Geneva

Baroque bassoon

Guided by its professor, Giulia Genini, a renowned soloist and chamber musician, the baroque bassoon class at the Haute école de musique de Genève (HEM) supports its students as they learn the main repertoires (from the Renaissance to the 18th century) and understand how they evolved over the centuries. 

The baroque bassoon class at the Haute école de musique de Genève (HEM) prepares its students for a multifaceted career in music, ranging from the interpretation of the soloist repertoire to that of polyphonic and orchestral works, but also to the teaching and passing on of knowledge.

The class puts a particularly extensive collection of instruments at its students’ disposal, in all their forms and with all their ranges, from dulcians to the classic bassoon, via the baroque bassoon. Learning to construct reeds is an integral part of the course.

Our students are encouraged to take part in numerous activities arranged by the HEM’s department of music of the past, which regularly invites eminent performers and researchers from all over the world to give Masterclasses and seminars. The goal is to encourage the development of a thoughtful approach, with a view to achieving a deeper contextualization of the practice and repertoire of their instrument.

The baroque bassoon class regularly collaborates with the HEM’s other departments, and with internationally acclaimed Swiss ensembles, on ‘side-by-side’ artistic projects, which constitute a real gateway to the professional world. 

Teachers

Giulia Genini

Professor of Baroque Bassoon

Born in Lugano, Switzerland, Giulia Genini began her recorder studies at the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana with Giorgio Merati. Her interest in early music and period instruments led her to Basel, where she continued her studies at the Schola Cantorum Basiliensis with Conrad Steinmann. At the same time, she began studying the dulcian and baroque bassoon with Josep Borras and Donna Agrell. In 2008, she received her recorder diploma (performance and pedagogy) with distinction, and in 2010, her Master's degree in historical performance practice in baroque bassoon and dulcian, also with distinction. She performs as a recorder player and bassoonist with numerous international ensembles and works with renowned conductors. As a soloist, she has performed with the Venice Baroque Orchestra under the direction of Andrea Marcon at the Menuhin Festival Gstaad, Schleswig Holstein Musikfestival, Settimane Musicali di Ascona, Geneva Victoria Hall, Carinthischer Sommer Festival Ossiach, and New York's Carnegie Hall. Since 2015, she has often been invited as a guest coach at the Conservatorio della Svizzera Italiana in Lugano, coordinating wind sections for orchestral projects on historical performance practice. She also works there as a co-director of studies in the field of performance. She is a founding member and artistic director of the ensemble Concerto Scirocco as well as the artistic director of the Festival CaronAntica. Learn more about Giulia Genini.

Giulia Genini

Departments and associated courses