Cellist Francesco Dillon, renowned for his career with the Quartetto Prometeo, will work alongside young cello talents from the Scuola di Musica di Fiesole (Fiesole School of Music) during the 2025–2027 three-year period as part of the project “8”.

Together, the eight musicians will explore contemporary music works that engage in dialogue with other historical periods, maintaining a continuous balance between research, education, and outreach.
Their performances will take place in unusual venues throughout the city and will feature special guests that will change each year of the project.

Francesco Dillon, cello professor at the Fiesole School of Music since 2020, has an outstanding international career marked by the originality and variety of the repertoire he explores. His intense solo activity has brought him to prestigious stages such as Teatro alla Scala in Milan, the Konzerthaus in Vienna, the Muziekgebouw in Amsterdam, the Berlin Philharmonie, the Herkulessaal in Munich, the Laeiszhalle in Hamburg, Jordan Hall in Boston, Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, Hakuju Hall in Tokyo, and the Cologne Philharmonie. He has performed with orchestras including the Filarmonica della Scala, Maggio Musicale Fiorentino Orchestra, RAI National Symphony Orchestra, SWR Radio Symphony Orchestra Stuttgart, RSO Radio Symphony Orchestra Vienna, Orquesta Estable del Teatro Colón, Ensemble Resonanz, Lithuanian National Symphony Orchestra, Oulu Sinfonia Finland, Lithuanian State Symphony Orchestra, Orchestra Regionale Toscana, and MusikFabrik. He has worked with conductors such as Giuseppe Sinopoli, Susanna Mälkki, Luciano Berio, Peter Rundel, and Johannes Kalitzke.
Among his recent engagements are his participation in the 2024 Cello Biennale Amsterdam as soloist in a new concerto by Silvia Borzelli, a solo appearance at Casa da Música in Porto with the Remix Ensemble, a solo tour in Japan in spring 2025, and a recital at Teatro alla Scala as part of the Milano Musica festival.
Alongside his concert activity, he also teaches at institutions including the Royal College of Music in London, the Accademia Chigiana in Siena, the Santa Cecilia Foundation in Portogruaro, Tokyo University of the Arts, the Liszt Academy in Budapest, the Tchaikovsky Conservatory in Moscow, Pacific University (California), UNTREF in Buenos Aires, and the University of Manchester.
From 2010 to 2019, he served as Artistic Director of the contemporary music festival “Music@villaromana” in Florence, and since 2019 he has held the same position at the “Castelcello” festival in Brunnenburg (South Tyrol).
Among his upcoming engagements are his participation in the 2025 Festival Internacional Cervantino and a new project in collaboration with IRCAM in Paris, which will be presented at the Présences Festival in Paris and Milano Musica in 2026.

photo (detail): Monia Pavoni