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Elena Pierini

Conductor, Pianist, Vocal Coach

If you need help for a project or you'd like to learn more about music, or if you'd like to hire me to provide music for your specific need, THIS IS WHO I AM and WHAT I HAVE DONE.

• CONDUCTOR
• PIANIST
• VOCAL COACH
  
  

Biography

          Born in Florence, Italy, in 1971, Elena Pierini graduated from the State Conservatory of Music of Florence in Piano Performance and in Percussion Instruments Performance at the Conservatory of Perugia. She has studied voice for over ten years at the School of Music of Fiesole (Florence) with Antonia Brown (Soprano at La Scala, Milano and at the Zurich Opera Theater) and Stephen Woodbury (Countertenor at Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Florence). She has been performing with vocal and instrumental ensembles since a very young age.

          She has sung as a soloist and as chorister in major Italian Theaters under the direction of conductors such as Zubin Mehta, Luciano Berio, Jan Latham Koenig, Sasson, Roberto Gabbiani, Riz Ortolani, Simone Young and others.  As a member of the “Ensemble Vocale Barbara Strozzi” from 1991 she has won various Italian and International Chorus Competitions and recorded two CD’s: “Le Canzonette e le Sacrae Cantiunculae” by Claudio Monteverdi and the Opera “Brundibar” by Hans Krasa. In 1996, she has founded the “Ottetto Femminile Italiano” which performed in Tuscany under her direction.  As a soloist, she has sung the role of the Geni in “Die Zauberflote” by W.A.Mozart, a Madrigalist in “Jacob Lenz” by Wolfgang Rihm, Flora in “The Turn of the Screw” by B. Britten, La Musica and Un Pastore in “Orfeo” by C. Monteverdi/Berio. 

          Since 1989 she has been the Assistant Choir Conductor and Accompanist of the Youth Choirs of the School of Music of Fiesole (Florence) she has worked in Opera Productions at the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino and at the Spoleto Festival under the direction of Zubin Mehta, Eliau Inbal, Spiros Argiris, Roberto Gabbiani, Giuseppe Sinopoli, Ming-Wung Chung and others.

          As a Percussionist, she has worked under the direction of International renowned Conductors with the Orchestra of the Teatro Comunale di Firenze, Orchestra Regionale Toscana, Orchestra Filarmonica Trentina, Orchestra Giovanile Italiana and other Italian Orchestras. In the United States, she has played with the National Repertory Orchestra. The CD’s recorded include “The complete Works for Orchestra by A. Casella”, G. Garbarino conducting, “Suor Angelica” (Puccini), Bartoletti conducting, “Venetian Anonimous Airs of the XVIII Century” (arranged by Joan Yakkey), “Violin Concerto” by Penderecky and the “6^th Symphony” by Shostakovic with Penderecky conducting and Salvatore Accardo violinist.

          Relocated to New York City she studied Orchestra Conducting and Orchestration with Rudolph Palmer at Mannes College of Music.  From 1997 to 1999, she worked as the Assistant Conductor and Accompanist at the Boys Choir Academy of Harlem (NY), as Musical Director of the Episcopal Church of St. Luke’s (Long Island, NY) and Conductor of the Park Slope Singers (Brooklyn, NY).

          While achieving her Master’s of Music in Choral Conducting at Florida International University, she has been the Children’s Choir Conductor and Accompanist at Kendall Community Church of God, Miami.  At Florida Int’l University, she has also directed and conducted the Broadway show "Gypsy" at the Theater Department of the University. As the Orchestra Assistant Conductor, she conducted a performance of the Opera by D. Cimarosa “The Secret Marriage”. For the 2001 FIU Music Festival she has conducted the Opera for children “Monkey see, Monkey do” and accompanied the Nine Minute Opera “Introductions and Goodbyes” by Lukas Foss under the composers’ direction.  In 2002, she has conducted the opera “Agrippina” by Handel and in 2003; she has coached and accompanied “Cosi fan Tutte” by W.A. Mozart. In the year 2002 she directed the Broadway shows “Oliver” and “Charlie Brown” with the Main Street Players of Miami and worked as an accompanist/coach at the New World School for the Arts where she assisted conducting and played in the show “Chicago”.   

          In 2002 and 2003 she was also the Director of Music at St. Matthew’s Episcopalian Church of Miami, the Vocal Coach and Accompanist for the Opera Department at Florida Int’l University and the Italian Diction Coach at Florida Grand Opera of Miami.  In 2003, she performed with the “Seraphic Fire Chamber Choir” at the Church of the Epiphany in Miami, where she has also conducted the Hand bell Choir. In Miami she has also been the substitute organist at the Kendall Community Church and Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church.

          In 2003-2004 she has been Staff Accompanist at Kent State University and served the Music department as well as the Theater and Dance.  At the University, she has had opportunity to work with the well-known Metropolitan Opera baritone Lorenzo Malfatti in the production of “Il Barbiere di Siviglia” by G. Rossini.  She has also performed in the show “Children of Eden” at the presence of the composer Stephen Schwartz.  In November 2003, she conducted the opera “Gianni Schicchi” by G. Puccini at the Akron Lyric Opera Theater.  In May 2004, she has accompanied the show “Candide” by L. Bernstein and Directed “The Hobbit” by A.J. Friedman at the Near West Theater in Cleveland.

          For the season the season 2004-2005, Miss Pierini has been the Youth Opera Music Director and Assistant Conductor and Pianist at the Sarasota Opera, Florida. She has conducted four youth choruses for various performances including the joint Christmas concert with the West Coast Youth Symphony and the fully staged opera production, "the Little Sweep" by B. Britten.  She prepared the children for the production of “Cavalleria Rusticana” by Mascagni and has been the accompanist for the opera “Lakme” by Délibes.  

          While on the roster of the Apollo Project Inc. she has played in the show “Menopause the Musical” at the Asolo Theater in Sarasota and at the Science Center of Orlando. At the Flanzer Jewish Center of Sarasota she has accompanied cabaret performer Naava Piatka in her show “Better don’t talk”, she has conducted the musical “Meshuggah-nun” and ”Soul Sisters” at the presence of the author J. Kock.

               In 2006 and 2007 Miss Pierini has been the Music Director at the Longboat Island Chapel where she also accompanied in concert Metropolitan Opera and Grammy winner tenor Stuart Neil.  Her engagements in 2006 included concerts with the Sarasota Choral Society, the Sarasota Italian Cultural Events Association and the Gulf Coast Colombian Alliance, The Ausonian Society, the Allegro Music Academy, the Tampa Performing Art Center Opera Guild, the Shrine of the Master, St. Patrick’s Catholic Church. 

                In thesummers of 2006 and 2007 she has conducted “La Bohéme” by Puccini, “Aida” and "Un Ballo in Maschera" by Verdi and "Le Nozze di Figaro" by Mozart at the International Opera Workshop in Bourgas, Bulgaria. While in Italy, Elena has performed with Ensemble Vocale Tempus Floridum and has also participated in the Sarteano Chamber Choral Conducting Workshop (Italy) held by Simon Carrington, Prof. of Music at Yale University.

Relocated in Germany Miss Pierini has been working as accompanist in Opera Houses such as Dortmund, Wuppertal and Münster.

Presently she holds the position as the Choir Conductor Assistant in the Aalto Philarmonie Opera Theater of Essen.