MUSICAL BAND OF THE REVENUE GUARD CORPS

conductor Maestro Lt. Col. Leonardo Laserra Ingrosso

The Musical Band of the Revenue Guard Corps was officially founded in 1926, bringing together the different bands which since 1883 had been established in many departments of the Body, into a single instrumental structure. It is now a stable arts complex composed of 102 elements, which come from the various Italian conservatories and are carefully selected through a national competition.

During its long and intense concert career, the band has performed at the most prestigious Italian musical institutions such as the Accademia Nazionale of Santa Cecilia, the Scala of Milan, the San Carlo of Naples, the Teatro dell’Opera of Rome, the Massimo of Palermo and the Fenice of Venice. The concerts held in the Basilica of Massenzio in Rome for years, have become historic. In 2007 and in 2008 its performances were included in the Verdi Festival of Parma program.

The Band of the Corps has repeatedly collaborated with some of the most important Italian and international symphony orchestras, such as the RAI Orchestra of Rome, the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino Orchestra - with whom in 1991 it performed in a worldwide transmitted concert conducted by Zubin Metha - and that of the 1993 Spoleto Festival dei 2Mondi of Spoleto, where together with the Choir of Washington, participated in the closing concert of the Festival - which was also broadcast worldwide – conducted by Steven Mercurio.

The band has made numerous and successful tours abroad, in Germany, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Belgium and France. In 2001, 2002 and 2007 it was invited to New York for the celebration of Columbus Day, where in 2002 it held an acclaimed concert at Ground Zero, the symbol of national American consciousness where up to then only the Boston Symphony Orchestra had performed. In November 2005, it obtained extraordinary success in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates, holding a concert in the presence of the highest offices of the UAE state.

The blending qualities, the sound quality and the sensitivity of interpretation make the band one of the most prestigious at an international level and ensure the continued success of audiences and critics. Its vast repertoire, including original pieces and transcriptions, ranges from early to contemporary music and can be considered amongst the most significant and complete on the subject.

The Band of the Revenue Guard Corps has been conducted by the Maestro, Lieutenant Colonel Leonardo Laserra Ingrosso since April 16, 2002.

Leonardo Laserra Ingrosso, born in Avetrana, in the province of Taranto, studied music while attending university, majoring in Choral Music and Choral Conducting at the Conservatory "Gioacchino Rossini" in Pesaro; in Composition at the Conservatory "Niccolò Piccinni" in Bari; in Instrumentation for Band

and Orchestra Conducting at the Conservatory "Alfredo Casella" in L’Aquila. From 1991 to 1996 he was professor of Composition at the Musical Lyceum "Giovanni Paisiello" of Taranto and has performed several times as conductor and piano accompanist in musical groups of various kinds. Winner of the National Competition for the teaching of Harmony and Counterpoint in the State Conservatories of Music, in 2002 he became Master Conductor of the Band Revenue Guard Corps. He is regularly invited as a juror for important national and international competitions, including the International Competition for Original Compositions for Bands of Novi Ligure, and from 2004 to 2007 he was part of the committee for the selection of candidates from the Academy of Song for the Festival of Sanremo. In July 2006, he performed a series of concerts in the United States as guest conductor of the Atlantic Brass Band of New Jersey.