An Interview with Henry Bransdorfer

This month I had the wonderful opportunity to sit down and chat with someone I have quite literally watched “grow up.” I first met Henry at the National Flute Convention in Charlotte, when he was about 14 years old. I remember this young man walking up to my booth in the exhibit hall and asking me if he could try some of the flutes while his mother proudly stood behind him in full support. It has been fun watching this young man grow over the years. Despite some roadblocks, he has made a name for himself by utilizing some of his non-musical skills to pave his own way in the world. I have never seen him happier or thriving more than he is at this moment. I hope you enjoy and you take some inspiration from his positive outlook and creative use of his many talents.

Interview Link – Click HERE

Bio:

A native of Grand Rapids, Michigan, Henry Bransdorfer is a flutist-composer based in Tokyo, Japan.

As a composer, the first movement of his work Vignettes was performed by the Grand Rapids Youth Symphony at their May concert in 2017. In 2018, his work Something… for flutes was selected by the National Flute Association as the grand prize winner of the Flute Choir Composition Competition. The work was premiered at the NFA convention in Orlando, Florida the same year. It later received its Asian premiere in Hiroshima, Japan at the Elisabeth University of Music’s Flute Orchestra Concert in December 2022.

During his studies in Japan, he was also selected to compose music to accompany a picture book about the life of American peace-activist Floyd Schmoe, which was premiered in October 2022. Among his most recent works, his Concerto for Guitar or Koto and Chamber Orchestra was premiered with three different soloists in July 2023. He has also recently completed his (first) Concerto for Flute and Orchestra, also available in reduction for flute and piano.

As a performer, he has performed with orchestras across Asia, Europe, and the United States. During his undergraduate studies at the University of Hawaii, he played piccolo with the Hawaii Symphony Orchestra in the All Nippon Airways Music Week 2019. In his time at the University of Hawaii, he also performed in a masterclass taught by South Korean flutist Jasmine Choi. Other flute masterclass teachers include Amy Porter, Mark Sparks, and Valerie Coleman. His composition teachers include Richard Adams, Takuma Itoh, and Osamu Kawakami. His flute teachers include Judith Kemph, Chris Kantner, and Jean Ferrandis.