Joseph Bertolozzi
Encyclopedia
Joseph Bertolozzi is an American composer and musician with works ranging from full symphony orchestra to solo gongs to suspension bridge. With increasingly numerous performances across the US and Europe to his credit, his music is performed by groups ranging from the Grammy-winning Chestnut Brass Company
to the Eastman School of Music
, and he himself has played at such diverse venues as the Vatican
and The US Tennis Open.
: using only the sounds of New York's Mid-Hudson Bridge
, Bridge Music allows listeners to hear the bridge played like a musical instrument. The work was created for New York's 400th anniversary observance of Henry Hudson's voyage up the river that now bears his name
. Originally intended to be a live performance piece, this "audacious plan" (New York Times) to compose music for a suspension bridge using the bridge itself as the instrument brought Bertolozzi wide international attention. A recording of the results, the 2009 CD "Bridge Music" (on the Delos
label DE1045), entered the Billboard Classical Crossover Music Chart at #18, and has been released globally.
In addition to the album, Bridge Music exists as a free public audio installation
on the bridge itself and in nearby parks.
Bertolozzi is now working on creating a similar project to have a group of live percussionists play the Eiffel Tower
.
Bertolozzi also has created concert music and theatrical scores, including “The Contemplation of Bravery,” which was an official 2002 Bicentennial commission for The United States Military Academy at West Point http://www.usma.edu/band/recordings/vol_3.htm, and his incidental score to “Waiting for Godot,” used at the 1991 Festival Internationale de Café Theatre in Nancy, France. In addition, he has a large body of liturgical music for use in both Christian and Jewish worship.
As a longtime concert organist, he has performed his own compositions as well as those of the classical literature in the US and in Italy (including St. Peter's Basilica
), Poland, Spain and Portugal (for the U. S. State Department). He is Organist and Choirmaster at Vassar Temple in Poughkeepsie, NY and Christ Episcopal Church in Suffern, NY. He also performs and composes for his percussion project "The Bronze Collection," a collection of over 60 gongs and cymbals from around the world.
. He began organ lessons not in order to perform, but to learn how to notate the compositions he wished to create.
He went on to receive his B.A. in music from Vassar College
, and did further study at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana
(with Xenakis
and Donatoni
), Westminster Choir College
, and The Juilliard School
, as well as numerous professional workshops with ASCAP, The American Music Center
, and Carnegie Hall
(including contemporary conducting techniques with Boulez).
Chestnut Brass Company
The Grammy winning Chestnut Brass Company was founded in 1977 to advance the art and skills of musical performance and the knowledge and understanding of musical history with an emphasis on brass instruments...
to the Eastman School of Music
Eastman School of Music
The Eastman School of Music is a music conservatory located in Rochester, New York. The Eastman School is a professional school within the University of Rochester...
, and he himself has played at such diverse venues as the Vatican
Vatican City
Vatican City , or Vatican City State, in Italian officially Stato della Città del Vaticano , which translates literally as State of the City of the Vatican, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. It has an area of...
and The US Tennis Open.
Works and performances
His most well known project is 'Bridge Music'Bridge Music
Bridge Music is a public sound art installation. Additionally, there is an album of the same name featuring music from this installation.- History :...
: using only the sounds of New York's Mid-Hudson Bridge
Mid-Hudson Bridge
The Mid-Hudson Bridge is a toll suspension bridge which carries US 44 and NY 55 across the Hudson River between Poughkeepsie and Highland in the state of New York. Governor and local resident Franklin D. Roosevelt and his wife Eleanor attended the opening ceremony on August 25, 1930. The bridge...
, Bridge Music allows listeners to hear the bridge played like a musical instrument. The work was created for New York's 400th anniversary observance of Henry Hudson's voyage up the river that now bears his name
Hudson River
The Hudson is a river that flows from north to south through eastern New York. The highest official source is at Lake Tear of the Clouds, on the slopes of Mount Marcy in the Adirondack Mountains. The river itself officially begins in Henderson Lake in Newcomb, New York...
. Originally intended to be a live performance piece, this "audacious plan" (New York Times) to compose music for a suspension bridge using the bridge itself as the instrument brought Bertolozzi wide international attention. A recording of the results, the 2009 CD "Bridge Music" (on the Delos
Delos International
Delos International is an American record label. Based in Hollywood, California, it specializes in publishing classical music. The Delos recording label was founded in 1973 by Amelia S. Haygood , one of the most prominent figures in the classical recording industry...
label DE1045), entered the Billboard Classical Crossover Music Chart at #18, and has been released globally.
