"Vanni Montanari (flute and alto flute) and Donato D'Antonio(guitar) are passing through Atlanta on one day, 9/14,  and have agreed to play a noon time concert at Georgia State University as well as provide flute and guitar master classes should we desire them. This is a rare opportunity to connect with, and to hear, two distinguished musicians perform a culturally diverse program focusing on Asian and Argentinean music.   I was fortunate to hear them perform their program in Rugusa, Sicily - Italy, early this month and was impressed with their high caliber ensemble playing and their ability to communicate modern music in a manner that makes it accessible to average listeners.  Moreover, Donato D'Antonio was impressed with my concert in Ragusa and has agreed to engage in an artistic exchange and host me in concerts and masterclasses in Northern Italy in 2023. 

The concert will take place during MUA 1800/3800, Into to Guitar, and will serve as a required concert attendance for the class along with the students in the guitar studio.  It is my hope that the flute studio, composition majors, as well as other music students, will attend the event.  There is also interest from the Atlanta guitar community.  

Program and Bios Follow: 

ARGENTINA Y ORIENTE 
Celebrating XXVI years of Performing together
VANNI MONTANARI (flute and alto flute) and DONATO D'ANTONIO (guitar)
EMA VINCI RECORDS 2022

Florence Kopleff Recital Hall
Georgia State University
September 14, 12:00 PM

Argentina y Oriente may be two physical and, at the same time metaphysical, places seemingly not directly connected to each other but, as is often the case in the arts, rich in associations and suggestions.

Program

Impresiones de las puna (1934)     Alberto Evaristo Ginastera
    Quena     (1916-1983)
    Canciòn
    Danza

Bagatelle from China West (2006)     Chen Yi 
    Dou Duo     (1953 - )

Haru No Umi (1929)     Michio Miyagi 
    (1894 -1956)

Other Voices (1989)     Tohru Aki 
    (1956 - )

Memories in Watercolor (1979)     Tan Dun 
    Red Wilderness     (1957 - )
    Blue Nun
    Staccato Beans 

Histoires du tango (1986)     Astor Pantaleòn Piazzolla
    Bordel 1900     (1921-1992)
    Night Club 1960

Revirado (1963)     Astor Piazzolla

Eclectic and sensitive musicians, Vanni Montanari and Donato D'Antonio have concertized as a duo since 1996. They have performed much of the standard repertoire for flute and guitar which includes 18th and 19th century works by European composers as well as Latin American master works by Villa-Lobos, Gnattali, Piazzolla, Assad, Domeniconi, Ginastera, Guastavino, and Queràlto.  They have furthered their repertoire with 20th century music by Ravel, Rodrigo, De Falla, Badinks, Shankar, Bartok, Beaser, Corea, Ourkouzounov, Riley, Raats, Mahoney, Tan Dun, Hi, and Gianopoulos. Additionally, they developed repertoire dedicated to Japanese composers including Takemitsu, Bozza, Falcon, Ogawa, Aki, Miyagi, and Hinohara.  Their true passion, however, lies in new music and sounds as they actively participate in projects linked to contemporary artistic idioms trough collaborations with Italian composers including, Benati, Samorì, Cangini, Baldi, Biscarini, Telli, Furlati, Geminiani, Luppi, Cavallone, Spinosa, Vacchi, Sollima, and Corghi.

Vanni Montanari and Donato D'Antonio have performed in Italy and abroad (Slovenia, Croatia, Germany, Finland, Japan, USA). In 2008 they performed in Japan at the invitation of the Uragami Museum in Hagi. In 2010 and 2014 they gave concerts and master classes in the U.S. at Columbus State University, Hunter College in New York, City and Susquehanna University. In 2016 they released the album ""The Other voices"" for London-based RMN music, which has received excellent reviews. Furthermore, In March 2022 they released the album ""Argentina y Oriente"" for the record label EMA Vinci.  Following this release, they have performed numerous concerts in Italy and Europe with positive reviews. 

