bio

Federico Ortica studied Percussion Instruments and graduated in Electronic Music and New Technologies. He also attended the Sonology Course at the Royal Conservatoire of The Hague in the Netherlands. He has participated in numerous masterclasses with Andrew Bentley, Bob Ostertag, Pierre Hébert, Richard Barret, Domenico Sciajno, Francis Dhomont, Poul Berg, Peter Evans, Trevor Wishart, Joel Ryan, and Kaija Saariaho.
His works have been performed at numerous international festivals, including Emufest, Hangart Fest, Essential Experiences, Festival delle Colline Torinesi, Teatri di Vetro, Short Theatre, Triennale di Milano, Teatro dell’Arte di Milano, MACRO Roma, Festival dei Due Mondi, Ravenna Festival, CRT Milano, Immaginario Festival, Contemporanea Festival, Fondazione Volume Roma, Carrozzeria N.O.T, Zoom Festival, PimOff, LPM Live Performing Meeting, MUSE (IT), New York Electroacoustic Music Festival, ICMC International Computer Music Conference (GR), Dublin Dance Festival (IR), Tipperary Dance Festival (IR), Congreso Internacional de Ciencia y Tecnología Musical (AR), Blue Pluriel Centre Culturel de Trégueux (FR), La Briqueterie-Langueux (FR), Fringe Festival (IR), Museo della Montagna di Torino, and MUSE in Trento, Festival de Marseille (FR).
He collaborates regularly as a sound artist with the artistic research group “Opera Bianco” (IT). As a sound designer, he has worked for events such as the Qatar Olympic Games, Asian Cup, Evotek F1, Fondazione Giordano, and IBM. At the core of their research is the relationship between sound and various art forms, working on the interaction between acoustic instruments and electronic processing, with a particular focus on improvisation. Their installations are based on the creation of soundscapes using materials such as steel and wood for sound diffusion, establishing connections between the resonance of the object and the surrounding natural landscape. This approach creates a close bond between geophony, soundscapes, and synthetic sound.
With Antonio Brunori of PEFC Italia and Andrea Marchi, he conceived and curated the multimedia installation “The Tree Room,” which sonifies scientific data from the project “Tr.a.ce.” in collaboration with the Euro-Mediterranean Center on Climate Change.
He received the Gold Prize at the European Design Awards 2019 for the best digital installation in Europe with the “Resonantrees” project. He also won the ADI Design Index Innovation Award 2019 at the Museum of Science and Technology in Milan and was honored with the “Premio dei Premi” for Italian Innovation 2020 by the President of the Italian Republic, Sergio Mattarella.
In 2021, the installation “Resonantrees” was selected by Stefano Boeri as the opening installation of the Forestami project at the Super Salone in Milan 2021. He also received the “Special Mention for Irish Short” at the Dublin International Film Festival for the documentary “The First Was a Boy.” In 2026, he composed the music and sound design for Leather Jacket by Northern Irish choreographer Oona Doherty