Daniela Spalletta, born in 1982, is a Sicilian singer, composer, arranger and lyricist, and is considered one of Italy’s leading female voices. During her musical training, she first studied classical singing, focusing in particular on the Baroque and early Romantic repertoire, before turning to jazz. She has received numerous awards, including the Claudio Abbado Award, and has worked with an equally impressive range of artists, from Adam Nussbaum to Fabrizio Bosso. She teaches jazz singing at several Italian conservatories.
Also hailing from Sicily and rooted in jazz is Alfonso Deidda, a talented multi-instrumentalist who studied drums, piano and clarinet before ultimately devoting himself to the alto saxophone. He has performed with internationally renowned jazz musicians including Mike Stern, Lester Bowie, Peter Erskine, Michel Petrucciani, Enrico Rava and Roberto Gatto. In addition to recording and teaching at numerous conservatories, he has also brought his musical talent to a variety of television and radio productions for Rai and Mediaset.
Glauco Venier, a pianist and composer of Friulian origin, began his career as a jazz musician studying with Franco D’Andrea and later with Ray Santisi in Boston. He was nominated for a Grammy Award in 2008 and, in 2016, released his first solo album on ECM. Over the course of his long career, he has performed at some of the world’s most prestigious venues, including the Musikverein in Vienna, the Barbican in London, the Olympia in Paris and the Teatro La Fenice in Venice. He has also explored the traditional folk repertoire of Friuli. He teaches at the Conservatory of Udine.