The Catalan guitarist Jordi Bonella reference of the Laietana wave and Catalan jazz, died this Monday, November 18 at the age of 66 from pulmonary emphysema, in the town of Caldas de Estrach, as reported by Lluís Cabrera, from the Taller de Músics. Born in Barcelona, he studied at the Liceu Conservatory with Renata Tarragó and Ludovica Mosca, and later received a scholarship to The New School for Social Research in New York, where he received teachings from Jim Hall, John Abercrombie, Reggie Workman, Jaky Byard and Vic Juris, Sean Leavitt, Frank Gambale or John Scofield.
He obtained his graduation from the ESMUC (Higher School of Music of Catalonia) as a Higher Degree teacher of Jazz and Modern Music, he has taught classes in schools such as the Taller de Músics, in the Jazz and Modern Music Classroom, at the Escuela del Barrio de la Rivera (first jazz school in Barcelona), and has held numerous workshops throughout Spain.
Bonell played in his youth with artists such as Carlos Benavent, Joan Albert Amargós and Jorge Pardo, and together with Xavier Pérez, Víctor Cortina and Rafael Zaragoza he founded the group Secta Sònica. Later, he joined the band Música Urbana and collaborated on various projects under the direction of Joan Albert Amargós, such as ‘Bon vent i barca nova’ (1978) by Ovidi Montllor and ‘Pijama de saliva’ (1982) by Pi de la Serra. Later, he worked with Jordi Rossy, Perico Sambeat, Albert Bover and Mario Rossy, was part of the group Bocanegra, and in 1988 founded the Azúcar Imaginario project.
He also collaborated with Miquel Pujadó in ‘El temps dels fanals en flor’ (1982), with Llorenç Santamaria in his self-titled album (Philips, 1983), with Sergio Dalma in ‘Esa chica es mia’ (1989), or with Guillermina Motta in ‘Bestiari’ (1989), as well as with the Factoría Musical orchestra.
After spending a few years as a studio musician collaborating on hundreds of recordings by artists such as Raimundo Amador, Tomatito, Marina Rosell, Dyango and Gato Pérez, he toured and performed with Joan Manuel Serrat, Santiago Auserón, Miguel Bosé, Chet Baker, Archie Shepp , Jim Hall, Tim Ries, Gary Willis, Larry Willis, Mark Johnson, Michel Legrand, Chano Domínguez and The Spanish National Ballet among many others. He was recognized as best guitarist on two occasions, in 1993 and 1994, by the Association of Jazz Musicians of Catalonia. During the nineties, he participated in numerous soundtracks for theater, film and television.
He has also collaborated on the band’s album and tour. The Rolling Stones Projecta group founded by Tim Ries to pay tribute to the British rock’n’roll band en cave de jazz, and with which Charlie Watts, Keith Richards and Ron Wood themselves have collaborated, as well as other stars such as Norah Jones, Sheryl Crow, Bill Frisell, John Scofield, Ben Monder, Darryl Jones, John Patitucci, Jeff Ballard, Brian Blade, Clarence Penn, Michael Davis, Lisa Fischer, Bernard Fowler, Luciana Souza, Bill Charlap, Larry Goldings, Edward Simon, Chuck Leavell , Roberto DiGioia or Mauro Refusco.
In the last twenty years he published eight albums: ‘Agua madre’ (2004), ‘Duo’ (Jordi Bonell & Dani Pérez, 2004), ‘Al Volver Never Se Vuelve’ (Italo Boggio Trio & Jordi Bonell, 2005), ‘Jazz a l’Estudi’ (Carles Benavent & Jordi Bonell with Roger Blàvia, 2011), ‘Live in my land’ (Albert Marquès Trio & Jordi Bonell, 2016), ‘Gemini’ (Jordi Gaspar, Jordi Bonell and Roger Blàvia, 2016), ‘Coral pulse’ (2016) and ‘Musica Cordis’ (Jordi Bonell & Jordi Farrés, 2024). As the journalist Pere Pons recalls, Bonell has left “an indelible mark on all the events that have occurred in these latitudes in the last fifty years: from jazz to pop, through flamenco and author songs.”
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