Antonio Forcione

Antonio Forcione
Antonio Forcione during the International Guitar Foundation & Festivals London Guitar Summit 2015 Contemporary Acoustic course at Kings Place
Background information
Born	Molise, Italy
Occupation(s)	Musician
Instruments	Guitar
Labels	Naim
Associated acts	Eduardo Niebla, Adriano Adewale
Website	www.antonioforcione.com

Antonio Forcione is an Italian guitarist. He has released 18 albums of largely original material and won several awards. Forcione tours internationally in festivals and for charity performances and masterclass workshops.

Forcione was born in a village on the Adriatic shore of Molise in southern Italy. He first drew public attention at 13 when he toured Italy with his own band as a guitarist, mandolinist, and drummer. A few years later he obtained a diploma in art and sculpture from the Art Institute in Ancona where he also studied percussion. For a further two years he studied harmony and mime in Rome, before moving to London in 1983. Unable to speak English, he initially made ends meet by busking in the streets of London's Covent Garden. Within two months he had won an award which led to a BBC television appearance before being whisked off to open for the rock band Barclay James Harvest on a European tour, culminating in a concert at Wembley Arena.

Since his first European tour he has collaborated with many artists, touring the world and performing both solo and with other artists in duo, trio or quartet. He has performed or recorded with artists such as Bobby McFerrin, Phil Collins, Jools Holland, Zucchero, Pino Daniele, Charlie Haden, John McLaughlin, Trilok Gurtu, Steps Ahead, Leo Kottke, Biréli Lagrène, and Eduardo Niebla. Other groups have included the Antonio Forcione Quartet, and duos with Brazilian percussionist Adriano Adewale. His latest group is AKA, a trio with Seiku Keita and Adriano Adewale.