Joseph Celli (born March 19, 1944) is an American musician and composer specializing in contemporary and improvised music for

oboe The oboe ( ) is a type of double reed woodwind instrument. Oboes are usually made of wood, but may also be made of synthetic materials, such as plastic, resin, or hybrid composites. The most common oboe plays in the treble or soprano range. A ...

and

English horn The cor anglais (, or original ; plural: ''cors anglais''), or English horn in North America, is a double-reed woodwind instrument in the oboe family. It is approximately one and a half times the length of an oboe, making it essentially an alto ...

. In addition, he plays the

Yamaha WX7 The Yamaha WX5, WX11, and WX7 are models of monophonic (synthesizers), monophonic MIDI wind controller musical instruments manufactured by the Yamaha Corporation that have since been discontinued. The fingering system is based on the saxophone bas ...

MIDI MIDI (; Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is a technical standard that describes a communications protocol, digital interface, and electrical connectors that connect a wide variety of electronic musical instruments, computers, and re ...

breath controller, as well as double reed instruments from several Asian cultures, including the Korean ''

hojok The ''taepyeongso'' (lit. "big peace wind instrument"; also called ''hojok'', ''hojeok'' 호적 號笛/ 胡笛, ''nallari'', or ''saenap'', 嗩吶) is a Korean double reed wind instrument in the shawm or oboe family, probably descended from t ...

'' and ''

piri The ''piri'' is a Korean double reed instrument, used in both the folk and classical (court) music of Korea. Originating in Central Asia, it was introduced to the Korean peninsula from China, and has been used there as early as the Three Kingdom ...

'', and the Indian ''mukha vina''.

Early life

Celli is

Italian American Italian Americans ( it, italoamericani or ''italo-americani'', ) are Americans who have full or partial Italian ancestry. The largest concentrations of Italian Americans are in the urban Northeast and industrial Midwestern metropolitan areas, ...

, both of his parents were born in Italy (from

Ripi Ripi is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Frosinone in the Italian region Lazio, located about southeast of Rome and about east of Frosinone. Ripi borders the following municipalities: Arnara, Boville Ernica, Ceprano, Pofi, Strang ...

Frosinone Frosinone (, local dialect: ) is a town and ''comune'' in Lazio, central Italy, the administrative seat of the province of Frosinone. It is located about south-east of Rome close to the Rome-Naples A1 Motorway. The city is the main city of the Va ...

Lazio it, Laziale , population_note = , population_blank1_title = , population_blank1 = , demographics_type1 = , demographics1_footnotes = , demographics1_title1 = , demographics1_info1 = , demographics1_title2 ...

, central Italy) and both immigrated to the U.S. in the early 1920

His early training was as a

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

saxophonist which allowed him to work his way through college performing with rhythm and blues and jazz groups as he began specializing in experimental performance for the oboe and English horn. He studied oboe with

Ray Still Ray Still (March 12, 1920 – March 12, 2014) was an American classical oboist. He was the principal oboe of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra for 40 years, from 1953–1993. Early life He was born March 12, 1920 in Elwood, Indiana, and moved to Lo ...

of the

Chicago Symphony Orchestra The Chicago Symphony Orchestra (CSO) was founded by Theodore Thomas in 1891. The ensemble makes its home at Orchestra Hall in Chicago and plays a summer season at the Ravinia Festival. The music director is Riccardo Muti, who began his tenure ...

and members of the

New York Philharmonic The New York Philharmonic, officially the Philharmonic-Symphony Society of New York, Inc., globally known as New York Philharmonic Orchestra (NYPO) or New York Philharmonic-Symphony Orchestra, is a symphony orchestra based in New York City. It is ...

, the

Boston Symphony Orchestra The Boston Symphony Orchestra (BSO) is an American orchestra based in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the second-oldest of the five major American symphony orchestras commonly referred to as the " Big Five". Founded by Henry Lee Higginson in 1881, ...

