Francesca Verunelli (Pietrasanta, February 24, 1979) studied composition with Rosario Mirigliano at Conservatorio Luigi Cherubini in Florence where she obtained her diploma summa cum laude.
In 2005, she was admitted to the Master's Course in Compostion at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome, where she studied with Azio Corghi and obtained her degree in 2007. The same year, her piece 4e48 (intavolature for Sarah Kane) was selected by the CEMAT to appear on a cd in its electroacoustic series. In November, the Freon ensemble premiered her work Luminal at the Rome Auditorium, while En mouvement (Espace Double) was performed, under the direction of Jacques Mercier, by the National Orchestra of Lorraine at the Metz Arsenal.
In 2008, she participated in the Ensemble Aleph's International Forum, which performed her work RSVP in Paris. The same year, she was accepted into the Cursus for composition and music technology at Ircam, where two new pieces were produced: Interno rosso con figure for accordion and electronics (2009, Anthony Millet, accordion) and Play for ensemble and electronics (2010, Ensemble Intercontemporain directed by Susanna Mälkki).
Her piece Neon (2008) was performed in Domaine Forget (Québec) by the Nouvel Ensemble Moderne, under the direction of Lorraine Vaillancourt. She also received a French State Commission from the Nomos ensemble for whom she wrote Syllabaire (2009) and other commissioned ensemble works for the KDM and Accroche Note ensembles.
In 2010, her orchestra piece En mouvement (Espace Double) was played by the Mitteleuropa Orchestra under the direction of Andrea Pestalozza at the Venice Biennale, where she was awarded the "Leone d'Argento".
The same year she received an Ircam commission for a string quartet Unfolding premiered by the Arditti Quartet in March 2012 in Lyon, a joint commission from the NeueVocalsolisten Stuttgart and the Venice Biennale for a new chamber music theatre, premiered in 2012 (July in Stuttgart - October in Venice) and a commission from the Italian ensemble RepertorioZero for a new work for electric ensemble (premiered during Milano Musica 2012).
She has been composer in residence at Ircam, at GMEM of Marseille, at Casa de Velasquez (Madrid – 2015/2016) et at Villa Médicis (Académie de France à Rome – 2016/17).
The Narrow Corner (a commission of Radio France, 2014) was performed by the Symphonieorchester des Bayerischen Rundfunks (2015), the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra (2016), the Rundfunk Sinfonieorchester Berlin and the Helsinki Philharmonic Orchestra (2020).
She has been awarded the Leone d'argento at the Venice Biennale (2010), the Composer’s Siemens Prize (2020), the 41st “Premio Abbiati della critica” (2022).
2023 new creations include Accord, chord and tune for accordion and orchestra, written for Krassimir Sterev and the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra (Musica Viva - Munich 2022/23), Tune and retune II for SWR Orchestra (Donaueschinger Musiktage 2023), and Songs and Voices a one-hour long piece for voices and ensemble co-commissioned by Neue Vocalsolisten, GMEM, Ircam and Venice Biennale.
www.francescaverunelli.com
ph. Rui Camilo