Joseph Bongiorno
Joseph Bongiorno (bass), a graduate of the Juilliard School, where he studied with Homer Mensch, was a member of both the New York City Opera Orchestra and the Mostly Mozart Festival Orchestra for over two decades. He also served as principal double bassist for the Brooklyn Philharmonic and the American Composers Orchestra under the music direction of Lukas Foss, Dennis Russell Davies, Robert Spano and Stephan Sloan. During his career he has also appeared as principal double bassist with American Ballet Theater, Opera Orchestra of New York, and the American Symphony as well as the Spoleto Festival Orchestra. He has been a guest artist in chamber music performances on the series of the Pierrot Consort, Maverick Concerts, Arbor Chamber Music, Norfolk/Yale Summer Chamber Festival, Spoleto Festival, North Country Chamber Players, and Bargemusic, as well as at Music from Salem. In the commercial realm he has recorded scores for some 100 films, CDs, and television shows. In 2006 Mr Bongiorno was named full time professor at NYU Steinhardt’s Department of Music and Performing Arts, where he served as a member of the string faculty and Director of Orchestral Studies.