He graduated cum laude from Yale University in economics and political science and went on to receive graduate degrees in music from Southern Methodist University and the Accademia Chigiana in Italy.

Mr. Wissman has continued to be actively involved in music, having served on the boards of several arts institutions. He is the Chairman of the Del Sole Foundation for the Arts and Humanities which supports performing arts organizations, talent and events around the globe.

In addition to founding Domus Artium in Rome, Mr. Wissman founded the Festival del Sole in Cortona, Italy, Festival Napa Valley in California as well as festivals in Singapore, Palm Springs, and Spain, which have all celebrated the performing, visual and culinary arts.

As part of his work in the arts, Barrett Wissman has collaborated with such great artists and luminaries as Robert Redford, Jeremy Irons, Placido Domingo, Sophia Loren, Anthony Hopkins, Sting, Renee Fleming, John Malkovich, Robert De Niro, Joshua Bell and many others as a producer and collaborator

Mr. Wissman has been given the honor of being a Honorary Citizen of Italy or “Cittadino Onorario” by the city of Cortona and has received an award from the Italian American Association as one of the most influential Americans in business in Italy for his accomplishments there by the Mayor of Florence and later the Prime Minister of Italy, Matteo Renzi.

Most recently, Mr. Wissman co-founded the W Preserve in Montana with Nina Kotova to create a haven for performers, visual artists, writers and thinkers alike. Against the spectacular backdrop of the Beartooth mountains and millions of acres of national forest in south central Montana, W Preserve is a retreat where artists can meet, collaborate, exchange ideas and perform in the midst of untouched natural beauty.