Carlo Ponti (conductor)
Carlo Ponti, Jr. (born 29 December 1968[1]) is an Italian orchestral conductor working in the United States. He is the son of late film producer Carlo Ponti, Sr. and Italian movie star Sophia Loren and he is the older brother of film director Edoardo Ponti.
Biography
Born in Geneva, Switzerland, Ponti worked at the Conductor's Institute in Connecticut, under the direction of Harold Farberman from 1994 to 1996, worked with Mehli Mehta, Zubin Mehta and Andrey Boreyko in Los Angeles from 1997 to 1999 and furthered his musical studies in Austria at the Vienna Musikhochschule from 1999 to 2001 under Leopold Hager and Erwin Acel.[2]
He has guest conducted internationally, was the recipient of various awards for fostering the growth of young musical talent through music education. Ponti has been associate conductor of the Russian National Orchestra since 2000 and was music director and principal conductor of the San Bernardino Symphony from 2001 to 2012.[3] In 2013 he founded the Los Angeles Virtuosi Orchestra, an ensemble emphasizing music's educational value of which he is music director and principal conductor. The Los Angeles Virtuosi Orchestra is currently performing its' inaugural concert season (2015-2016) at the Theatre Raymond Kabbaz in Los Angeles, California.[4]
Ponti has released two recordings with the Russian National Orchestra on the Pentatone label and his work has been profiled by ABC, CBS, NBC, NPR, PBS, Fox News, Leonard Lopate, Dennis Miller, Symphony Magazine and the Associated Press. His performances have also been broadcast on public radio stations across the United States by American Public Media's Performance Today and America's Music Festivals programs.
Maestro Carlo Ponti married violinist Andrea Mészáros in Budapest, Hungary on September 18, 2004. They have two children, both born in Geneva, Switzerland: Vittorio Leone Ponti (born April 2, 2007) and Beatrice Lara Ponti (born March 15, 2012).[5]
Orchestral ensembles conducted by Ponti
Listed alphabetically
- Alba Regia Symphony Orchestra
- American Youth Symphony
- Budapest Concert Orchestra
- Budapest Strings Orchestra
- Cyprus Symphony Orchestra
- Los Angeles Virtuosi Orchestra
- Orquesta Sinfonica de Mineria
- Moscow Chamber Orchestra
- Napa Valley Symphony Orchestra
- Orquesta Sinfonica de Galicia
- Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino
- Orchestra della Magna Grecia
- Coro e Orchestra del Teatro San Carlo
- Orchestre Philharmonique de Strasbourg
- Orquesta de Valencia
- Pro Arte Orchestra
- Roma Sinfonietta Orchestra
- Russian National Orchestra
- Orchestra della Repubblica di San Marino
- Samara Philharmonic Orchestra
- San Bernardino Symphony
- Simon Bolivar Symphony Orchestra
- Slovak Philharmonic Orchestra
- Sphinx Symphony Orchestra
- Tbilisi State Opera Orchestra
- Verbier Festival Orchestra
- Winnipeg Symphony Orchestra
- UCLA Philharmonia Orchestra
- Ural Philharmonic Orchestra
Festival appearances
Listed alphabetically
- Bratislava Spring Music Festival, Slovakia
- Festival d'Echternach, France
- Festival Napa Valley, United States
- Festival de Villena, Spain
- Festival Vancouver, Canada
- Koln Musik Triennale, Germany
- Lake Tahoe Music Festival, United States
- Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Italy
- St.Petersburg Palaces Festival, Russia
- Taichung Music Festival, Taiwan
- Tuscan Sun Festival, Italy
Awards
- 2006 : Premio Galileo Award for exceptional musical achievement.[6]
- 2008 : Artistic Achievement Award from the Virginia Waring International Piano Competition.[7]
- 2009 : Spirit of Hope Award from the Childhelp Foundation for his acclaimed work with young musicians.[8]
- 2011 : Lupa Di Roma Award (co-recipient) from the Roman City Council.[9]
- 2014 : Premio Civitas, XVIII edition, Pozzuoli[10][11]
Recordings
- 2008: Pictures at an Exhibition and other orchestral works by Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881), with the Russian National Orchestra on Pentatone (PTC 5186332), SACD[12]
- 2011: Scheherazade, Capriccio Espagnol and other orchestral works by Nicolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844-1908), with the Russian National Orchestra on Pentatone (PTC 5186378), SACD[13]
External links
References
- ↑ Carlo Ponti (film director) profile
- ↑ Official biography
- ↑ Official biography
- ↑ Website of the Los Angeles Virtuosi orchestra
- ↑ http://www.lorenarchives.com/profile_family.html Sophia Loren Family Profile
- ↑ Premio Galileo
- ↑ Virginia Waring International Piano Competition
- ↑ Childhelp Foundation
- ↑
- ↑
- ↑
- ↑ Modest Mussorgsky (1839-1881) CD
- ↑ Rimsky-Korsakov: Scheherazade - Capriccio espagnol - Neapolitan Song CD
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