, and other leading oboists. Subsequently, he received a

Fulbright Award The Fulbright Program, including the Fulbright–Hays Program, is one of several United States Cultural Exchange Programs with the goal of improving intercultural relations, cultural diplomacy, and intercultural competence between the people of ...

to study the folk instrument ''

'' with

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...

n musician Chung Jae-Gook (hangul: 정재국; hanja: 鄭在國, b. 1942), recognized as National Living Treasure and Important Intangible Cultural Property no. 46; and also to study the Japanese ''

hichiriki The is a double reed Japanese used as one of two main melodic instruments in Japanese music. It is one of the "sacred" instruments and is often heard at Shinto weddings in Japan. Its sound is often described as haunting. According to scholar ...

'' at the Imperial Court

gagaku is a type of Japanese classical music that was historically used for imperial court music and dances. was developed as court music of the Kyoto Imperial Palace, and its near-current form was established in the Heian period (794-1185) around t ...

in Tokyo.

Career

Celli has conducted much work in the field of experimental music, both as a performer and presenter, and has worked with

Jin Hi Kim Jin Hi Kim (born February 6, 1957 in Incheon, South Korea) is a composer and performer of ''geomungo, komungo'' and electric komungo, and a Korean music specialist. Kim is known as a pioneer for introducing ''geomungo'' (거문고, a Korean fre ...

John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one of the leading fi ...

Ornette Coleman Randolph Denard Ornette Coleman (March 9, 1930 – June 11, 2015) was an American jazz saxophonist, violinist, trumpeter, and composer known as a principal founder of the free jazz genre, a term derived from his 1960 album '' Free Jazz: A Colle ...

Phill Niblock Phill Niblock (born October 2, 1933 in Anderson, Indiana) is an American composer, filmmaker, videographer, and director of Experimental Intermedia,Alan Licht, ''Common Tones: Selected Interviews with Artists and Musicians 1995-2020'', Blank Form ...

Alvin Curran Alvin Curran (born December 13, 1938) is an American composer, performer, improviser, sound artist, and writer. He was born in Providence, Rhode Island, and lives and works in Rome, Italy. He is the co-founder, with Frederic Rzewski and Richard ...

Pointless Orchestra ''Pointless'' is a British television quiz show produced by Banijay subsidiary Remarkable Television for the BBC. It is hosted by Alexander Armstrong. In each episode four teams of two contestants attempt to find correct but obscure answers t ...

Roberto Carnevale Roberto Carnevale (born 15 June 1966) is an Italian composer, pianist and conductor. Biography and career Born in Catania, he started studying piano at the age of seven. He took a degree in Arts at the University of Catania and he attended th ...

and the

Kronos Quartet The Kronos Quartet is an American string quartet based in San Francisco. It has been in existence with a rotating membership of musicians for almost 50 years. The quartet covers a very broad range of musical genres, including contemporary classic ...

. He has performed internationally in over 40 countries. With

Jerry Hunt Jerry Edward Hunt (November 30, 1943 – November 27, 1993) was an American composer who created works using live electronic music, electronics partly controlled by his ritualistic performance techniques which were influenced by his interest in t ...

, Celli presented the first live satellite performance in the United States. As a concert presenter he has been involved in over 3,000 events including world premieres by

Steve Reich Stephen Michael Reich ( ; born October 3, 1936) is an American composer known for his contribution to the development of minimal music in the mid to late 1960s. Reich's work is marked by its use of repetitive figures, slow harmonic rhythm, a ...

, John Cage, and many others. He presented the U.S. premieres of ''

Spiral In mathematics, a spiral is a curve which emanates from a point, moving farther away as it revolves around the point. Helices Two major definitions of "spiral" in the American Heritage Dictionary are:Solo Solo or SOLO may refer to: Arts and entertainment Comics * ''Solo'' (DC Comics), a DC comics series * Solo, a 1996 mini-series from Dark Horse Comics Characters * Han Solo, a ''Star Wars'' character * Jacen Solo, a Jedi in the non-canonical ''S ...

