Paolo Angeli

Paolo Angeli is considered one of the most important innovators on the international music scene. Originally from Palau (at the northern tip of Sardinia), he grew up with his gaze turned toward the sea. Starting from the traditional instrument, thanks to a decade-long apprenticeship with master Giovanni Scanu and the influences of 20th-century avant-garde visionaries, he created the prepared Sardinian guitar, a true orchestra-instrument.

Since the mid-1990s, he has embraced influences from free jazz, folk noise, minimal pop, contemporary flamenco, Arabic music, and post-rock, reachin at a synthesis language that brings Sardinian traditional music into the contemporary world. Improvisation is the driving force behind Paolo Angeli’s 30-year career, not only as a means of connecting and developing compositional structures but also as a practice of communication among musicians from diverse latitudes and musical cultures.

His journey reached a milestone in 2018 with a performance at Carnegie Hall in New York, cementing his place among the world’s leading “innovators with roots” and defining a groundbreaking path for Mediterranean avant-garde music.

Paolo Angeli has released 13 solo albums and contributed to over 50 records. Since 2005, he lives in Spain and regularly tours the most prestigious festivals and theaters across all continents. He has improvised and collaborated with hundreds of musicians, including Pat Metheny – who has used a replica of Paolo Angeli’s Guitar since 2003-  Fred Frith, Iva Bittová, Hamid Drake, Evan Parker, Antonello Salis, Jon Rose, Iosonouncane, and many others.