Gina Cuffari

Bassoonist Gina Cuffari is a dynamic and versatile musician who performs a variety of roles in the New York City area as an orchestral musician, chamber musician, soloist, new music advocate, arts administrator, and educator. She is an Artistic Director and Co-Principal Bassoonist of the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, as well as a member of the Riverside Symphony; she also appears with ensembles such as The Knights, American Composers Orchestra, and Orchestra of St. Luke’s. Inspired by the collaborative spirit of chamber music, she is a member of the Jupiter Symphony Chamber Players, Sylvan Winds, and Trio Cabrini, a clarinet, bassoon/voice, piano trio. Contemporary music has also been central to Gina's career; as a longtime collaborator with Alarm Will Sound, she has premiered countless works by living composers. She has also commissioned and co-created works with composers Jenni Brandon, Sunny Knable, Gregg August, and Allison Loggins-Hull that combine her two passions—singing and playing the bassoon—into one performing experience. Cuffari is currently on faculty at New York University and the Mostly Modern Music Festival, and is a coach for The Orchestra Now at Bard College. She has given masterclasses and “Singing Through Your Instrument” workshops across the country from the University of Arizona to Ohio University to Yale University. A native of Rochester, NY, she studied with Bill Winstead and Frank Morelli.