
The enormously significant cultural achievements of Ferrara and Ferrara Musica would not have been possible without the commitment and determination of Claudio Abbado. Today, seven years after his passing, his memory lives on and accompanies us every day in our work.
Our home
Ferrara Musica conducts its main activity within the Claudio Abbado Municipal Theater.
The building, commissioned by Cardinal Carafa and designed by Antonio Foschini, was inaugurated in 1798 and, thanks to its refined elegance and perfect acoustics, is known as one of the finest examples of an Italian-style theater.
After the completion of the restoration work begun in 1987,
the Municipal Theater reopened on April 27, 1989.
to the public with the first concert organized by Ferrara Musica, which featured the Chamber Orchestra of Europe conducted by Claudio Abbado and pianist Maria João Pires.
Thanks to its excellent natural acoustics, further enhanced by the construction of a wooden acoustic chamber, the Teatro Comunale di Ferrara has been repeatedly chosen as a recording venue by prestigious record companies.
record companies such as Deutsche Grammophon, Virgin, and Teldec, as well as great performers.
Other concerts organized by Ferrara Musica are held in the evocative setting of the Torrione San Giovanni in collaboration with the Jazz Club Ferrara and in some historic Ferrara buildings such as Palazzo Schifanoia, Palazzo dei Diamanti, Palazzo Bonaccossi, and Casa Romei.