Joseph Alessi
Joseph Alessi is among the world's preeminent trombonists, widely active as an orchestral player -- he is the principal trombonist of the New York Philharmonic -- and as a soloist. He has also played jazz and is an important educator.
Alessi was born in Detroit, Michigan, on September 20, 1959. He grew up in San Rafael, California. Alessi studied the trombone with his father, also named Joseph Alessi; his mother was also musical and sang in the Metropolitan Opera Chorus in New York. At age 16, he was already skilled enough to be accepted as a member of the San Francisco Ballet Orchestra. Alessi studied at the Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia from 1976 to 1980. While still a student there, he became interim second trombone with the Philadelphia Orchestra and then got the job on a permanent basis, remaining there for four seasons. He spent a year as principal trombonist with the Montreal Symphony Orchestra, and then, in 1985, he earned the same position with the New York Philharmonic. He remained there as of the mid-2020s. In 1986, he joined the faculty at the Juilliard School in New York; he continued to hold that position as well in the mid-2020s.
From his first solo appearance in 1990, in Paul Creston's Fantasy for Trombone, Alessi frequently appeared as a soloist with the Philharmonic. The following year, Alessi made his recording debut on the Summit Records label with the holiday album Trombones Under the Tree. In 1993, he gave the world premiere of Christopher Rouse's Concerto for trombone and orchestra, which the Philharmonic had commissioned. His repertory includes many 20th century and contemporary works by such composers as Leonard Bernstein, George Crumb, and Eric Ewazen. Appearing as a soloist with such orchestras as the Helsinki Philharmonic, Seoul Philharmonic, and New Japan Philharmonic, Alessi developed a worldwide reputation. He has often performed in trombone chamber groups, including the New York Trombone Quartet, the Four of a Kind Trombone Quartet, and the Slide Monsters Trombone Quartet. In addition to Summit, he has recorded for Naxos, Cala, and, in 2023, Navona, where he released the album Joe's Tango: Concerto for Trombone & Other Works. That year, he gave the U.S. premiere of the Trombone Concerto by jazz pianist and composer Chick Corea, which had been written for him and which he had premiered in 2021 with the São Paulo Symphony Orchestra.
© James Manheim /TiVo
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Joe's Tango: Concerto for Trombone & Other Works
UNLV Wind Orchestra, Thomas G. Leslie, Joseph Alessi, Boston Brass
Classical - Released by Navona on 10 Nov 2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
George Crumb: Orchestral Music
Warsaw Philharmonic Orchestra, Susan Narucki, Warsaw Philharmonic Choir, Thomas Conlin, Joseph Alessi, Warsaw Boys Choir
Classical - Released by Bridge Records on 1 Jan 2003
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Trombonastics
Classical - Released by Summit Records on 1 Apr 2002
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Illuminations
Classical - Released by Summit Records on 23 Mar 2004
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
RETURN TO SORRENTO - Italian Songs arranged for Trombone
Classical - Released by Naxos on 27 Mar 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Quaternity
Thomas G. Leslie, Chris Castellanos, UNLV Wind Orchestra, Joseph Alessi
Classical - Released by Klavier on 6 Mar 2020
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Best in Brass
Christian Lindberg, Pacho Flores, Joseph Alessi, Sergei Nakariakov
Classical - Released by EUROPEAN GRAMOPHONE on 5 Dec 2023
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Bone-a-Fide Brass
Classical - Released by Summit Records on 24 Apr 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rouse: Trombone Concerto, Gorgon, & Iscariot
Joseph Alessi, Colorado Symphony Orchestra, Marin Alsop
Classical - Released by Phoenix USA on 1 Jan 1997
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
De Profundis
Chamber Music - Released by Joseph Alessi on 1 Jul 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
French Wind Band Classics
Royal Northern College of Music Wind Orchestra, Joseph Alessi, Timothy Reynish
Classical - Released by Chandos on 1 Nov 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Diversions: Music for Trombone
Classical - Released by Albany on 1 Dec 2011
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Beyond the End of the Century
Classical - Released by Summit Records on 1 Sep 2001
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Rouse: Trombone Concerto (Recorded 1992) (Live)
New York Philharmonic, Joseph Alessi, Leonard Slatkin
Concertos - Released by New York Philharmonic on 8 Dec 2017
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Philip Smith Collection, Album 3: The Concertos (Live)
Philip Smith, New York Philharmonic, Joseph Alessi, Kurt Masur, Neeme Järvi, Bramwell Tovey
Classical - Released by New York Philharmonic on 12 May 2015
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Concerto for Trombone : III. Hysteria (World Premiere)
Chick Corea, John Dickson, UNLV Wind Orchestra, Thomas G. Leslie, Joseph Alessi
Classical - Released by Navona on 3 Nov 2023
24-Bit 96.0 kHz - Stereo -
The American Bandmasters Association Commemorative Recording Series: Ray E. Cramer
Ray E. Cramer, Indiana University Wind Ensemble, Musashino Academia Musicae Wind Ensemble, Joseph Alessi
Classical - Released by Klavier on 3 Sep 2021
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: 12 Duos K 487
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Sergei Nakariakov, Joseph Alessi, Christian Lindberg
Classical - Released by EUROPEAN GRAMOPHONE on 13 Feb 2024
24-Bit 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Mozart: Duo No 9 K 487
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart, Christian Lindberg, Joseph Alessi
Classical - Released by EUROPEAN GRAMOPHONE on 14 Nov 2023
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo -
Rock Stars
Stanley Drucker, Joseph Alessi, University of Florida Wind Symphony, David A. Waybright
Classical - Released by Mark Records on 7 Feb 2012
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Trombonists: In Focus
Christian Lindberg, Ian Bousfield, Joseph Alessi, Nils Landgren
Classical - Released by EUROPEAN GRAMOPHONE on 26 Mar 2024
24-Bit 48.0 kHz - Stereo