Giovanni Panebianco

President

Giovanni Panebianco, degree in economics and commerce with the highest marks and praise, is a Councillor of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers. Former officer of the special departments of the Guardia di Finanza, he taught at the Scuola di Polizia Tributaria, the Scuola Superiore del Ministero dell'Interno, the Università Roma III and the Università del Foro Italico. Lecturer in public information and communication law at the University of the Italian Chambers of Commerce. Former Secretary General of the Ministry of Culture, he has served as Director General of Tourism, the State Archives, the Gallerie Museum of the Academy of Venice, the Department of Drug Policies, and the Department of Sport of the Presidency of the Council of Ministers. He has worked in parliamentary bodies and led government delegations in European and international fora. He has been a board member of non-profit organizations, such as the "Venetian Heritage" Foundation recognized by UNESCO for the protection of the artistic and cultural heritage of Venice

Martine Bernheim Orsini

Representative of a well-known French family, led by her father Antoine, a banker famous for his commitment to Generali and for having accompanied the construction of some of the greatest French heritages, he has always supported art and culture. She is a collector and a patron, passionate about music; she promotes and organizes initiatives and events at national and international level, collaborating with important institutions and foundations. She is honorary president of the Charitable Foundation dedicated to his brother, the historian and economist Pierre-Antoine Bernheim. Married to Prince Domenico Orsini

Elvira Bonfanti

Publicist journalist, dance critic, former teacher of Dance’s history and mime at the Dams of Imperia/ University of Genoa, teaches History of Entertainment at the Accademia Ligustica di Belle Arti in Genoa. From 2005 to 2011 she was responsible for External Relations and Communication of the Fondazione Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa and currently for the Communication of the Palazzo Ducale Fondazione per la Cultura/Genova. she has written various essays on Futurist dance, on Artaud, Pier Paolo Koss and Russian Romantic ballet. And she has edited the Italian translation of” Les cocus du vieil art moderne” by Salvador Dalì.

Carlo Clavarino

Aon Business International Executive President. Enter the world of insurance brokerage at the age of 22. During his career he has made an important contribution to the development of this sector, promoting its knowledge and culture. In 2018 he joined the Executive Committee of the Aon Group, the steering committee that determines growth and business strategies globally. He is Honorary Consul of Norway in Milan. In 2010 he was awarded the Knighthood of Merit by the President of the Republic. He received an honorary degree in Social Sciences from the University of L'Aquila and an honorary master’s degree in Business Administration from CUOA Business School.

Nicola Costa

In 1963, after graduating in Economics, he joined the family business. In 1982 he was appointed President of the Costa Crociere, following a radical restructuring of the Costa Group. In the same years he took over the management of the Aquarium of Genoa, which would become one of the most known Genoese realities. Superintendent of the Teatro Comunale dell'Opera from 1997 to 2003, from the eighties he presided over the "Giovine Orchestra Genovese", one of the most important chamber music companies at the national level. From 2003 to 2018, together with Silvio Ferrari and Farida Simonetti, he was involved in the renovation of the Teatro Sociale of Camogli. He is currently Director of Costa Edutainment S.P.A, Vice President of Bioparco Foundation of Rome, Director of Costa Crociere S.P.A.

Enrico De Barbieri

Tourism and commerce entrepreneur, Honorary Consul of South Africa in Genoa (2003-2019), Ambassador of Genoa to the World since 2018, and Paganini Ambassador since 2022. Since 2022, he has served as President of the Genoa Provincial Federation of the Istituto del Nastro Azzurro. In 2024, he was elected President of the Rovereto Section of the National Carabinieri Association (Associazione Nazionale Carabinieri, ANC) and appointed Goodwill Ambassador of the Kenya National Paralympic Committee (K.N.P.C.). An honorary member of the Netaji Research Bureau and of the INTACH West Bengal and Calcutta Regional Chapters, he is President of the Catholic Artists Association of Genoa (Associazione Cattolica Artisti, As.C.Ar.) and WUSME Ambassador to the Principality of Monaco. President of the Lions Club Genova Albaro and a Melvin Jones Fellow (MJF), he is also a member of the Società Economica di Chiavari and belongs to numerous Italian and international associations in prominent positions. In 2025, he was appointed Ambassador of the Nastro Azzurro Institute to promote the organization’s image in Italy and abroad. The son of the great violinist Renato De Barbieri, he carries on and preserves his father’s legacy, so closely connected to that of Paganini and the Premio Paganini, which Renato De Barbieri helped to found.

