At the age of five, Accursio Antonio Cortese began studying music and the organ with his grandfather, D. Imbornone.At the V. Bellini Conservatory (now A. Scarlatti) in Palermo, he earned a Piano Diploma with O. Buogoand a Bachelor’s and Master’s Degree in Composition with honors and special mention under M. Betta. Heearned a Master’s Degree in Composition with I. Fedele at the Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia with tophonors. He specialized in film music composition with L. Bacalov and opera with G. Battistelli, both at theAccademia Chigiana in Siena. He studied conducting with C. Caruso, choral music and choral conducting withM. Ghiglione. He furthered his knowledge of jazz music by attending international seminars in Siena and atRoccella Jazz. He has a substantial catalog of symphonic, chamber, sacred, operatic, and film compositions.His music has been performed in Italy, the USA, Argentina, Finland, Russia, Switzerland, France, and Romania,in pr