Pietro Grossi

Pietro Grossi was born in Venice on April 15, 1917, and died in Florence on February 21, 2002. He studied cello and composition at the Conservatorio di Musica in Bologna and became principal cellist of the Maggio Musicale Fiorentino at age 19, holding the position for thirty years. Alongside his performance career, he taught cello at the Conservatorio Luigi Cherubini in Florence for four decades. During this time, Grossi also began composing orchestral and chamber music, before turning his attention toward electronic and electroacoustic music in the 1960s.

In 1963, Grossi founded the Studio di Fonologia Musicale di Firenze, one of Italy’s earliest electronic music studios, and in 1965 he established the first chair of electronic music at the Conservatorio Cherubini. His work at the Olivetti-General Electric research center in Pregnana Milanese marked a significant development, where he programmed the GE-115 mainframe to perform transcriptions of classical works by Bach and Paganini as well as original computer-generated compositions. Supported by General Electric and Olivetti, this collaboration highlighted the promotional value of computer music as a symbol of technological progress. The GE-115 Computer Concerto, recorded in 1967 and distributed by Olivetti to employees, showcased early computer music created through these programs developed at the Florence studio.

Throughout the 1970s and 1980s, Grossi developed the TAU2 polyphonic synthesizer and TAUMUS software, enabling real-time sound synthesis and automated composition at CNUCE-CNR in Pisa. He also explored telematic concerts, connecting cities through live data transmission. In the mid-1980s, he expanded into generative computer graphics with his concept of “HomeArt,” emphasizing personal creation free from traditional artistic judgments. By the 1990s, Grossi shared his graphic software online, continuing his commitment to making creative technology accessible to a wider audience.