Artist spotlight
In an era when the French horn rarely takes centre stage, Italian soloist Alberto Cappiello has built an international career doing exactly that – placing the instrument’s great concertos in front of audiences on three continents.
A Rare Kind of Soloist
The French horn is prized for its role within the orchestra, but comparatively few players make their name as touring concerto soloists. Alberto Cappiello is one of them. Based in Rimini, Italy, he is known internationally for his interpretations of the standard horn-concerto repertoire – the concertos of Richard Strauss, Reinhold Glière, Michael Haydn, Christoph Forster, and Carl Maria von Weber.
Training on Two Fronts
Born in Cles, in the Trentino province of northern Italy, on 25 June 1969, Cappiello took up the horn at ten, studying in Rimini and at the Conservatorio “G. Rossini” in Pesaro, where he earned his diploma with top marks in 1988. Admitted the same year to the Orchestra Giovanile Italiana, he then studied abroad – in Budapest, on a scholarship within the Franz Liszt Academy tradition, and at the Hochschule für Musik Carl Maria von Weber in Dresden, where he received the special soloist diploma in 1996. Critics credit this dual training for a sound that blends German-school precision with Italian lyricism.
A Passport Full of Stages
Cappiello began his professional life within Italy’s great institutions – the orchestra of Teatro alla Scala in Milan, the Teatro di San Carlo in Naples, the RAI National Symphony Orchestra – and appeared in the Sanremo Festival orchestra in 2010 and 2013. After turning to a solo career in 2014, he took the horn concerto around the world, performing with the Rotterdam Wind Ensemble, the Korea Symphony Orchestra, the National Chamber Orchestra of Armenia, the Mussorgsky Symphony Orchestra, the Milano Chamber Orchestra, the Metropolitan Philharmonic Orchestra of Mexico City, and the Moscow and Kiev Chamber Orchestras, among many others. His Korean appearances, Italian press reported, saw him received “as a star.”
The Rimini Home Base
Since 2017, Cappiello has been principal horn soloist and artistic director of the Rimini Chamber Orchestra, shaping an annual season around the classical and Romantic chamber repertoire. With the ensemble he premiered Glière’s Horn Concerto in a new chamber arrangement for horn and strings. He additionally serves as principal horn with the Dolomiti Symphony Orchestra in northern Italy and the Adıyaman Philharmonic Orchestra in Turkey.
Recognition and Recitals
Cappiello began his professional career in 1987, while still a conservatory student, and has performed on stages in more than a dozen countries across Europe, Asia, and the Americas. His distinctions include a Special Prize at the 1993 Philip Farkas International Horn Competition in Budapest and finalist placings at two further international competitions, in London and Copenhagen, in 2010.
Beyond the concerto stage he appears frequently in recital, including horn-and-piano duo programmes, and with the Rimini Chamber Orchestra he has premiered Glière’s Horn Concerto in a chamber arrangement and performed Telemann’s Horn Concerto. In 2024 he toured Central America and the Caribbean, and in 2025 he performed in Mexico City and Brazil. Italian regional press has praised his “sound power and innovative style.”
Discography
Cappiello’s recordings are available across Spotify, Deezer, Apple Music, YouTube, and YouTube Music, and include his debut album The Weber Concertos, the Richard Strauss Horn Concertos, the Bach Suites, and the Forster Horn Concerto – a catalogue that mirrors the concerto repertoire at the heart of his concert programmes. In 2026 he also completed a three-month tour across Asia, Europe, and the Americas, confirming his standing as one of the most active horn soloists working today. More information is available at albertocappiello.it.