Antonio Cortesi obtained, with full marks, a master degree in cello performance at the B. Maderna Conservatory of Cesena under the guidance of Professor Vincenzo Taroni and a master degree in chamber music with full marks and honors in the class of Paolo Chiavacci. Thanks to the Erasmus Project he studied for several months in the Conservatorio Superior de Musica Manuel Castillo de Sevilla. He attended courses and master classes with some of the most remarkable cellists of our time like Amit Peled, Hans Jorgen Jensen, Raphael Wallfisch, Hanna Roberts, Natalia Gutman, Giovanni Gnocchi and Francesco Dillon.In 2009 he won a music competition and a scholarship organized by the Teatro Rossini Foundation playing the Elegy by G.Fauré. He currently collaborates with several musical organizations as an orchestral player (Orchestra Arcangelo Corelli (as principal cello), World Youth Orchestra, Young European Musician Orchestra, Orchestra Giovanile Luigi Cherubini, Fondazione del festival pianistico di Brescia, Orchestra città di Ferrara, Young Talents Orchestra E&Y, Roma Tre Orchestra and Promusica orchestra of Pistoia) and many chamber music ensembles. In 2012, as a result of an audition, Antonio has played in the National Orchestra of Conservatories for the biennium 2012-2014 taking part in many concerts in Italy and abroad. In the same year he won a scholarship to work as cello section leader in the orchestra of the Collegium Musicum of the University of Bologna. In 2014 after winning an audition he performed the F. J. Haydn C Major Cello Concerto with the B. Maderna Conservatory Orchestra. He joined like active participant the Forum de Violonchelo de Espana, International Masterclasses Apeldoorn, Cello Akademie Rutesheim 2017 and the 29th Edition of London Masterclasses. While attending his master degree he won a scholarship from the Rotary Club as the best graduate of the year. He has performed chamber music in Netherlands, Slovenia, France, Spain and Czech Republic. During the year 2015/2016 he took part to a course lead by Francesco Dillon in Rome. He won the 2nd Prize in the chamber music category during Premio Crescendo 2018 in Florence (piano-cello duo). He is currently attending a course at the Accademia Pianistica di Imola with professor Orfeo Mandozzi and in Pinerolo Academy with Marianne Chen. He is also active in other projects of songwriting and popular music. From 2017 he has been collaborating with the author Giuliano Scabia for the play “L'Azione Perfetta”. He plays a cello built by Custode Marcucci in 1920 offered by Fondazione Teatro Rossini.