Federico Calcagno

Federico Calcagno is a clarinet and bass clarinet player, creative jazz musician and composer from Milan, Italy, and currently active between Italy and The Netherlands. The new bishop of the best Italian Jazz [A. Bazzurro, All About Jazz] has considered him to be one the most exciting clarinet players and creative musicians of the young generation.
As a composer, Federico regularly writes music for his bands: Liquid Identities, Piranha, The Dolphins, Fade in Trio. As leader and co-leader, Federico has released five albums till now: From Another Planet (2019), Liquid Identities (2020), Urlo d’Ebano (2021), Piranha (2021), Live Fast, Die a Legend (2022). He’s the winner of several national and international awards such as Premio Giorgio Gaslini 2020, Best New Italian Talent by Musica Jazz 2020 Top Jazz and Nuova Generazione Jazz 2021. In 2022 he was commissioned by Gaudeamus Festival to write a composition for the New European Ensemble feat. B.C. Manjunath, master of Indian Carnatic music and mridangam.
Federico regularly performs as a sideman in the bands: Aviv Noam 4et, Tijn Wybenga & AM.OK, Adrian Moncada Sextet, Francesca Remigi’s Archipelagos, Önder, Coal Harbour, Marco Luparia Masna, Ferdinando Romano Invisible Painters, Paolo Damiani Unit, Orchestra Nazionale Giovani Talenti Jazz.
He studied classical and jazz clarinet at Milan Conservatory, and in 2019 he graduated with a Jazz Master in bass clarinet at Amsterdam Conservatory and attended the International Workshop in Jazz and Creative Music at Banff Centre for Arts and Creativity (Canada), directed by Vijay Iyer and Tyshawn Sorey.
In the academic year 2021-2022 Federico was the teacher of the subject “Analysis and Application of Advanced Rhythm Techniques” and Jazz Ensemble at Conservatorio Vittadini, Pavia (Italy). He’s also one of the founder members of Habitable Records, a new label – started in March 2021 – which features a host of idiosyncratic voices from the space beyond genre, unified by an expansive curiosity about the world of sound and the societal good that can come from it.

Photo credit: Simon Schoo