Steven Bonacci (b. 2002) is a composer, improviser, and saxophonist based in upstate New York, where he studied under Joan Tower, Sarah Hennies, and George Tsontakis at Bard College. He has written for a wide variety of musical idioms, including chamber music, jazz for large and small ensembles, orchestral music, improvisational works, and music for installations. He has worked with members of the International Contemporary Ensemble, the Da Capo Chamber Players, and The Orchestra Now. As an instrumentalist, he has performed with Marcus Roberts, Robert Carl, SO Percussion, and many others. In 2024, he founded BARQ, a composers’ collective dedicated to playing new music and free improvisation. BARQ will release an album featuring works by emerging composers in 2026.
His music has been featured on WXBC Bard and on WGXC 90.7 FM, and can generally be heard in venues around the Hudson Valley.