Gabriele Mercandelli, born in 1997, began his clarinet studies at “Conservatorio Guido Cantelli” in Novara, where he studied with Fulvio Schiavonetti and Sandro Tognatti. He did a semester of Erasmus+ exchange in Portugal, at the ESMAE in Porto in the class of Nuno Pinto, and he obtained his Master’s degree cum laude in 2020. In 2022 he obtained the postgraduate diploma with full marks from the Ecole Normale de Musique
Alfred Cortot, in the class of Patrick Messina.
He attends regularly masterclasses with renowned clarinet players, such as Calogero Palermo, Luca Milani, Fabrizio Meloni, Giuseppe Gentile, Arno Piters, Nicolas Baldeyrou, Michel Arrignon, Salvatore Passalacqua, Enrico Maria Baroni, Ronald van Spaendonck, Lorenzo Antonio Iosco, and Riccardo Crocilla.
Since 2018 Gabriele has been a student of Calogero Palermo in his school “Accademia Scatola Sonora” in Rome, supported by a scholarship from the De Sono Association. In 2022 he was awarded a scholarship from the Scatola Sonora Academy itself.
He won the first prize at the XVII International Clarinet Competition “Città di Chieri” in 2017, and at the “Premio Nazionale delle Arti”, clarinet section, in 2018. In 2021 he won the “I Nuovi Talenti del Clarinetto” competition and he was a finalist in the Mercadante clarinet competition.
In 2023 he won the “Working in the Orchestra” competition in the first clarinet category. Gabriele has been in reserve list for the Orchestra of Teatro Verdi in Trieste (2024), Pomeriggi Musicali Orchestra in Milano (2023), Toscanini Orchestra in Parma, Hadyn Orchestra in Bolzano, Verbier Festival Orchestra (2019 and 2020) and the Italian Youth Orchestra (Orchestra Giovanile Italiana) in Fiesole (2018); he has been in the final rounds for ensembles such as FRSO Helsinki, Turku Philarmonic Orchestra, Ensemble MidtVest, Teatro Verdi in Trieste and Wermland Opera in Karlstad.
He collaborates with Opéra Orchestre National Montpellier, Toscanini Orchestra in Parma, Pomeriggi Musicali in Milano, OFI (Orchestra Filarmonica Italiana), Orchestra Teatro Verdi in Trieste, Orchestra Carlo Coccia in Novara, Canova, Milano Master Orchestra, AYSO orchestra and in 2022 he toured Europe with the French Youth Orchestra (OFJ) under the baton of Michael Schønwandt performing at Philarmonie de Paris, Théatre Nouveau Siècle de Lille, Forum am Schlosspark in Ludwisburg, Théatre Impérial de Compiègne, Brasov Philarmonic, Besançon Festival.
He is an active chamber musician, appearing with various ensembles at Festival dei due Mondi of Spoleto, Festival Verdi, Unione Musicale in Torino, University of Arts in Tirana, Centro Cultural Olga Cadaval in Lisbon, Accademia Belle Arti Tadini in Lovere, Auditorium of “Conservatorio Nicolini” in Piacenza, Teatro Sociale Villani of Biella, Teatro Regina Margherita in Piedicavallo, Palazzo Penotti Ubertini in Orta San Giulio, Teatro Carlo Coccia in Novara.
In 2019 he made his solo debut with orchestra performing Debussy’s Première Rhapsodie in the theatres of Novara, Biella, and Tortona.
He is a student of the Fondazione Accademia di Musica since 2025.
