Enrico Bassi – ARD INTERNATIONAL MUSIC COMPETITION

2026: 1st prize

Bassoon

Enrico Bassi was born in 2001 in Parma, Italy. At the age of twelve, he began studying bassoon with Luca Reverberi at the Conservatorio di Musica Arrigo Boito in his hometown. There,

he first earned his bachelor’s degree in 2020 and then his master’s degree in 2022, both with honors. He then went on to complete, by 2024, a master’s degree in “Specialized Music Performance – Soloist” at the Zurich University of the Arts in the class of Matthias Rácz.

From 2022 to 2025, Bassi served as principal bassoonist with the Orchestra della Svizzera italiana in Lugano. Since August 2025, he has been principal bassoonist of the NDR Elbphilharmonie Orchestra in Hamburg. As principal bassoonist, he has made guest appearances with, among others, the Bavarian Radio Symphony Orchestra, the HR Symphony Orchestra Frankfurt, the Tonhalle Orchestra Zurich, the Orchestra Sinfonica Nazionale della RAI, the Orchestra dell’Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia, and the Filarmonica della Scala in Milan.

In addition to his work with orchestras, Bassi regularly performs as a soloist. He has performed with, among others, the Accademia/Auditorium del Carmine in Parma, the orchestra of the Conservatorio Rossini di Pesaro under the direction of Milan Turković, the Filarmonica Arturo Toscanini, the Argovia Philharmonic, the Musikkollegium Winterthur, and the Orchestra della Svizzera italiana. Enrico Bassi is a multiple prize winner at international competitions. In 2019, he won first prize at the Norma Hooks Young Artist Competition in Tampa, Florida. This was followed by first prize at the Rossini International Bassoon Competition in 2021 in Pesaro and first prize at The Muri Competition in 2023 in Switzerland.

At the 75th ARD International Music Competition, Enrico Bassi won first prize in the bassoon category.