Clarinetist, John Cipolla, played Broadway shows for almost two decades in New York City . He now spends his time performing clarinet recitals and concerts and teaching at Western Kentucky University. He also performs around the United States as a Selmer Clarinet Artist. His love of both classical and jazz music has led him to continue on his life-long quest to simply "spend my life practicing and performing and growing as a musician." Misbehavin', his latest CD, began as an idea John had just noodling around with Doc Livingston between rehearsals and concerts in Bowling Green, KY. There was a natural chemistry between these two musicians, so John organized some live concerts and the result is this wonderfully warm and swinging CD.
He is assistant professor of music (clarinet and saxophone) at Western Kentucky University. He has performed with The Bowling Green/Western Symphony Orchestra, Bowling Green Chamber Orchestra, The Owensboro Symphony Orchestra, Mozart on Fifth (a chamber woodwind trio), St. Luke's String Quartet, Muir String Quartet, St. Luke's Chamber Ensemble, Brooklyn Philharmonic, Hudson Valley Philharmonic, Greensboro Symphony, North Carolina Symphony, New York City Opera, Meredith Monk Ensemble, Steve Reich Ensemble, Aretha Franklin, Johnny Mathis, Liberace, Liza Minelli, Tony Bennett, and Mario Bauza's Latin Jazz Ensemble. John was a member of the New York City Broadway Show Cats Orchestra from 1992 to 2000 and has been a member of the Radio City Music Hall Orchestra in New York City since 1985. His publications/recordings are on Sony, ECM New Series Records, G. Schirmer, Music Minus One, C.F. Peters Editions, and numerous journals.
John's education includes: UNC Greensboro (DMA, clarinet performance), Rutgers (MM, clarinet performance), Eastman School of Music (BM, saxophone performance), Juilliard School of Music (scholarship saxophone student of Joe Allard, 1980). John has been recognized as the 2003/2004 Third District Kentucky Music Educators "College/University Teacher of the Year." He was awarded a 2005 Western Kentucky University Junior Faculty Scholarship and First Prize at the 2003 International Clarinet Association Research Presentation competition. He has performed at the Texas Tech University Clarinet Symposium (2005), Wayland Baptist University (2005), The University of Oklahoma Clarinet Symposium (2004), The International Clarinet Association (2003, 2001, 2000, 1999, 1998), Tennessee Music Educators Conference, Kentucky Music Educators Conference (2003), The College Music Society Southeast Chapter (2002) and the New York State Music Educators Association (1999). In 2005/06, he performed recitals and/or master classes at Middle Tennessee State University, The University of South Carolina, The University of North Carolina, The University of Louisville and Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. He performs on Selmer Recital clarinets and Gonzalez reeds and is a Selmer Clarinet Performing Artist. John lives in Bowling Green, Kentucky with his wife and two daughters.
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