In addition to the album, Bridge Music exists as a free public audio installation
Sound installation
Sound installation is an intermedia and time based art form. It is an expansion of an art installation in the sense that it includes the sound element and therefore the time element...
on the bridge itself and in nearby parks.
Bertolozzi is now working on creating a similar project to have a group of live percussionists play the Eiffel Tower
Eiffel Tower
The Eiffel Tower is a puddle iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris. Built in 1889, it has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world...
.
Bertolozzi also has created concert music and theatrical scores, including “The Contemplation of Bravery,” which was an official 2002 Bicentennial commission for The United States Military Academy at West Point http://www.usma.edu/band/recordings/vol_3.htm, and his incidental score to “Waiting for Godot,” used at the 1991 Festival Internationale de Café Theatre in Nancy, France. In addition, he has a large body of liturgical music for use in both Christian and Jewish worship.
As a longtime concert organist, he has performed his own compositions as well as those of the classical literature in the US and in Italy (including St. Peter's Basilica
St. Peter's Basilica
The Papal Basilica of Saint Peter , officially known in Italian as ' and commonly known as Saint Peter's Basilica, is a Late Renaissance church located within the Vatican City. Saint Peter's Basilica has the largest interior of any Christian church in the world...
), Poland, Spain and Portugal (for the U. S. State Department). He is Organist and Choirmaster at Vassar Temple in Poughkeepsie, NY and Christ Episcopal Church in Suffern, NY. He also performs and composes for his percussion project "The Bronze Collection," a collection of over 60 gongs and cymbals from around the world.
Biography
Joseph Bertolozzi was born in Poughkeepsie, NY one year after his parents and sister emigrated from Lucca, Italy. When, at an early age, his interests turned to music, he read biographies of composers, music encyclopedias, and ultimately musical scores from the local libraryAdriance Memorial Library
The Adriance Memorial Library is the main public library of the Poughkeepsie Public Library District, serving the city and town of Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. It is on Market Street south of downtown...
. He began organ lessons not in order to perform, but to learn how to notate the compositions he wished to create.
He went on to receive his B.A. in music from Vassar College
Vassar College
Vassar College is a private, coeducational liberal arts college in the town of Poughkeepsie, New York, in the United States. The Vassar campus comprises over and more than 100 buildings, including four National Historic Landmarks, ranging in style from Collegiate Gothic to International,...
, and did further study at the Accademia Musicale Chigiana
Accademia Musicale Chigiana
The Accademia Musicale Chigiana is a music institute in Siena, Italy. It was founded by Count Guido Chigi Saracini in 1932 as an international centre for advanced musical studies. It organises Master Classes in the major musical instruments as well as singing, conducting and composition...
(with Xenakis
Iannis Xenakis
Iannis Xenakis was a Romanian-born Greek ethnic, naturalized French composer, music theorist, and architect-engineer. He is commonly recognized as one of the most important post-war avant-garde composers...
and Donatoni
Franco Donatoni
Franco Donatoni was an Italian composer.Born in Verona, he started studying violin at the age of seven, and frequented the local Music Academy...
), Westminster Choir College
Westminster Choir College
Westminster Choir College is a residential college of music, part of Rider University, located in Princeton, New Jersey, United States.Westminster Choir College educates men and women at the undergraduate and graduate levels for musical careers in music education, voice performance, piano...
, and The Juilliard School
Juilliard School
The Juilliard School, located at the Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts in New York City, United States, is a performing arts conservatory which was established in 1905...
, as well as numerous professional workshops with ASCAP, The American Music Center
American Music Center
The American Music Center is a non-profit organization which aims to promote the creating, performing, and enjoying new American music. The organization was founded in 1939 by composers Marion Bauer, Aaron Copland, Howard Hanson, Harrison Kerr, Otto Luening, and Quincy Porter.The organization has a...
, and Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall
Carnegie Hall is a concert venue in Midtown Manhattan in New York City, United States, located at 881 Seventh Avenue, occupying the east stretch of Seventh Avenue between West 56th Street and West 57th Street, two blocks south of Central Park....
(including contemporary conducting techniques with Boulez).