About Our Conductor

ENRICO GRANAFEI

Born in Lauria (Basilicata) and raised in Cosenza (Calabria), harmonica virtuoso, classical guitarist, singer, songwriter, arranger, composer, and orchestral conductor, ENRICO GRANAFEI has a long history of diverse musical experience which encompasses Classical Music, traditional Italian music, Brazilian music and Jazz. Enrico received a degree in classical guitar from the Conservatory of L'Aquila in Italy in 1976 and began his artistic career playing in concert halls throughout Italy and on television. Photo by John Meixner

He discovered Jazz through the chromatic harmonica and began to explore new possibilities for the harmonica, following in the tradition of Toots Thieleman. His love of Jazz brought him to New York in1985, and he soon began to perform in local jazz clubs, including The Blue Note and Birdland. At the same time, he was invited to join I Giullari di Piazza as an actor, guitarist and vocalist. Enrico also continued to nurture his passion for Neapolitan music by performing as a soloist and in duo in libraries, at festivals and at private and community events throughout the Metropolitan Area. During this period he recorded Canta Napoli, a compilation of his favorite Neapolitan songs featuring Enrico on vocals and guitar.

During the 90's, Enrico studied 19th century music under Carlo Barone one of the world's greatest experts in the 19th century guitar and recorded selections of 19th songs for guitar and voice in Italian, Spanish, German, French and English, all of which he speaks fluently. He co-founded and performed with Frizzi e Lazzi, an Italian American Theater group, with his wife, vocalist and mandolinist, Kristine Massari, Emelise Aleandri and Bob Lepre, for a few years, performing at several venues including Gracie Mansion, Penn's Landing, and several Italian festivals.

In 1992 Enrico earned a Masters' degree in Jazz Performance from the Manhattan School of Music where he was the only student of Toots Thieleman. Since then he has performed extensively on the Chromatic Harmonica in the United States and continues to be a featured musician in major European Festivals, including Euromeet Jazz Festival (Italy), Pori Jazz Festival (Finland), Django Festival in Samois sur Seine (France), Budapest Music Festival (Hungary), in Estonia and in major clubs throughout Europe. He is recognized as one of the finest chromatic harmonica players in the world and has recorded several CDs, including sessions with Eddie Gomez, Eliot Zigmund, Marc Johnson, Adam Nussbaum, Ted Curson, Nnena Freelon and many others.

Enrico's latest accomplishment is his work on Hands-Free-Chromatic Harmonica. The revolutionary instrument invented by Vern Smith allows him to play Chromatic Harmonica and Guitar at the same time, something that nobody has ever done before in Jazz. Close your eyes and you will hear two or three musicians but in fact it's only one!

Since 1999, Enrico has been the owner and musical director of the prestigious Trumpets Jazz Club in Montclair, New Jersey (USA), the most important Jazz venue in the state. Enrico continues to perform traditional Neapolitan and Italian music as a soloist and in duos and trios throughout the Metropolitan Area. Enrico's latest CD, In Search of the Third Dimension, on Miles High Records has received great critical acclaim from jazz artists and critics including Stanley Jordan, Bucky Pizzarelli, Vintage Guitar Magazine, and Susan Frances (Jazz Reviews).

On May 17, 2009 Enrico became the conductor of the Bloomfield Mandolin Orchestra and is happy to start the 2009-2010 concert season with the orchestra.