Born in Siena in 1983, Daniele Morandini started studying trombone at the age of 11 with Mr. Marco Piattelli and continued with Mr. Walter Carpano. In the academic year 1998/99, he joined Mr. Mauro Bianchi's class at the Istituto Musicale Parificato "Rinalo Franci" (Siena, Italy) where he graduated in 1999/2000 with "10/10 e lode" (summa cum laude). He Studied at the Accademia di Perfezionamento "Santa Fiora in Musica 2002" with Steven Mead and Andrea Conti and chamber music with Luca Benucci and Dale Clevenger. Morandini attained the "Orchestral Diploma" Bachelor Degree in June 2005 at the "Conservatoire Superieur de Musique de Genève" with Mr. Andrea Bandini, recieving the remark "tres bien". In the academic year 2007/08 Daniele got his Master Degree on Musical Disciplines at the "Istituto Musicale della Valle D'Aosta", recieving "110/110 e lode" (summa cum laude).

Morandini has attended masterclasses with Jacques Mauger, Fabiano Fiorenzani, Cristophe Sanchez, Andrea Conti, Jay Friedman, Charles G. Vernon and Eitan Bezalel. He was the winner of a european brass scolarship award given by Yamaha Music Foundation of Europe in 2000.

Morandini was Principal Trombone of the World Youth Orchestra, conducted by Damiano Giuranna and William Eddins (Edition 2003), and Sub-principal trombone of the Teatro Carlo Felice Orchestra (Genova Opera House) 2004-2007. Since November 2006, Daniele is the Principal Trombone of The Israel Philharmonic Orchestra under Zubin Mehta, music director. He holds many partnerships as a freelance player with Professional Symphony Orchestras, such as Orchestra del Maggio Musicale Fiorentino, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, Italian Chamber Orchestra, Teatro La Fenice di Venezia, Teatro Carlo Felice di Genova and La Scala di Milano. Being a brass soloist of the IPO, Daniele is a member of The Israel Philharmonic Brass Quintet. Morandini has appeared in many committees of prominent brass instruments competitions. He is the trombone Professor at the Jerusalem Academy of Music and Dance, and at The Buchmann-Mehta School of Music in the Tel-Aviv University, and besides his regular teaching he has been giving many masterclasses around Europe, Chile, Brasil, Israel and Australia. He has been elected to the Board of Advisers of the International Trombone Association for the period 2008 - 2011.

www.danielemorandini.com

Ko-ichiro Yamamoto, one of the foremost Japanese trombonists of his generation, is the principal trombonist of the Seattle Symphony, Saito- Kinen Orchestras and a faculty member of the University of Washington School of Music. He formerly was a trombonist with the Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, New York for 10 seasons.

Active as a soloist, recitalist, chamber music performer, and clinician, Ko-ichiro has performed with many groups, which include, the New York Philharmonic and Metropolitan Opera Chamber Orchestra, as a guest solo principal trombonist of the NHK Symphony Orchestra, Tokyo. He has been an active recording artist and performed on numerous TV and movie recordings in New York and Tokyo. He has been very active giving recitals though out Japan and US.

Ko-ichiro has been a guest soloist with Tokyo Symphony Orchestra, the Osaka Municipal Symphonic Band (OMSB), New Philharmonic Japan and U.S. Army Band (Pershing's Own). Recently, he was a feature soloist of both 2007 Eastern Trombone Workshop in Washington, DC. and 2008 the international trombone festival in Salt Lake City, Utah. He was as a soloist with the Seattle Symphony Orchestra in world premiere performances of Sam Jones’s Trombone Concerto in April of 2009.

As a clinician, he has given master classes numerals colleges both U.S and Asia. Ko-ichiro was feature soloist and a faculty of Asian Trombone Seminar in Taiwan 2009, feature soloist and clinician of the “Trombone Day in Kumano 2009” and feature soloist and a trombone facility of Curuso Internacional Semena Musical de Salseda Spain 2009.

He has won numerous awards, prizes, and scholarships in Japan and abroad, including fourth place in the International Trombone Association Competition in Australia (1998), first grand prize of the Japan Wind and Percussion Competition (1991), and diploma prize at the Prague International Music Competition (1992).

Born in Tokyo, he began studying trombone at age 12 with his father, Tatsuo Yamamoto, and Mr.Yoshiki Hakoyama. After studying at Tokyo College of Music Senior High School, he was accepted at the Franz Liszt Music Academy as a student of Gusztav Hoena and Sztan Tivador. While at the academy, he joined the Budapest Festival Orchestra as a trombonist. He studied with Joseph Alessi, principal trombonist of the New York Philharmonic, at The Juilliard School from 1994-96.

His discography includes “Proof “and “Family Tree” (Kosei Publishing) and “Trombone Concerto” (Octavia Recordings) and Ko-ichiro has been a Yamaha performing artist/clinician since 2008 and performing on new Yamaha Xeno 882OR prototype trombone.

Graduate Institute Music School "P.Mascagni" in Livorno
1985 under the guidance of Arrigo Melosi.
After an intense lyrical symphonic orchestras from 1992
he joined the orchestra of the Maggio Musicale
Fiorentino in the role of "Second Trombone".
In 2002 マ winner of the "First Trombone" banned forever
Orchestra of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino where he still holds that
role. "
He has also worked with the Theatre and the La Scala Philharmonic, the Orchestre
Swiss Radio in Lugano, the Israel Philharmonic.
He has an intense chamber music, especially "The Controquintetto"
where also the curator of the arrangements.
He worked as a lecturer at the School of Music of Fiesole, the
master classes in orchestral Pergine (Pergine Entertainment
Open), Barberino Val d'Elsa, and still at the Academy of
Maggio Musicale Fiorentino.