Vanni Montanari presently teaches flute and wind ensemble at the Istituto Superiore di Studi Musicali ""Giuseppe Verdi"" in Ravenna, Italy. He was born in Ravenna and graduated in flute performance in 1984.  He then furthered his studies with well known flutists, including Conrad Klemm, Maxence Larrieu, Peter Lukas Graf, Alain Marion and Aurele Nicolet. Moreover, he attended chamber music courses held by Bruno Canino, Carlo Bruno and Pier Narciso Masi with a focus in contemporary music. He additionally  studied musicology  at the University of Bologna. 

Vanni Montanari won many Italian competitions, including the Concorso Internazionale “Città di Stresa” (1st prize); Rassegna Nazionale di Musica d'Assieme “Acada” Genova; Rassegna Nazionale Giovani Concertisti Pordenone; Concorso Nazionale di Flauto Endas Milano) and he has performed in major  Italian artistic centers including Milan, Turin, Venice, Padua, Genoa, Bologna, Perugia, and Rome. As a concert player he has been invited to numerous chamber music festivals in Italy and abroad (France, Spain, Germany, Finland, Slovenia, U.S.A. and Japan) meeting with the approval of critics and the public. As an orchestral player he played with Orchestra de “I pomeriggi musicali di Milano”, Orchestra “Arturo Toscanini”, “Accademia Bizantina”.

Vanni Montanari has recorded albums for the Italian broadcasting station RAI and Koper Capodistria (Slovenia). He regularly performs as a soloist in many contemporary musical events.

Donato D'Antonio was born in Zurich, Switzerland. He earned a degree in classical guitar performance with honors from the Bruno Maderna Conservatory of Music in Cesena, Italy, and received advanced performance degrees at the Giovanni Battista Martini Music Conservatory, in Bologna, with Prof. Walter Zanetti. He has additionally attended numerous courses held by, among others, Pepe Romero at the Mozarteum in Salzburg, Pier Narciso Masi at the Piano Academy of Imola, Alirio Diaz, Manuel Barrueco, Oscar Ghiglia and Ruggero Chiesa. 

Donato D'Antonio has taken top prizes in numerous competitions including the Pasquale Taraffo, Young Musicians and Mary Magdalene guitar competitions.   As a concert artist he has performed as a soloist and chamber musician in Italy and abroad, including Spain, Austria, France, Slovenia, Cuba, Chile, Argentina, Japan, Finland, Romania, Sweden, Estonia, USA, Brazil, Canada, Suisse, North Africa. His performances have been broadcast live via national radio stations including RAI Radio Tre Suite, Argentina National Radio, Radio Koper Capodistria, Slovenia Radio One, Estona Radio, and Suisse Radio RSI.  A champion for new music, he has given world premieres of new works for Italian RAI Radio Tre and for many music festivals. Furthermore, he has collaborated with numerous composers, including Samorì, Varotti, Telli, Piva, Costantini, Cangini, Luppi, Biscarini, Geminiani, Furlati, Spinosa, Baldi, Sollima, Eespere, Mahoney, Razzi, Corghi, Colombo Taccani, Vacchi, Galon, Benati, Queraltò, Montalbetti, Hinohara, Colombo Taccani, Scodanibbio.  Donato D'Antonio has also given collaborative performances with the writers Maurizio Maggiani, Ferruccio Brugnaro and Roberto Mussapi and actors vano Marescotti, Ruggero Sintoni, Paola Baldini, Enzo Vetrano, Roberto Randisi, ""Freak"" Antoni and with the musicians Massimo Mercelli, Sharon Isbin, Marko Feri, Tiit Peterson, Sasa Dejanovic, Gustavo Costa and with orchestras ""Orchestra of Fiesole,"" Cherubini ""and USP Sao Paulo. 

Donato D'Antonio has released numerous CDs for Mobydick, ERP, Borgatti, Materiali Sonori, RMN music, Tactus, and EMA Vinci. 

As a teacher,  Donato D'Antonio has been a Guest Professor at Columbus State University, Susquehanna University (USA), USP in Riberao Preto (Brazil) and the Canova State Music High School in Forlì. Currently, he is the artistic and didactic coordinator of the G. Sarti School of Faenza, the music curator of the Carlo Zauli Museum, co-founder of Diatonia with whom he has been involved in projects related to art and contemporary languages since 1996 and vice president of Emilia Romagna Festival. 
http://donatodantonio.blogspot.com/
http://www.youtube.com/user/DonatoDAntonio"