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Giovanni Sollima is an Italian composer and cellist active from the late 1970s to the present, teaching at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome. His work spans orchestral compositions, chamber music, opera, ballet, and film scores, blending classical technique with jazz, rock, and Mediterranean ethnic traditions in a postminimalist style distinguished by an eclectic range of source material.

Sollima is recognized as a significant contemporary voice bridging classical and popular musical idioms, notably through collaborations with musicians such as Patti Smith and involvement in cross-cultural projects including the Silk Road Project. Several of his works commemorate victims of historical tragedies, reflecting a socially engaged strand within his output, and his genre-crossing approach has broadened audiences for new music both within and beyond the classical concert tradition.

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Prelude for Mandolin Solo

Performed by Avi Avital