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From: b~-2000.com (Joseph Pastore, Jr.)
Date: Thu, 26 Aug 1999 21:54:44 -0700
Subject: Amplication, Bonfiglio, SPAH

Stephen Molitor wrote:
>From: Stephen Molitor
>Date: Thu, 26 Aug 1999 11:31:58 -0500
>Subject: Amplication, Bonfiglio, SPAH
>
>SPAH comments:
>
>Unfortunately, I couldn't make it on Saturday to here Bonfiglio play, but I
>heard his Bach seminar on Sunday morning, and it was absolutely brilliant.
> An outstanding musician. I appreciated his discussions of phrasing,
>articulation, style, etc. What a wonderfully dark, projected tone!
>
>In the Bach seminar, he didn't use (or need) amplification. But does he
>use amplication when performing with a symphony? If so, what is his setup?
> What kind of mic, where is placed, what kind of speakers, etc. Does
>anyone know? (Robert, are you listening?).
>
>Also, how does he get that TONE! That's one thing he didn't talk about in
>his seminar. Any tips, exercises? (Robert, are you listening?).
>
>Most of the stuff Robert talked about would be useful in any style. As he
>said about a thousand times, a technique is not a style. And anyone would
>kill for his tone.
>
>He's convinced of the value of using both sides of one's mouth, and I've
>started working on it.
>
>Steve Molitor
>smolit~rac.com
>

>From: Stephen Molitor
>Date: Thu, 26 Aug 1999 11:31:58 -0500
>Subject: Amplication, Bonfiglio, SPAH
>
>SPAH comments:
>
>Unfortunately, I couldn't make it on Saturday to here Bonfiglio play, but I
>heard his Bach seminar on Sunday morning, and it was absolutely brilliant.
> An outstanding musician. I appreciated his discussions of phrasing,
>articulation, style, etc. What a wonderfully dark, projected tone!
>
>In the Bach seminar, he didn't use (or need) amplification. But does he
>use amplication when performing with a symphony? If so, what is his setup?
> What kind of mic, where is placed, what kind of speakers, etc. Does
>anyone know? (Robert, are you listening?).
>
>Also, how does he get that TONE! That's one thing he didn't talk about in
>his seminar. Any tips, exercises? (Robert, are you listening?).
>
>Most of the stuff Robert talked about would be useful in any style. As he
>said about a thousand times, a technique is not a style. And anyone would
>kill for his tone.
>
>He's convinced of the value of using both sides of one's mouth, and I've
>started working on it.
>
>Steve Molitor
>smolit~rac.com
>


Dear List,

First some comments about SPAH:

Finally some SPAH is coming together the way it should have long ago; Toots
is in his 70's and this is his first SPAH. Blackie should have been player
of the year 20 years ago; no 30 years ago.

In 1986 Toots showed me a small picture of himself that said he was playing
the Monterey Jazz Festival with Dizzy and someone else - maybe Mulligan and
a small picture of me playing the world premiere of the Henry Cowell
Harmonica Concerto at the Hollywood Bowl with the Los Angeles Philharmonic.
There was a four page article on some bass player in a harmonica trio and
Toots asked if I'd seen this. He said that this is why he never went to a
harmonica convention!

Well, Toots sounded GREAT, total ART, and his pianist was from another
planet and Blackie sounded GREAT with terrific tone and good phrasing.
SPAH seems now to moving in a very positive direction.

About amplification, for concerti I use a 16 channel Sennheiser wireless
receiver with a lapel mic MKE 2 from Sennheiser flat from 20-20,000; of
the 200 times I've played the Villa-Lobos Harmonica Concerto, 20 have been
acoustic and I have one coming up with the Leipzig MDR Radio Orchestra with
Fabio Luisi conducting.

To get this volume and tone you need to practice scales and arpeggios for
an hour a day for 4-5 years. Eventually they get faster and louder. As
the sound opens up, you learn to focus the sound for tone and projection.
As you get louder again, the tone gets diffuse, so you learn to focus the
new volume. Up and up it goes louder, focused, louder, focused. I wish it
were easy, but it is just work.

It the volume gain never ends, but in 10 years you will have a big sound;
if you always play into a mic, the process never happens.

Harmonically yours,

BONFIGLIO
http://www.robertbonfiglio.com