Federico Orsolino was born on January 1, 1918, at Genoa, Italy. He began his guitar studies when he was fourteen, later on he perfected his technique under the guidance of Maestro Carlo Palladino at Genoa. The Second World War interrupted his studies. 1946 Orsolino resumed his artistic activity and pursued his studies with unwavering perseverance in order to enirich and refine his innate talents for interpretation.
1948 he made his concert debut at Modena. Afterwards he gave recitals at Gqnoa, Milan, Bologna, Chiavari and in many other cities where he was wrrmly praised by the public as well as by the critics He disposes 'of a dazzling technical elegance which will, however, never sink into dull acrobatic exercises. Thus he will execute the most arduous passages with brilliant, yet easy fluency whereas his warm and caressing touch (without finger nails) enables him to render the camtilene passages with lyric delicacy.
His interpretations are the result of serious and intelligent research work: following faithfully the creative idea of the various composers they are correct in technique and style. Yet they come forth from his knowing hands with such spontaneous facility that he will succeed in enchanting even the most pretentious audience.
Federico Orsolino is particulary known as the promoter of the heptacordlic guitar (instrument with 7 strings on the key board) about which he has written several articles for the “Arte Chitarristica”, a review which is issued in Modena. He is even willing to appear publicly in order to explain his theories and to confirm them.
Orsolino has written several precious compositions both for the sixstringed and the sevemstringed guitar and he has compiled a ,,Guitar Method” for beginners, with special didactic ideas of his own. Masterly inspiration and melodious conception are the fundamental qualities of most of his compositions, which reveal the noble and generous spirit of the artist. His transcriptions, too, are of high artistic value and have nothimg to do with those horrible distortions of original texts which cannot but deform and falsify the primary essence of a composition. Orsolino's transcriptions, however, are ingenious elaborations of the original texts, skillful adaptions to the guitar, based on consciousness and faithful respect for the face of a composition as well as for its fundamental thought. Orsolino's ,,Guitar Method” is a skilful modernisation of the ancient Italian and Spanish methods and ought to be studied by every youmg guitarrist.
Actually Federico Orsolino dedicates himself chiefly to composing and instructing and he is very successful with (his young and seriously working pupils who meed for their study the same technical and musical inspirations which are necessary for tihe study of the piano and the violin or any other instrument.
(Giovanni Murtula, Genoa May 1962, Musikverlag V.Hladky, Wien)