The Sardinian soloist Silvia Careddu brings the 45th season of the Orchestra della Toscana to a close with a performance of Jacques Ibert’s famous Concerto for Flute and Orchestra. This is one of the most beloved virtuoso pieces in the 20th-century repertoire.
There is a special way to bring a concert season to a close: entrusting the finale to an artist capable of conveying, through their sound alone, an entire musical vision. This is exactly what will happen this evening at the final concert of the Orchestra della Toscana’s 45th season. In fact, the event will feature the flutist Silvia Careddu. She is one of the most authoritative and highly regarded Italian performers on the international scene.
On stage at the Teatro Verdi, conducted by Diego Ceretta, Careddu will perform Jacques Ibert’s Concerto for Flute and Orchestra. It is one of the most brilliant and captivating works in the 20th-century flute repertoire. Composed in 1934, the concerto combines French elegance, rhythmic verve and great technical virtuosity. It demands of the soloist an extraordinary range of timbres and a continuous narrative flow. All these qualities are fully embodied in Silvia Careddu’s art of performance.
One of the most highly regarded and acclaimed flutists on the international scene, Careddu is today one of the most influential Italian voices in the European orchestral landscape. Currently principal flutist with the Orchestre National de France, she has held the same position with leading institutions such as the Konzerthausorchester Berlin, the Vienna Symphony Orchestra and the Vienna Philharmonic. Additionally, she has built a career that spans the continent’s major musical capitals.
Born in Cagliari, she began her training at her city’s Conservatoire, before continuing at the Conservatoire National Supérieur de Musique et de Danse de Paris. There, she was awarded the Premier Prix “à l’unanimité avec les félicitations du jury”, one of the most prestigious honours in the French academic system. Furthermore, fundamental to her artistic development was also her encounter with the great maestro Aurèle Nicolet, who guided her in refining her interpretative skills.
Her international breakthrough came in 2001, when she won First Prize and the Audience Prize at the Concours International d’Exécution Musicale de Genève. This brought her to the attention of the European music scene. Since then, her career has developed rapidly alongside some of the world’s most prestigious orchestras. These include the Berliner Philharmoniker and the London Symphony Orchestra. She has also collaborated with the Mahler Chamber Orchestra and the Chamber Orchestra of Europe.
Alongside her career as an orchestral musician and soloist, Silvia Careddu has built up an extensive career in chamber music and recording, collaborating with leading labels such as Deutsche Grammophon and Decca. She is also a founding member of the Alban Berg Ensemble Wien, with whom she explores the 20th-century chamber music repertoire.
Her artistic profile is complemented by a significant teaching career: she teaches at the Zurich University of the Arts and is a Visiting Professor at the Royal Academy of Music in London. She regularly holds masterclasses in Europe, Asia and the United States and is frequently invited to sit on the jury of major international competitions.
Her presence on stage with the Orchestra della Toscana this evening carries a special meaning: it closes the 45th season and reflects an idea of music that is international, yet deeply rooted and profoundly human.
This is also the defining trait of Silvia Careddu: a commanding presence on the world stage, combined with an expressive sobriety that makes her flute sound more like a voice than a display of virtuosity.
