Felix Ayo Losada (1 July 1933 – 24 September 2023) was a Spanish-born Italian violinist. He was a founder of the Italian ensemble I Musici and of the Quartetto Beethoven di Roma. He played in major concert halls of the world as a soloist and especially as a chamber musician. In a career that spanned more than fifty years, he was a prolific recording artist, and an academic teacher.
His 1955 recording of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons with I Musici became a best seller, was awarded the Grand Prix du disque, and has remained a reference recording.
Life and career
Félix Ayo Losada was born in Sestao,[1] on 1 July 1933.[2] An uncle was a violinist, and he began musical studies at the Municipal Conservatory of Sestao at age six.[3] He continued his studies at the Municipal Conservatory of Bilbao, completing with honours at age 14.[1] At age 16, he achieved the first prize of the Ibáñez de Betolaza Competition in Bilbao, with a scholarship to expand his studies,[2] which he continued in Paris, Siena and Rome,[2][1] where he studied at the Conservatorio di Musica Santa Cecilia with Rèmy Principe. He became an Italian citizen.[4]
In 1949 Ayo first played as a soloist with the Bilbao Orkestra Sinfonikoa, subsequently working with the orchestra for 60 years.[2] In 1951, at the age of 18, he was a founder of the I Musici chamber orchestra, formed by students and former students of Rémy Principe, and remained their first violin soloist for sixteen years.[1][2] Their 1955 recording of Vivaldi's The Four Seasons meant a breakthrough for the ensemble,[5] becoming a bestseller. They played and recorded Baroque music before early music ensembles turned to the repertoire.[6]
In 1970 Ayo formed the Quartetto Beethoven di Roma piano quartet,[1][3] with Alfonso Ghedin as violist, Mihai Dancila as cellist, and pianist Carlo Bruno,[7] because he wanted to turn to more Romantic repertoire.[3]
The Quartetto Beethoven di Roma, with innumerable tours in Europe, Russia, USA, Canada, South America, Australia, New Zealand, Japan, etc., and a continuous presence at international festivals, has been regarded as one of the finest chamber ensembles in the world.[2] The quartet made many recordings of piano quartets by Mozart, Beethoven, Schumann, Brahms, Fauré, and Mahler, among others,[4] and was awarded the Premio Discografico della Critica Italiana. The players were credited with communicating in "the unified precision and purpose of long association".[7]
Teaching
Ayo taught at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia,[1][2][6] and held master classes in Denmark, Germany, Italy and Spain, Australia, Canada, the United States and Japan. He was a juror for international music competitions.[1][2][6]
Personal life
Ayo died on 24 September 2023, at age 90.[1][2][4][6]<
Recordings
Ayo had a vast discography.[8] He recorded Vivaldi's The Four Seasons with I Musici in 1955,[5] remaining a reference recording.[4] A reviewer of the CD reissue noted in 1988, that they displayed an unusual relaxed freshness, and described Ayo's playing as lyrical.[9] The recording, marked by "unprecedented tranquility",[5] was awarded a Grand Prix du Disque.[4] He made a second recording of it with the group, now in stereo, of which 10 million copies were sold.[3] With I Musici he recorded more of Vivaldi's violin concertos[4]Corelli's concerti grossi, and works by Albinoni and Geminiani, among others.[4] He recorded for several record labels, such as Decca, EMI Classics, Dynamic and Philips.[10]
Ayo's recordings also included Bach's Brandenburg Concertos,[6][10] and Bach's works for violin solo, the sonatas and partitas.[4] He said about the solo violin recordings: "It's the best thing I've ever done in my life and what justifies it".[3]
He recorded eight violin sonatas by Giovanni Battista Viotti with Corrado De Bernart, described by a reviewer as compositions of "grandeur, command and virtuosity", with a "compact command of lyricism and his gift for gracious turns of phrase"; he notes Ayo's "sweetly focused tone", summarising: "Here, in short, Viotti sings."[11] Ayo's late recordings include works by Tartini, Mendelssohn and Turina.[1]
Awards
Ayo's recordings won international recognition, winning many prizes including the Preis der Deutschen Schallplattenkritik, the Edison Prize, the Mar del Plata prize,[1] the Grand Prix du disque for his now historic version of The Four Seasons,[6] and the prize awarded by Italian Record Critics for the Beethoven piano quartets. He was awarded the Premio Roma and the Premio San Michele for his dedication to music.[1]
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