Nicola Colafelice
At the age of eight, Nicola Colafelice began his musical studies on the cello under the guidance of Maestro Vito Paternoster. In 2009, he obtained his Diploma in Singing, and in 2017 he graduated in Orchestral Conducting with top marks and honors under Maestro Giovanni Pelliccia.
From 2009 to 2012, he served as Stage Conductor at the Fondazione Lirico Sinfonica Petruzzelli e Teatri di Bari. In August 2016, he took part in the masterclass on Verdi’s La Traviata held by Maestro Riccardo Muti at the Italian Opera Academy.
In February 2017, he won a scholarship to the Catholic University of America in Washington D.C., where he earned his Master’s degree in Orchestral Conducting. In May 2017, he also attended, as an active participant, the conducting masterclass led by Maestro Donato Renzetti at the Teatro Dal Verme in Milan with the Orchestra dei Pomeriggi Musicali.
In 2018 and 2019, he worked as Resident Conductor at the State Opera House of Stara Zagora (Bulgaria), where he conducted three chamber operas: Kurt Weill’s Mahagonny – Ein Songspiel and Die sieben Todsünden, and Paul Hindemith’s Hin und Zurück. In May 2019, he conducted Verdi’s Rigoletto at the Stara Zagora Opera House.
Later that year, he performed Beethoven’s Piano Concerto No. 1 with pianist Leonardo Colafelice for the Piano and Friends Festival in Molfetta, conducting the Orchestra Filarmonica Pugliese (OFP).
In September 2019, he conducted the Bari Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra with violinist Maria Serena Salvemini, performing works by Beethoven, Tartini, Saint-Saëns, and Haydn.
Since October 2019, he has collaborated with Maestro Simeone Tartaglione at the Music Center at Strathmore in Maryland as Assistant Conductor of the MCYO Orchestra.
In April 2022, he made his debut at the Teatro Petruzzelli in Bari with the orchestra of the Fondazione Lirico Sinfonica Teatro Petruzzelli. From July to August 2022, he conducted a 15-date summer tour with the ICO Symphony Orchestra of the Metropolitan City of Bari, accompanying jazz singer Emilia Zamuner in a pop/jazz program with arrangements by Vittorio Pasquale.
He then conducted the ICO Symphony Orchestra of Molise in several concerts throughout the region, featuring Vivaldi’s Gloria and works by Mozart. In December, at the Anglican Church in Naples, he conducted the Rotary Youth Chamber Orchestra (RYCO) with Maestro Bruno Canino at the piano, performing Bach’s Concerto No. 5 BWV 1056 and music by Elgar, Brahms, and J. Strauss.
Throughout 2023, he continued his commitment to educational projects for schools of all levels, promoting music with the ICO Symphony Orchestra of the Metropolitan City of Bari.
In March 2023, he conducted the ICO Orchestra della Magna Grecia in Dvořák’s Symphony No. 9 “From the New World” for the “Concerti a Colazione” series at the Acclavio Library in Taranto.
That same month, for the “Pignatelli in Jazz” Festival at Villa Pignatelli in Naples, he conducted the Rotary Youth Chamber Orchestra accompanying bandoneonist Daniele Di Bonaventura in a program of original compositions by the soloist.
Also in March, he conducted the RYCO in the “From Baroque to Jazz” concert series organized by the Franco Michele Napolitano Association in Anacapri, performing works by Mozart, Vivaldi, and Grieg with flutist Salvatore Lombardi.
In September 2023, he conducted the ICO Symphony Orchestra of the Metropolitan City of Bari for the final concert of the Premio Rota 2023 (5th Edition) and later that month for a social outreach project bringing music to prisons and hospitals.
In October 2023, he conducted the same orchestra during the RAI Prix Italia Festival.
From 2024, he began his collaboration with Maestro Francesco Ivan Ciampa as Assistant Conductor, often preparing the orchestra and assisting in various operatic productions.
In September 2024, he served as Assistant Conductor to Maestro Gianna Fratta with the ICO Orchestra della Magna Grecia, preparing the ensemble for a Puccini recital at the Teatro Petruzzelli in Bari.
In October 2024, he conducted the ICO Orchestra della Magna Grecia accompanying young violinist Paride Losacco.
During 2024 and 2025, he serves as Principal Conductor for educational projects with the ICO Symphony Orchestra of the Metropolitan City of Bari. In 2025, he conducted the New Scarlatti Orchestra for the New Year’s Concert at the Teatro Politeama in Naples.