Patrons

For each edition we pick one personality from the cello world, who is both a musician and a composer, and invite them to join the artistic college in order to renew our approaches and multiply the points of view.
They are present throughout the event, compose a piece for single cello that will be performed by a previous edition intern, then take part in a panel talk where they introduce their career and share their experience with the interns.

Patron of the 2026 edition

Francesco Dillon

Francesco Dillon (Turin, 1973) is an internationally acclaimed cellist known for his diverse and original repertoire.

He was Andrea Nannoni’s student in Florence then went on to learn with great masters such as Anner Bijlsma, Mario Brunello, David Geringas and Mstislav Rostropovich before studying composition with Salvatore Sciarrino.

In addition to his performing career and his investment in chamber music, Dillon has taught at prestigious institutions like the Royal College of London, the Scuola di Musica di Fiesole, the Moscow Tchaikovsky Conservatory, the Pacific University of California, the Untref of Buenos Aires and the University of Manchester. He served as artistic director of Florence’s "Music@villaromana” festival (2010–2019) and currently directs the “Castelcello” Festival in South Tyrol.

francescodillon.com

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