Roberto Salvatore Cani (17 October 1967 – 9 April 2025) was an Italian classical violinist based in Los Angeles, where he was concertmaster of the Los Angeles Opera Orchestra from 2011. He gave concerts as a soloist and a chamber musician in Europe, the United States, Asia and South Africa.
Roberto Cani | |
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 Cani, in the 1980s | |
| Born | Roberto Salvatore Cani 17 October 1967 Milan, Italy |
| Died | 9 April 2025 (aged 57) Los Angeles, California, U.S. |
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| Website | robertocani |
Life and career
editRoberto Cani was born on 17 October 1967 in Milan,[1][2] to parents of Sicilian descent.[3] Cani began taking violin lessons at the age of seven.[4][1] He attended the Milan Conservatory,[5][6] where he was awarded the Minetti Prize in 1986.[1] He studied further at the Gnessin State Musical College in Moscow, and the Thornton School of Music of the University of Southern California in Los Angeles.[1][5][7] He studied with Zinaida Gilels, Miroslav Roussine, Alice Schoenfeld, Abrahm Shtern, Viktor Tretiakov and Pavel Vernikov.[1][5]
Career
editCani made his debut at the Salle Gaveau in Paris[5] conducted by Daniele Gatti on 16 January 1987. He received a prize at the 1990 Paganini Competition in Genova, at Jeunesses Musicales in Belgrade in 1991, and at the Courcillon International Competitions the same year. He was also honoured at the 1994 Tchaikovsky International Competition in Moscow.[1][4][5] He played concerts in Italy, Russia, Poland, Croatia, Germany, Austria, Belgium, France, Serbia, Spain, the United States, Japan, Taiwan, and South Africa.[7] He performed as a guest concert master with the La Scala Orchestra conducted by Riccardo Muti,[4][7] He played with the American Youth Symphony, the Belgrade Philharmonic Orchestra, the Missouri Chamber Orchestra, the Moscow Symphony Orchestra, the Oregon Symphony, the RAI National Symphony Orchestra, the Symphony of the Americas and the Zagreb Soloists.[4] He performed with the Haydn Orchestra of Bolzano,[5] the Volgograd Symphony Orchestra, the Orchestra Cantelli and the Italian Consort.[7] He played in venues such as Royce Hall in Los Angeles, Bolshoi Hall and Tchaikovsky Hall in Moscow, the Lisinski Hall in Belgrade, at St George's Church, Brandon Hill in Bristol, and Tokyo's Suntory Hall.[5]
As a chamber musician, Cani collaborated with partners such as pianists Justus Frantz and Jeffrey Swann, cellist Lynn Harrell, and guitarist Jason Vieaux.[4] He played the premiere of Henryk Górecki's Kleine Phantasie for violin and piano with Swann in 1997.[8] He was first violinist of the New Hollywood String Quartet[4] and formed the Hollywood Piano Trio with pianist Inna Faliks and cellist Robert deMaine.[9] He played at chamber music festivals at the West Coast of the United States, and in Berlin, Hamburg, Vienna, and the Canary Islands.[7] Cani performed on a 1735 Giuseppe Guarneri del Gesù ex Baron Knoop.[5][1]
Cani served as concertmaster of the Los Angeles Opera Orchestra from 2011 until his death.[1][7] He was on the faculty of California State University, Northridge.[5] He was also a skilled violin maker, especially of bows.[1]
Personal life
editCani had an older sister, Silvana, and a younger sister, Sandra. He and his wife, Elena, had a daughter, Sofia, and resided in Los Angeles.[1] He lived with pancreatic cancer for the final two years of his life, but he continued to perform.[1][4]
Cani died from cancer in Los Angeles on 9 April 2025[2] at the age of 57.[1][4]
Recordings
editCani recorded for Agora and Arkadia labels:
- Sonatas for Solo Violin: Bartok, Ysaye, Prokofiev, Bloch, Agora (1996)[5]
- Busoni and Respighi Sonatas with pianist Jeffrey Swann, Arkadia (1993)[5][10][11]
- Vivaldi: The Four Seasons[1]
- Tchaikovsky: Violin Concerto[1]
References
edit- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Niles, Laurie (10 April 2025). "Remembering Violinist Roberto Cani (1967–2025)". Violinist. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ a b "Roberto Cani". Classical Music Daily. April 2025. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ Geniella, Luke (30 November 2006). "Music review: The return of Roberto Cani". The Union.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Los Angeles Opera Concertmaster Roberto Cani has Died, Aged 57". The Violin Channel. 11 April 2025. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Roberto Cani". Viotti International Music Competition. 2025. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ "Cani, Roberto". Violin – SM Conservatory of Music. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ a b c d e f "Roberto Cani". interharmony.com. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- ^ Swed, Mark (3 October 1997). "Gorecki Festival Begins With Searing Early, Late Works". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 15 April 2025.
- ^ Cristi, A. A. (2 April 2019). "Inna Faliks Performs World Premiere By Richard Danielpour At The Wallis". Broadway World. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
- ^ Shoemaker, Paul (July 2006). "Roberto Cani". musicweb-international.com. Retrieved 15 April 2025.
- ^ Busoni, Ferruccio; Cani, Roberto; Swann, Jeffrey; Respighi, Ottorino (1994), Violin sonata n. 2 in Mi minore op. 36a (in no linguistic content), Italy: Arkadia, OCLC 947208746
Further reading
edit- "A conversation with L.A. Opera concertmaster Roberto Cani". Italo-Americano. 20 March 2015. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- Lady, Thomas (20 May 2016). "In the Pit: Roberto Cani, Concertmaster". Opera League of Los Angeles. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
- Salazar, Francisco (11 April 2025). "Obituary: LA Opera Concertmaster Roberto Cani Dies at 57". OperaWire. Retrieved 14 April 2025.
External links
edit- Official website
- Roberto Cani at IMDb
- Roberto Cani discography at Discogs
- Roberto Cani Los Angeles Opera