Biography
Born in Nice to Sicilian and Spanish parents, Patrick Messina began his career in the United States, more specifically in New York in 1996, when he won First Prize in the East and West Artists International Auditions, enabling him to perform in recital at Carnegie Hall.
One of France's leading clarinetists, Patrick Messina has won international acclaim for his captivating interpretations and recognizable sound, which infuse his singularity across a wide repertoire.
Parallel to his solo activities, he worked for six years with New York's Metropolitan Opera, under the direction of James Levine, Valery Gergiev and Leonard Slatkin.
In 2003, he became 1st solo clarinet of the Orchestre National de France under Kurt Masur. A musician much appreciated by the greatest conductors, Patrick Messina is regularly invited as principal clarinet by prestigious ensembles such as the Royal Concertgebouw Orchestra in Amsterdam and the Chicago Symphony Orchestra.
He appears as soloist with Riccardo Muti, Bernard Haitink, Tan Dun, Daniele Gatti, Yehudi Menuhin, Kristjan Järvi, Jaap Van Zweden, Sascha Goetzel, Anton Nanut, John Axelrod, Josep Vicent and Trevor Pinnock, and with the Houston Symphony Orchestra, Orchestre National de France, Orchestre de Cannes, Orchestre de Chambre de Paris, Orchestre des Nations, Orchestre National d'Ile-de-France, Orchestre de chambre de Toulouse, Incheon Philharmonic Orchestra, National Philharmonic Orchestra of Ukraine, Tokyo Kioi Sinfonietta and Zurich Chamber Orchestra.
His name is on the bill of the greatest festivals: Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Gstaad, Spoleto, Savannah, Mitte Europa, Pablo Casals, Les Flâneries Musicales, Menton, Besançon, Schleswig-Holstein, Berlioz, Pontlevoy, Wissembourg, Istanbul, Santa Fe.
His partners include Jean-Yves Thibaudet, Roger Muraro, Garrick Ohlsson, Haochen Zhang, Fabrizio Chiovetta, Simone Dinnerstein, Michel Beroff, Menahem Pressler, Jean-Marc Luisada, Jean-François Heisser, Kian Soltani, Edita Gruberova, Tatjana Vassiljeva, Renaud Capuçon, Xavier Phillips, Henri Demarquette, Gautier Capuçon, the Philharmonia Quartett Berlin, the Quatuors Debussy, Diotima, Carducci, Fine Arts, Elysées, Parker, Vogler, Aron and the Beaux-Arts Trio.
Patrick Messina records for the Aparté Music label. His Kaleidoscopic CD devoted to Arvo Pärt, Jaan Raats and Henryk Gorecki was awarded a “Choc” by Classica and 5 stars by Pizzicato magazine.
His previous album, dedicated to Robert Schumann, was also hailed by the critics (5 de Diapason, 5 de Musica).
Prior to this, we should mention his remarkable Mozart album released by Harmonia Mundi, featuring the famous Clarinet Concerto accompanied by the Orchestre National de France, conducted by Riccardo Muti.
What if, quite simply, this was one of the greatest references of the Mozart Concerto? It's up to each and every one of us to judge: as far as we're concerned, it's a done deal. - Concertonet
Equally active in the field of contemporary music, he is notably the dedicatee of Bechara El-Khoury's Clarinet Concerto, which he recorded in 2012 for the Naxos label with the Orchestre de Chambre de Paris.
In addition, his interest in world music and improvisation has led him to collaborate with artists such as Ira Coleman, Mark Feldman, Lionel Loueke, Vincent Segal, Chico Pinheiro and producer Robert Sadin. With the latter, he took part in Placido Domingo's recording “Encanto del mar” released by Sony and Lionel Loueke's album The Journey (Aparté, 2018).
Patrick Messina began learning the clarinet with his father, then at the CRR de Nice in Claude Crousier's class. He continued his studies at the CNSMD in Paris with Guy Deplus and Michel Arrignon, at the Cleveland Institute of Music with Franklin Cohen and at Mannes College in New York with Ricardo Morales.
Since 2011, he has been a teacher at the Ecole Normale “Alfred Cortot” in Paris.
In June 2016, he was appointed Honorary Fellow of the Royal Academy of Music in London, where he is also a visiting professor.
Awards and honours
- 1st Price – International Competition East & West Artists – New York, USA (1998)
- 1st Price – International Competition Heida Hermanns – Connecticut, USA (1996)
- 1st Price - Houston Symphony Competition / Ima Hogg – Houston, USA (1996)
- Winner of the Yehudi Menuhin Foundation (1991)
Pictures
Videos
Season 2023-2024
July 23 - 24, 2024
Bauges on Music
Bauges – France
With Quatuor Hermès
July 31, 2024
Nice Classic Festival
Nice – France
With Jean-Baptiste Fonlupt
August 18 - 20, 2024
Borgo in Musica Festival
Borgo – France
August 23-24, 2024
Quincena Musical de San Sebastián Festival
San Sebastiàn – France
With Isabel Villanueva et Philippe Bianconi
August 26 - 31, 2024
Caunes-Minervois Festival
Caunes-Minervois – France
September 21 - 22, 2024
Maison Francis Poulenc - Heritage Day
Noizay – France
October 6, 2024
L’entrepôt
Paris – France
With Virginie Constant et Jean-Baptiste Fonlupt
October 28 - 29, 2024
Royal Academy of Music
London – England
December 27 - 31, 2024 / January 13 - 17, 2025
Neubrandenburg Philharmonic
Neustrelitz – Germany
English 
Français