Re: Florida Philharmonic Review

[bon@xxxxxxxxxx (Robert Bonfiglio)]

Dear David,

I was never offended by your comments.  As far as my harmonica playing and
career goes, I never look over my shoulder, only ahead to the new. I really
don't have the time plus in order to get here you have to overcome the "you
will never be able to make a living playing the Harmonica" people.

Somebody wrote:
>Harmonica players in general get dissed in reviews by non-players and the
>ignorant at large.
>When they do give us a review it's luke warm as in "the harmonica player was
>admirable."

You would have loved the reviewer at the Florida Philharmonic - and it was
a "good" review, but while I was signing CD's, the reviewer came to me and
asked about the encores and I said they were a Tributes to SBW, Junior
Wells and Muddy Waters.  He was from Brazil and knew Villa-Lobos quite
well, but he had no idea who Muddy Waters was! This would be like me
reviewing a Gershwin piece in Brazil, but not knowing who Jobim was!

Anyhow, This season I pulled away from the Villa-Lobos Harmonica Concerto,
which all the conductors ask for because I recorded it on RCA, and played
the Vaughan Williams Romance and the Arthur Benjamin Hamonica Concerto plus
the Hohvahness Folk Dances.

I have been asked to record the Tcherepnin Harmonica Concerto which I also
have added this season.  With the new Richard Einhorn Cantata for Sep 11th
I did with the Albany Symphony and Mezzo Lucy Beer and the new Harmonica
Concerto by Bill Bolcom will come up in a few seasons with the Minnesota
Orchestra.  I have so much work to do just to keep up with the repertoire;
the classical world is one quite separate from most harmonica music.

But, I love to meet and talk with other harmonica players at my concerts.
The harmonica is great instrument and I love to see someone else that is
thrilled with it's capabilities, no matter what kind of music they play.


