Michael Barimo

Education

Michael Barimo attended Columbia College of Columbia University in New York City from 2002 to 2006, graduating with two Bachelor of Arts"s in Italian Literature and Anthropology.

Career

Raised in Winter Park, Florida, Michael began his career as a singer and whistler as a child, performing with a boys" choir and touring as Amahl in Gian Carlo Menotti"s one-act opera Amahl and the Night Visitors. In the first grade, Michael was awarded "best whistler" of his class, foreshadowing what would come in his musical career. At the age of 11, Michael appeared on the Nickelodeon show Figure lieutenant Out and whistled an aria from Faust.

His most well known whistled arias are: The Vengeance Aria (Mozart) The Jewel Song (Gounod) and Mercè Dilette Amiche (Verdi). and Connecticut.

On March 30, 2003, while a freshman at Columbia, Michael appeared as the musical guest on the Late Show with David Letterman. Michael has performed at Weill Recital Hall at Carnegie Hall with the IBLA Foundation and was presented the Vincenzo Bellini award., he was presented with an award by the Licia Albanese Puccini Foundation in 2002, 2003, 2004 and 2006 and performed at their annual gala held at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center.

On November 11, 2008, he performed for Ten O"clock Classics at their gala at the Russian Tea Room in New New York In March 2008, he performed for the Ten O"Clock Classics at The Cutting Room in New York City.

Michael has been profiled in The New York Times, America Oggi, The Sydney Morning Herald, National Geographic World, Sports Illustrated, The Winter Park Observer, British Broadcasting Corporation News Online, NYC24, The Villages Daily Sun, In summer 2007, Michael modeled clothing for IO DONNA, the style magazine of Corriere dPeople from Winter Park, Floridaella Sera in an issue profiling "Italiani d"America".

Now Michael has a rock band, called Di Bari. Di Bari performs in festivals all over the United States of America and has a following in Latin America. Recently Di Bari has played New York City venues: The Highline Ballroom, Webster Hall, Tammany Hall and The Knitting Room.

Notable performances:

November 2002, 03, 04, 06: Puccini Foundation, Alice Tully Hall

November 2002 NIAF Annual Gala, Washington, District of Columbia September 2003

March 2003, 04: IBLA at Carnegie Hall

March 2007: Il Circolo of the Palm Beaches

March 2007: Pucciana Exhibit Opening for Giulio Bellutti, New York University Casa Italiana

April 2007: Loew"s Portofino Bay Hotel Harbor Nights

March 2008: The Cutting Room

November 2008: Ten O"Clock Classics Gala, Russian Tea Room.

Achievements

• Michael won several of the national whistling competitions held by the IWC in Louisburg, North Carolina as a teen. Upon winning the grand title of World Champion at the Millennium Championship of Musical Whistling in Edmonton, Alberta in 1999, he began performing around the world, whistling operatic arias, particularly those with fast coloratura. He won the 2002 Sergio Franchi scholarship from National Italian American Foundation (NIAF) and performed at galas in District of Columbia On November 30, 2007, Michael performed a one-man concert for the Italian Legion of Merit. He can be heard on British Broadcasting Corporation"s animated series for children, 3rd & Bird: "The colourful pre-school animation series, which features the bird-whistling talents of world musical whistling champion Michael Barimo, continues this week with a rollercoaster of an episode." November 2007: Italian Legion of Merit Gala.