Elena Bianchi is an Italian-Irish bassoonist and recorder player.

After obtaining the recorder diploma with Giorgio Pacchioni at the Conservatory of Bologna and having obtained a Master's degree in musicology with a thesis on F.A. Vallotti at the DAMS of the University of Bologna with Giuseppina La Face Bianconi, Elena studied baroque bassoon with Lorenzo Alpert at the Conservatoire Populaire de Musique in Geneva, graduating with special mention from the jury, and with Alberto Grazzi - whose assistant she became after graduation - at the Civica Scuola di Musica in Milan. During her studies she also took several courses with other renowned bassoonists such as Donna Agrell, Rhoda Patrick, Marc Vallon. Her interest in musical iconography led her to take lessons with Franca Camiz and Mariagrazia Carlone, while with Giorgio Pacchioni she continued to study historical counterpoint.

As a recorder player, she was part of the Renaissance music group Charivari Ensemble for several years, with which she performed in several Italian and foreign festivals and won the 20th International Stresa Competition. 

As a bassoonist Elena performs on dulcian and on for baroque, classical and romantic bassoon. In 1999 she won an audition for the European Union Baroque Orchestra, with which she performed with Ton Koopman and also as a soloist playing a concerto for bassoon by English composer Capel Bond under the direction of Roy Goodman.
 
Elena plays also as a soloist in Italy and abroad (all of Europe, USA, Canada, Mexico, Colombia, Egypt, Australia, Korea, Japan) with various early music ensembles including: Les Musicians du Prince (Cecilia Bartoli and Gianluca Capuano), the Aurora Ensemble (Enrico Gatti), Concerto Italiano (Rinaldo Alessandrini), La Risonanza (Fabio Bonizzoni). She has also collaborated with Tafelmusik, i Turchini, Ensemble Elyma, Accademia Bizantina (Ottavio Dantone),Orchester Academia Montis Regalis, Cantus Coelln, Concerto Koeln, Venice Baroque Orchestra, Balthasar-Neumann Ensemble, Il Complesso Barocco, Le Concert des Nations, I Barocchisti playing for conductors Jordi Savall, Sigiswald and Barthold Kuijken, Hidemi Suzuki, Alessandro De Marchi, Andrea Marcon, Thomas Hengelbrock, Alan Curtis, Fabio Bonizzoni, René Jacobs, Ivor Bolton, David Stern, Konrad Junghänel, Ton Koopman, Fabio Bonizzoni, Diego Fasolis, Alfredo Bernardini, Federico Maria Sardelli, Elisa Citterio in the most important halls and theaters and for the most prestigious festivals. 

She took part in many radio and discographic recordings for Opus 111, Deutsche Harmonia Mundi, Amadeus, Emi Classics, Tactus, Deusche Grammophon, L'Oiseau-Lyre, Brilliant Classics, Dynamic, Naxos, Glossa, ORF. 

Elena has taught baroque bassoon at the Conservatorio “A.Pedrollo” in Vicenza, at the Accademia Internazionale della Musica in Milano, at the HÉM in Geneva and in numerous courses and masterclasses, including Urbino Musica Antica, where she has been teaching from 2014 to 2019 early bassoon and chamber music. 
Her teaching activity - even as a chamber music teacher - has also been appreciated abroad: Elena has collaborated with the University of Austin (Texas) and has taught at the Tafelmusik Summer Institute (Toronto, Canada) and the Peninsula Summer Festival (Victoria, Australia). 
Elena teaches historical bassoon at the Hochschule für Musik und Darstellende Kunst in Frankfurt am Main (Germany) and at the Conservatorio Bruno Maderna in Cesena (Italy).