Susan Nigro

Susan L. Nigro (born 1951) is an American contrabassoonist. Unlike most players of the instrument, Nigro's career is primarily as a solo recitalist and recording artist rather than an orchestral player. Nigro, a native of Chicago, includes in her repertoire such works at the Gunther Schuller and Daniel Dorff concertos for contrabassoon, as well as the Stamitz and Mozart concertos originally written for the bassoon. Nigro has premiered nearly 30 works as of September 2005, most of which were written for her--more premieres than any other contrabassoonist. She has appeared as a soloist with such groups as the Chicago Chamber Orchestra, Rome Festival Orchestra, and the Mozarteum Orchestra of Salzburg, as well as at multiple conferences of the International Double Reed Society, and performed as a recitalist and given masterclasses at dozens of universities and music festivals.

In addition to her recording and recital careers, Nigro was a full-time substitute for the Chicago Symphony Orchestra during the 2005-2006 season; she has also held regular or substitute positions with over 20 other ensembles.

Recordings

*"The Big Bassoon"
*"Little Tunes for the Big Bassoon"
*"The 2 Contras", with Burl Lane
*"The Bass Nightingale"
*"New Tunes for the Big Bassoon"
*"Italian Tunes for the Big Bassoon", to be released late 2005/early 2006

External links

* [http://www.bigbassoon.com/ Susan Nigro's website]
* [http://www.bruceduffie.com/nigro4.html Susan Nigro interview] by Bruce Duffie