Giorgio Battistelli was born at Albano Laziale on 25 April 1953. In 1975 he attended the composition seminars held by Karlheinz Stockhausen and Mauricio Kagel in Cologne; and in 1978-79 he attended the courses of technique and interpretation in contemporary music theatre given by Jean Pierre Drouet and Gaston Sylvestre in Paris.

In the eighties he makes his name as one of the most interesting composers of his generation. In 1983 he is awarded a grant at the radio studios of Baden-Baden. In 1985-86 he lives in Berlin on the invitation of the Deutscher Akademischer Austauschdienst.

In 1993 he is appointed by Hans Werner Henze to succeed him as head of the International Art Workshop of Montepulciano, where he has been artistic director since 1996.

From 1996 to 2002 he is the artistic director of the Orchestra della Toscana. He works at Luciano Berio’s Centro Tempo Reale in Florence and at the Centro di Sonologia Computazionale of the University of Padua in collaboration with Alvise Vidolin.

In 2003 he was appointed Chevalier dans l’Ordre des arts et des lettres.

He is composer-in-residence of Antwerp Opera for the years 2005-2006 and of Deutsche Oper am Rhein of Düsseldorf, for the two-year period 2007-2008.

From 2006 he has held a course on music theatre for the Jerwood Opera Writing Fellowships at the Aldeburgh Music.

He has been artistic director of the Biennale Musica of Venice (in the period 2004-2007), artistic director of the Arena Foundation of Verona in the 2006/7 season.

His works have been published by Casa Ricordi since 1986.