Harmonically yours,

Robert Bonfiglio


>Neil,
>You got me turned wrong on this. I was not, I repeat NOT, jumping on Mr.
>Bonfiglio. Maybe you missed the clues to the true intent of my response but
>I did mention his great talent and a few other compliments that would
>indicate I wasn't angry.  I admit that I am not the most cultured person on
>the planet, but if I was angry I can guarantee you that I would have either
>been a lot scarier or just shut off the computer.
>
>Mr. Bonfiglio:
>Sir, I apologize for any insult you may have received from my comments. I
>assure you that my intent was not to attack you.  My comments were written
>with a wry smile and a wink, not a sarcastic sneer. Perhaps the casual
>manner of interaction I take for granted might not be acceptable to others.
>I was writing to you as I would speak to my friends and while we can be a
>little rough around the edges around here I can assure you that respect and
>honor are values with which we are familiar.  I have a great respect for any
>man who has achieved what you have and I would not shame my family by
>attacking a stranger who has done me no harm.
>
>Furthermore, to Mr. Robert Bonfiglio, fellow members of the Harp L digest,
>and Neil in Brea:
>I apologize for any offense I may have caused anyone. I have spent my entire
>life in an environment where a verbal punch in the ribs is a sign of
>familiarity and affection between friends and not to be taken seriously.
>Obviously Neil comes from a gentler blood than I and was offended by my
>comments. I can only apologize to all of you of similar temperament and hope
>that the sincerity of my apology will not be doubted as easily as my
>original message was misinterpreted.
>
>I am a 41 year old middle class dago born and bred on Chicago's South side.
>I have been listening to, and playing, Chicago style blues most of my life.
>I consider myself lucky that I live in what a lot of blues fans consider
>their Mecca.
>I am proud of my heritage as part of Chicago, in particular South Chicago.
>Few people other than blues fans can understand why. For the most part it's
>dangerous, dirty, and depressing here. Kind of like Brooklyn except somebody
>stole the bridge.
>My grandmother was a Roseland bootlegger and her idea of a mall was old
>Maxwell St market. I spent countless Sundays there. I learned to play harp
>there and cut my first chops with mix bands in the open dirt lots behind
>Nate's Deli. I even designed T Shirts for Matty's Polish sausage sandwich
>stand before she moved to Florida. I cried when they leveled that market.
>So much history gone in the name of development.
>I never drive by the Chess studio without pulling over to look and think
>about all that happened there.
>I was lucky enough have seen some of the great ones play here as if they
>revered this city's blues history as much as I do (Muddy Waters, Willie
>Dixon, Snooky Pryor, Lonnie Brooks, Buddy Guy, Jr. Wells, Magic Slim, Son
>Seals, Koko Taylor, Big Time Sarah, B.B. King, Bobby Blue Bland, Eddie
>Clearwater, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Albert Collins, Johnny Winter, etc. ).
>My only claim to fame is minor but means a lot to me. I used to to play with
>Sunnyland Slim at Lilly's in Lincoln Park in the early 80s. Just the two of
>us on that cramped little stage. I spent one of the best afternoons of my
>life at his place at 67th and Halsted, just talking about everything from
>his past to the finer points of my 56 Olds Rocket. Where else could this son
>of a railroad switchman get that lucky but Chicago?
>
>Anyway, the reason I just bored you with this walk down memory lane is that
>this is my first chat line and I've only been at it for a few weeks. It
>never occurred to me that maybe the history I outlined above might not make
>me the right kind of person for 'chatting" online (Hell, I got into one
>discussion,  potentially insult a world class player, and piss-off some guy
>named Neil in Brea).  I just signed-on because somebody got me this computer
>(and I didn't ask where from) and I thought it might be cool to hook-up with
>others who share my love for this little instrument. When I play I
>consciously try to reflect the passion of those players that make me think
>of home (both the Walters, Wolf, etc.)
>and I figured that others might share my passion for playing harp.
>
>Maybe I'm better off chatting face to face with the local players around
>here.
>
>Sorry I forgot to wear a jacket and tie to the restaurant.
>
>
>Take care.
>D
>
>> From: "Bob Maglinte" <bbqbob917@xxxxxxxxxxx>
>> Reply-To: "Bob Maglinte" <bbqbob917@xxxxxxxxxxx>
>> Date: Sat, 12 Apr 2003 10:35:55 -0400
>> To: "Robert Bonfiglio" <bon@xxxxxxxxxx>
>> Cc: <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
>> Subject: Re: Florida Philharmonic Review
>>
>>
>> ----- Original Message -----
>> From: "Robert Bonfiglio" <bon@xxxxxxxxxx>
>> To: "david j. brown" <nonidesign@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx>
>> Cc: <harp-l@xxxxxxxxxx>
>> Sent: Saturday, April 12, 2003 11:48 AM
>> Subject: Re: Florida Philharmonic Review
>>
>>
>>>
>>> Dear David,
>>>
>>> I am in total agreement with you!   I don't get at all bent out of shape
>>> about any review; it's the reviewers.  They are killing classical music;
>>> they can't seem to say that they had a "good time" at a concert.
>>>
>> Hi,
>> One thing most people often do not know in regards to music critics is how
>> often they are assigned to review things they either don't like a genre
>> they're having to review and/or know next to nothing about it and/or don't
>> like particular instruments at all, but won't fess up to any of these. Let
>> me give you an example. When I did the 1989 Boston area Battle of the Blues
>> Bands, there was a very prominent music writer for a very high profile local
>> newspaper (in which both shall remain nameless) who often wielded a LOT of
>> power, who was one of the judges. At the end of the night, he interviewed
>> all the contesting bands, including mine (of course) and he asked me were
>> all the tunes I had performed were originals. Now the way thus guy's
>> writings were, I had assumed he was extremely knowledgeable, but the further
>> into the interview I got, the more I clearly and quickly found out how
>> LITTLE he really knew about the music he's supposed to be reviewing, and I
>> was very tempted to humiliate him and put him in his place, but knowing how
>> much power he wielded in this town, it wouldn't be a very prudent move. So,
>> from that moment on, it really brought home a point told to me that there
>> are very few critic reviews one should really worry about, as some panning
>> you may get are from people far less knowledgable than they make themselves
>> out to be (frauds in my book), let it roll over your shoulder. For blues, if
>> you get panned by writers who truly ARE knowledgeable about the genre like
>> Peter Guralnick or the late Pete Welding, that's a hurting, big time, but
>> from someone who has to review many different genres, I won't think about
>> them too much, as many times they know MUCH less than they're trying to make
>> readers believe.
>>
>> Sincerely,
>> Barbeque Bob Maglinte
>> Boston, MA
>> --
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http://www.robertbonfiglio.com