On Monday, June 15, the Assembly of Academicians in Santa Cecilia elected three Effective Academicians and two Honorary Academicians. The Effective Academicians are conductor Michele Mariotti, musicologist Fabrizio Della Seta, and musician Alvise Vidolin, while composer George Benjamin and conductor and composer Esa-Pekka Salonen were elected Honorary Academicians.
Currently Music Director of the Rome Opera House and Principal Conductor of the RAI National Symphony Orchestra from October 2026, Michele Mariotti was elected Effective Academician in recognition of his significant commitment to the cultural landscape and his ongoing artistic contribution in the field of music. Mariotti has built a career that regularly places him at the forefront of the world’s most prestigious institutions, from La Scala to the Metropolitan, from the Paris Opéra to the Salzburg Festival. A former Music Director of the Teatro Comunale di Bologna and winner of the Abbiati Prize, he stands as one of the most authoritative conductors of his generation.