Born in Lugano in 1946, Chiara Banchini is one of the great interpreters of baroque music. After completing her studies with Corrado Romano at the Conservatoire de Musique in Geneva, where she graduated with the Prix de virtuosité, she pursued her soloist studies in The Hague. Her acquaintance with Nikolaus Harnoncourt and Sigiswald Kuijken fired her enthusiasm for baroque and historical performance arts. At the same time, she performed with the Ensemble Contrechamps, and worked as a composer of contemporary music. In 1981, Chiara Bianchini founded Ensemble 415, which is regarded as one of the references and most prestigious European groups for 17th-18th century repertoire, releasing numerous award-winning recordings of original historical instruments until 2012. As a baroque violinist, conductor, and lecturer, she has worked with renowned orchestras, including the Theresia Orchestra, La Chappelle Royale and the Camerata Bern. She also taught at the Centre de musique ancienne in Geneva and, until 2010, at the Schola Cantorum in Basel.