Robert Bonfiglio (born September 6, 1950)
[Caso, Frank (2002)]
''Contemporary Musicians: Profiles of the People in Music''. Gale Group. Retrieved online via encyclopedia.com 12 June 2014. is an American classical
harmonica
The harmonica, also known as a French harp or mouth organ, is a free reed wind instrument used worldwide in many musical genres, notably in blues, American folk music, classical music, jazz, country, and rock. The many types of harmonica inclu ...
player. Described by the music critic for the ''
Los Angeles Times'', as "the
Paganini of the harmonica",
[Swed, Mark (January 12, 1998)]
"A Big-Time Opener for Little Festival"
'' Los Angeles Times''. Retrieved 12 June 2014 he is known for his many recordings and live performances featuring the instrument.
Early life and education
Bonfiglio was born in
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, the son an orthopedic surgeon, and raised in
Iowa City, Iowa. He first began playing the
diatonic harmonica when he was thirteen, and although he played in local blues bands as a teenager, had no plans to become a professional musician. He enrolled in the
University of Arizona to study chemistry, but at the same time became interested in the possibilities of the
chromatic harmonica
The chromatic harmonica is a type of harmonica that uses a button-activated sliding bar to redirect air from the hole in the mouthpiece to the selected reed-plate desired. When the button is not pressed, an altered diatonic major scale of the key ...
. After travelling to
Trossingen, Germany, in the 1970s where he attended a seminar by the master harmonica player,
Cham-Ber Huang, he decided on a musical career. He enrolled in
Mannes College of Music in New York City, studying composition. Mannes, like the other major music conservatories in the United States at the time, did not offer majors in the harmonica. However, Bonfiglio also studied the classical harmonica with Cham-Ber Huang for five years and was coached privately by Andrew Loyla, the Principal Flautist with the
New York City Ballet orchestra for over ten years. During this time he added all the existing classical music composed for the harmonica to his repertoire.
[Winzenried, Rebecca (2001)]
"Robert Bonfiglio: Hummin'"
''The Free-Reed Journal''. Reprinted from ''Symphony'', the magazine of the American Symphony Orchestra League (November–December 2001). Retrieved 12 June 2014. After receiving his Bachelor of Music from Mannes, Bonfiglio went to post-graduate study at the
Manhattan School of Music
The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory in New York City. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition, as well as a bachelor's in mu ...
. It was his composition teacher there,
Charles Wuorinen
Charles Peter Wuorinen (; June 9, 1938 – March 11, 2020) was an American composer of contemporary classical music based in New York City. He performed his works and other 20th-century music as pianist and conductor.
He composed more than ...
, who told him he could do more with the classical harmonica than with composition because it was such a special niche.
Career
After graduating from the Manhattan School of Music with his Masters in Music, Bonfiglio supported himself as a session musician in New York working on commercials and soundtracks for television programs and films, including the soundtracks for ''
Kramer vs. Kramer
''Kramer vs. Kramer'' is a 1979 American legal drama film written and directed by Robert Benton, based on Avery Corman's 1977 novel of the same name. The film stars Dustin Hoffman, Meryl Streep, Jane Alexander, and Justin Henry.
It tells the stor ...
'' and ''
Places in the Heart''. His breakthrough as a concert artist came in 1986 when he performed the world premiere of
Henry Cowell
Henry Dixon Cowell (; March 11, 1897 – December 10, 1965) was an American composer, writer, pianist, publisher and teacher. Marchioni, Tonimarie (2012)"Henry Cowell: A Life Stranger Than Fiction" ''The Juilliard Journal''. Retrieved 19 June 202 ...
's ''Harmonica Concerto'' with the Brooklyn Philharmonic Symphony Orchestra conducted by
Lukas Foss. BONFIGLIO has been a concerto soloist with Orchestras including the Minnesota Orchestra, Orchestre de la Suisse Romande, the Orchestra of the Teatro Colón in Buenos Aires, the Luxembourg Philharmonic, the Leipzig M D R-Radio Symphony, the Hong Kong Philharmonic, Orchestre National du Capitole de Toulouse, the Madrid Radio Television Española Orchestra, Real Orquesta Sinfónica de Sevilla, the Estonia National Symphony, Edmonton Symphony, the Mexico City Philharmonic, as well as the Milwaukee Symphony, the Indianapolis Symphony, Louisville Orchestra, Oregon Symphony, Utah Symphony and the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
Personal life
Bonfiglio is married to the
flautist Clare Hoffman. The couple founded the Grand Canyon Music Festival in 1984 and continue to serve as its artistic directors.
[Crist, Nanette (February 13, 2014)]
"Blowing Emotion"
''Florida Weekly''. Retrieved 12 June 2014.
Discography
Bonfiglio's recordings include:
*
Villa-Lobos
Heitor Villa-Lobos (March 5, 1887November 17, 1959) was a Brazilian composer, conductor, cellist, and classical guitarist described as "the single most significant creative figure in 20th-century Brazilian art music". Villa-Lobos has become the ...
:
Harmonica Concerto, ''Bachianas Brasileiras'', with the New York Chamber Symphony, RCA Victor, 1989
*''Through the Raindrops'', High Harmony Records, 1992
*''Live at the Grand Canyon'', High Harmony Records, 1994. Recorded at the Grand Canyon Music Festival in September 1993 and September 1994.
References
External links
*
History of the Grand Canyon Music Festival
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bonifiglio, Robert
American harmonica players
Living people
1950 births
Musicians from Milwaukee
Musicians from Iowa City, Iowa