Frank Morelli

Frank Morelli, student of Stephen Maxym, was the first bassoonist to be awarded a doctorate by The Juilliard School. A soloist in Carnegie Hall’s Stern Auditorium on nine occasions, he performed regularly with the Chamber Music Society of Lincoln Center for over thirty years, including at the White House for the final State Dinner of the Clinton Presidency. Emeritus Co-principal Bassoon of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Morelli’s faculty positions have included the Yale School of Music, Juilliard School, Manhattan School of Music, Glenn Gould School, SUNY Stony Brook and Queens College, CUNY. Fanfare Magazine stated that Morelli’s recording of Mozart’s Bassoon Concerto “reset a reviewer’s standards at too high a level for comfort in a world more productive of ordinary music making.” Gramophone wrote: “DG… recorded all of Mozart’s wind concertos with Orpheus…Frank Morelli’s Bassoon Concerto is probably the pick of this series” and “Morelli’s playing is a joy to behold.” A performer and juror at the most prestigious festivals worldwide, he is a member of Windscape, quintet in residence at Manhattan School of Music. He has published numerous transcriptions (TrevCo Music), the landmark excerpt book Stravinsky: Difficult Passages for Bassoon (Boosey & Hawkes) and his unmatched edition of the most popular bassoon method, The First Complete Weissenborn Bassoon Method and Studies (Carl Fischer). Frank plays a Leitzinger Bassoon exclusively.