Matteo Franceschini
Composer

Under the name TOVEL, Matteo Franceschini explores the figure of the singer-songwriter in order to develop a sound "from within": composition, confronted with instrumental practice, opens up new perspectives on the theatrical awareness of sound gestures. His direct involvement on stage and close collaboration with other musicians constitute a truly creative act: transforming the score into sound energy. TOVEL blurs the boundaries between written creation (the score) and invention at the moment of performance, while seeking to blur the boundary between performers and spectators. Born into a family of musicians, he began studying composition with his father before training at the Milan Conservatory. He then perfected his skills at the Santa Cecilia Academy in Rome, before studying composition and computer music at Ircam in Paris. Silver Lion for Music at the Venice Biennale (2019), SACD New Music Talent Award (2024) and winner of the Banque Populaire Foundation prize. In 2014, he received the Fedora – Rolf Liebermann Prize for Opera, and in 2011, the title of Italian Affiliated Fellow in the Arts awarded by the American Academy in Rome. He composes operas, symphonic, choral, and chamber music works, performances, choreographic projects, and film scores (notably Vermiglio, nominated for Golden Globes and Oscars in 2025). His artistic universe is based on the power and exploration of the meaning of narrative content, as well as on the need to combine languages from different matrices, following the rules of contrast and fusion. His research into timbre feeds into his work, which reveals a dreamlike universe and a keen sense of musical narrative and theatricality. He regularly collaborates with soloists, choreographers, directors, and artists such as Renaud Capuçon, Bertrand Chamayou, Francesco Tristano, Silvia Gribaudi, Leonardo Guerra Seragnoli, Maura Delpero, Jacopo Mazzonelli, 1024architecture, and Seconde Creative Design. He receives commissions from prestigious institutions such as the Filarmonica della Scala, the Venice Biennale, the Ensemble Intercontemporain, the Philharmonie de Paris, Wigmore Hall in London, Ircam–Centre Pompidou, the Orchestre National d'Île-de-France, the Orchestre National de Belgique, the Opéra de Saint-Étienne, the Grand Théâtre de Provence, the Opéra Grand Avignon, the Festival Milano Musica, the Haydn Foundation, and the Accademia Filarmonica di Roma. After being named associate artist with the Orchestre national d’Île-de-France, the Accademia Filarmonica di Roma, and the Haydn Foundation, he is composer-in-residence at the Opéra Grand Avignon for the 2024–2025 and 2025–2026 seasons. Since 2011, his works have been published by Casa Ricordi – Universal Music Publishing. — tovelmusic.com