'' by

Karlheinz Stockhausen Karlheinz Stockhausen (; 22 August 1928 – 5 December 2007) was a German composer, widely acknowledged by critics as one of the most important but also controversial composers of the 20th and early 21st centuries. He is known for his groun ...

in addition to over 50 works composed for him by various composers. Celli served as a co-director with Mary Luft of Tigertail Productions for two

New Music America New Music America was a nomadic American festival (held in Montreal during its last year) showcasing at its origins New York City's Downtown Music, but growing into one of the largest new music festivals ever held in North America, all in an attem ...

festivals in

Hartford, Connecticut Hartford is the capital city of the U.S. state of Connecticut. It was the seat of Hartford County until Connecticut disbanded county government in 1960. It is the core city in the Greater Hartford metropolitan area. Census estimates since the ...

and

Miami, Florida Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a East Coast of the United States, coastal metropolis and the County seat, county seat of Miami-Dade County, Florida, Miami-Dade C ...

. He is a founding member of the No World Improvisations ensemble and Executive Director of the Black Rock Art Center in

Bridgeport Bridgeport is the most populous city and a major port in the U.S. state of Connecticut. With a population of 148,654 in 2020, it is also the fifth-most populous in New England. Located in eastern Fairfield County at the mouth of the Pequonnoc ...

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its cap ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. He is also the founder and director of O. O. Discs, a CD label devoted to new music that has released over 70 discs. He is also the founder and director of O. O. Discs, a CD label devoted to new music that has released over 70 discs with world-wide distribution. Celli can play on both the western oboe and on non-western oboes.

Discography

* Organic Oboe: Premiere American recording of Stockhausen, Celli, Goldstein, and Schwartz. Joseph Celli, oboe, English horn reeds and electronics. O.O. DISC #1. * Celli Plays Niblock: Niblock for Celli: Compositions by composer Phill Niblock for oboe, English horn performer Joseph Celli. India Navigation Records #3027 * No World Improvisations: Joseph Celli and Jin Hi Kim performing improvisations on English horn, Indian double reed Mukha Veena, Yamaha WX-7 midi breath controller, Korean komungo and changgo. O.O. DISC #2. Digital Recording Compact Disc. Also released and distributed in Asia byWarner Music Korea FL 002. * Vermont the Seasons: Music of Malcolm Goldstein with Joseph Celli, oboe, English horn and reeds. Folkways Records FX 6242. * La Belleza Del Silencio: Music of Orlando Jacinto Garcia with Joseph Celli, Yamaha WX-7 midi breath controller. O.O. DISC #6. Digital Recording Compact Disc. * Non World (Trio) Improvisations: Joseph Celli, Jin Hi Kim with Alvin Curran, electronics; Shelley Hirsch, vocals; Malcolm Goldstein, violin; Mor Thiam, African Percussion; Adam Plack, didgeridoo. O.O. DISC #4. Digital Recording Compact Disc. * Resolver: Music of composer David First with Joseph Celli performing on Yamaha WX-7 midi breath controller. O.O. DISC #5. Digital Recording Compact Disc. * Video Ears – Music Eyes: Video Music of Joseph Celli Four compositions featuring Malcolm Goldstein, Ulrich Krieger, Brian Johnson, Jin Hi Kim and Grupo de Musica Folklorica del Peru. O. O. DISC #22. Digital Recording Compact Disc. * Living Tones: Music of Jin Hi Kim with Joseph Celli performing on oboe and English horn. O. O. DISC #24. (Seoul Records/ Cantabile in Korea). Digital Recording Compact Disc. * Inori: A Prostituta Sagrada, Music Jocy de Oliveira. Joseph Celli, double reed instruments. ReR Records BJOCD, Digital Recording Compact Disc. * Bitter Love: Songs From Peony Pavilion, Tan Dun, composer; Sony Classical Records.

References

External links

Joseph Celli pageBlack Rock Art Center site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Celli, Joseph American experimental musicians 1944 births Living people American oboists Male oboists Cor anglais players Musicians from Bridgeport, Connecticut Contemporary classical music performers