ASU Sun Devil Bassoon Studio

Alfredo Bonilla is in his last semester of pursuing his DMA in Bassoon Performance and is a former Bassoon Teaching Assistant. During his time at Arizona State University (ASU), he has performed with the ASU Wind Ensemble and ASU Symphony Orchestra.

Alfredo’s music career began in Veracruz, Mexico, where he was born and raised. His first teacher was Ariel Rodríguez Samaniego. He attended the Superior Institute of Music of Veracruz (ISMEV) and the University of Veracruz, studying with Dr. Rex Gulson.

Alfredo moved to the United States in 2014 to finish his Bachelor of Music degree with a focus on performance at Angelo State University in Texas, where he studied with Dr. Jeff Womack. Alfredo holds a Master of Music from Indiana University (IU) Jacobs School of Music. During his time at IU he was part of William Ludwig’s Bassoon Studio.

For two years, Alfredo was part of the Musician-in-Residence program at Mirabella at ASU. Currently, he is working on his dissertation titled “A New Commission and Recording of Duasteño, and Duasteco for Bassoon and Clarinet by Arodi Martínez Serrano, a Recording of Daniel Cueto ́s Fagot Pukllay for Bassoon and Piano, and a Recording of Noelia Escalzo ́s Argenta for Bassoon and Piano”. He is also a member of Opuntia Winds. Recently, he has premiered works for bassoon and clarinet at the ClarinetFest 2023 in Denver, Colorado, and premiered works with Opuntia Winds at the National Flute Association (NFA) Conference 2023 in Phoenix, Arizona.

He plays on a Fox 201 bassoon. Aside from music, Alfredo can be found brewing specialty coffee at home, or out on the dance floor dancing salsa and bachata.

Jaxon Castro is a bassoonist, hornist, and composer at Arizona State University. He has been a part of several ASU ensembles including the ASU Wind Symphony, ASU Philharmonia, and the Maroon and Gold Band. Before ASU, he was a member, drum major, and composer for the Queen Creek High School band programs. His musicianship has earned him the Director’s Award as well as positions in the AMEA Regional Band on horn as well as bassoon. As of now, he is currently pursuing a BMUS in Music Composition and hopes to learn as much bassoon and horn as he can along the way.

Harrison Cody is from Boca Raton, FL and currently pursuing a master’s degree in bassoon performance and pedagogy at Arizona State University, studying with Dr. Albie Micklich. Harrison is currently one of the teaching assistants for the bassoon studio. He earned his bachelor’s degree in bassoon performance from the Florida State University, where he studied with Jeff Keesecker.

As a performer, Harrison has played professionally with the Phoenix Symphony and the ProMusica Arizona Chorale & Orchestra. In the summers, he has attended the Sewanee Summer Music Festival in Tennessee, and the Trentino Music Festival in Northern Italy. Harrison is also an avid supporter of new music and commissioned the work Dream Thief by composer Yue Sun during his time at Florida State.

As an educator, Harrison has served as the Artist-in-Residence for the Congress Middle School band in Boynton Beach, FL; the music teacher for Primary Learning Academy in Boca Raton, FL; and most recently served as the bassoon teacher for Mountain Pointe High School in Tempe, AZ.

Harrison plans to further his career as an educator, promoting diversity and inclusion and plans to make the bassoon accessible to as many students as possible. He hopes to create a supportive and safe environment for his students to explore and create music.