Elisabetta Garetti

At a very young age, Elisabetta Garetti won the audition and subsequently the competition for the position of Concertmaster of the First Violins with the Haydn Orchestra of Bolzano. In 1989, she became Concertmaster of the First Violins of the Arturo Toscanini Symphony Orchestra in Parma, an institution with which she collaborated continuously for more than ten years, performing as a soloist and conductor of chamber ensembles and taking part in numerous important tours in some of the most prestigious concert halls in Italy and abroad. As Concertmaster, she has been invited as a guest by leading Italian and French musical institutions. She is regularly invited to serve on the international juries of some of the world’s most prestigious violin competitions. In 2002, she was awarded the prestigious Minerva Prize, an honor bestowed upon women distinguished in the fields of knowledge and culture who serve as exemplary female role models through their professional achievements and the positive values they embody.

Luigi Giachino

With a diploma in piano and composition, he furthered his studies with Vincenzo Vitale and Giorgio Ferrari, obtaining a CEE specialisation in composition, arrangement and conducting of extracurricular music. His works, which range from chamber music to symphonic and operatic repertoire, are regularly performed in concerts and recordings. He was a fellow of the Bogliasco Foundation for the melodrama La casa del nonno and won a scholarship from the Direzione Generale SIAE in 1993, becoming Carlo Savina's assistant. He has composed ballets and stage music for organisations such as RAI, TorinoSpettacoli, the Ministry of the Environment and other prestigious patrons. Active as a lecturer at the Universities of Turin and Genoa from 2004 to 2007, he has collaborated with numerous cultural organisations in Italy and abroad. Since 1990, he has held the chair of Composition at the Conservatory of Genoa, where he was elected Director for the three-year period 2024-2027, and has published with leading publishers such as Curci, Warner and Sonzogno.

Francesco Micheli

After an intense management activity in the financial and insurance sector, he was among the first to identify high technology, telecommunications, and genomics, as sectors with strong and strategic potential, creating successful startups, including Fastweb and Genextra. He is a member of the Board of Directors of various companies and of cultural and philanthropic organizations, including Fondazione Teatro alla Scala. Former President of the Conservatory of Music in Milan, he has produced three editions of the "Umberto Micheli International Piano Competition". Collector, patron, is currently President of the Association Ferrara Music.

Pursuant to Article 14, paragraph 4, of the Award Regulations, a representative of the ‘Amici di Paganini’ Association may attend Committee meetings without voting rights. 

Michele Trenti

Graduated in conducting at the Hochschule für Musik in Graz (Austria), he is guitarist, conductor, composer, arranger and music operator. From 1988 to 2004 he was artistic director of the Associazione Filarmonica Genovese. In 1989 he founded the Youth Philharmonic Orchestra of Genoa becoming its Principal Conductor. In 2003 he oversaw the project funded by the European Commission for the international presentation of "Genoa European Capital of Culture 2004", conducting a tour in the capitals of the enlargement countries of the European Union, and a New Year’s Eve concert at the Italian Embassy in Budapest. He is CEO of the Philarmonia record company, professor at the University of Genoa of the course of Elements of music and theory of rhythm (degree course in Motor Science), Artist of Liguria 2012, member of the Academy of Sciences and Letters of Genoa. He is currently President of the Associazione Amici di Paganini di Genova