Simone Stella

Simone Stella (born 1981 in Florence, Italy) is an Italian harpsichordist, organist and composer.

He studied piano in Florence with Rosanita Racugno and Marco Vavolo, organ in Florence with Mariella Mochi and Alessandro Albenga, organ improvisation with Fausto Caporali and Stefano Rattini in Cremona, harpsichord in Rome with Francesco Cera and, in specializing master courses, with Ton Koopman, Matteo Imbruno, Luigi Ferdinando Tagliavini, Luca Scandali, Giancarlo Parodi, Stefano Innocenti, Klemens Schnorr, Ludger Lohmann, Michel Bouvard, Monika Henking, and Guy Bovet.

After winning some major organ competitions in Italy (the 2nd and 3rd Alessandro Esposito Youth Organ Competitions (Lucca, 2004–05), and the 1st Agati-Tronci International Organ Competition (Pistoia, 2008, the president of the jury was Gustav Leonhardt), he started an international career as concert soloist that brought him performing through Europe, U.S.A. and Brazil, where he also held some masterclasses.

In 2009, he started an intense activity as recording artist, producing various discs of harpsichord and organ music. Many of his recordings have been acclaimed by the international press (Musica, Diapason, BBC Music Magazine, Klassik.com, Fanfare among others).

As a composer, he published some of his works for the publisher Armelin of Padua.

Stella is a secular member of the Order of Servants of St. Mary, and since 2011 is the titular organist of the historical instruments in the Church of Santissima Annunziata, Florence.