Juan Pablo Jofre

Juan Pablo Jofre (also known as J.P. Jofre) (born 1983) is an Argentinian musician, composer, and arranger. He plays the bandoneon.

Juan Pablo Jofre in San Jose, California, 2014

Life

J.P. Jofre was raised in San Juan, Argentina. He attended San Juan's Escuela de Música. He primarily was a drummer, and also studied the vibraphone, bassoon, piano, singing and double bass.[1] He played in a heavy metal band.[2] He heard a recording by Astor Piazzolla, which is uncle played for him when he was seventeen years old. He fell in love with the sound and style of the bandoneon.[1]

In 2002 or 2003, he relocated to New York City with his mother and brother. His brother, who is deaf, struggled to find decent education in Argentina, but succeeded in finding it in New York, hence the relocation. He lives and works in Harlem in New York City.[2]

Career

Upon learning the bandoneon, he was overwhelmed by how complex the instrument was. He used a piano to figure out the keys played by the bandoneon buttons, and read books. He eventually took lessons from Daniel Binelli. Jofre also started studying in Buenos Aires. He would take the bus for sixteen hours, twice a month, to take classes from Julio Pane. Jofre also composes his own music. He has been called a "creative composer," by Paquito D'Rivera. His compositions range in genre and sound including jazz and string orchestra.[1] In March, 2014, he debuted his Bandoneon Concerto with the Symphony Silicon Valley in San Jose, California. He has performed on Rosie Live.[2] In July 2017, he performed in Minneapolis in the Mill City Summer Opera production of Ástor Piazzolla's "tango operita" María de Buenos Aires.[3]

Hard Tango

His debut album, Hard Tango, was released in 2012.[2] The album includes original compositions by Jofre, and is described as "classical-tango hybrid," by The New York Times. The album also features works by Astor Piazzolla, Fernando Otero, Leo Brouwer, and I Am the Walrus by John Lennon.[1]

Discography
  • Hard Tango, 2012, Round Star
  • Be Like Water,
  • Manifesto,

References
  1. Kozinn, Allan. "Taking a 'Poor Man's Church Organ' to Heavenly Heights". Music. New York Times. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
  2. Scheinin, Richard. "Argentina's JP Jofre merges tango with symphony". Music. Mercury News. Retrieved 24 March 2014.
  3. http://www.millcitysummeropera.org
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