Francesco Stefanelli, born on 29 October 1999 in San Marino, has shown an extraordinary passion and dedication for classical music since the age of seven.
He has received prizes at several major international competitions, including 4th prize at the Classic Cello International Competition 2026 and the special prize for the best semifinal performance, 3rd prize at the Belgrade International Jeunesses Competition 2022 (WFIMC), 2nd prize at the Krzysztof Penderecki International Cello Competition 2018, 3rd prize at the Rahn Music Prize in Zurich in 2018, 1st prize at the Antonio Janigro Competition in Croatia in 2016, and the Filarmonica della Scala’s “Maura Giorgetti” 1st prize in 2015 as best young Italian cellist. He also won the audition for the Principal Cello position of the Orchestra della Fondazione Arena di Verona in 2023.
Performing in duo with pianist Nicola Pantani, he has won numerous prizes at prestigious international chamber music competitions, including 3rd prize at the Premio Trio di Trieste 2026, together with the “Renato Zanettovich” special prize for Best Duo and the Young Award, 2nd prize at the Pinerolo International Chamber Music Competition 2025 (WFIMC), a recognition that had not been awarded to an Italian ensemble for twenty years, and recently 1st prize at the LFN International Chamber Music Competition 2026.
He represented San Marino at Eurovision Young Musicians in 2016 and 2018, performing with the WDR Sinfonieorchester Köln in Cologne’s Roncalliplatz.
He has performed as a soloist at London’s Amaryllis Fleming Hall with the Philharmonia Orchestra, Belgrade’s Kolarac Foundation Hall with the Serbian Radio Television Symphony Orchestra, and Prague’s Smetana Hall with the North Czech Philharmonic Orchestra. In Italy, he has performed in Parma with the Orchestra Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini, Macerata with the Orchestra Filarmonica Marchigiana, Padua with I Solisti Veneti and Caserta with the Orchestra Sinfonica Italiana.
As a soloist and in duo with piano, he has appeared at Unione Musicale Torino, Ente Concerti Pesaro, Sagra Musicale Malatestiana, Musikamera Venezia, MITO Settembre Musica, Associazione Scarlatti Napoli, Amici della Musica Firenze, Amici della Musica Padova, Amici della Musica di Verona, Schleswig-Holstein Musik Festival, Accademia Filarmonica Romana, Solisti di Pavia, Fondazione Boccadoro Lugano, Ceresio Estate Lugano, Onde Musicali Zone and Associazione il Timbro Torino.
His recordings include David Fontanesi’s Cello Concerto with I Virtuosi Italiani for Da Vinci Classics, Castelnuovo-Tedesco’s Piano Quintets for Naxos, and a duo album featuring Chopin’s and Enescu’s Cello and Piano Sonatas for Da Vinci Classics.
After graduating at just fifteen, he was admitted to the Master of Arts in Music Performance at the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana in Lugano, studying with Enrico Dindo. He subsequently earned his diploma at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia in Rome under Giovanni Sollima. He studied with Jens Peter Maintz at the Escuela Superior de Música Reina Sofía in Madrid, supported by the Fundación Albéniz. He currently continues his studies with Frans Helmerson at the Accademia Stauffer. He also received the prestigious Diploma d’Onore from the Accademia Chigiana in Siena during David Geringas’s course.
He has attended masterclasses with Antonio Meneses, Thomas Demenga, Ivan Monighetti, Marianne Chen, Alban Gerhardt, W. E. Schmidt, Young-Chang Cho and Asier Polo.
He has received scholarships from the Swiss Government’s ESKAS excellence programme, De Sono Associazione per la Musica Torino, Musikakademie Liechtenstein, Fondo per l’Eccellenza San Marino and SUMS San Marino.
