Gene Bertoncini, the acclaimed Italian American jazz and classical guitarist whose elegant nylon-string sound accompanied some of the most important musicians of his generation, died on August 29 in Englewood, New Jersey. He was 89.
Born Gene Joseph Bertoncini in the Bronx on April 6, 1937, his connection to Italy began at home. His parents, Mario Bertoncini, a restaurateur, and Anita, a dressmaker, were immigrants from northern Italy. Music was part of the family's Italian heritage: his father was an amateur musician who taught Gene Italian songs on the guitar, while his older brother Renny played accordion.
Those early influences remained recognizable throughout Bertoncini's career. His distinctive approach to nylon-string acoustic guitar blended jazz harmony and classical technique with elements drawn from Italian popular and traditional music. He eventually became one of the instrument's most respected American interpreters.
Bertoncini accumulated nearly 200 recording credits, including 32 albums as a leader or co-leader. He worked with an extraordinary range of artists, among them Tony Bennett, Benny Goodman, Lena Horne, Buddy Rich, Ahmad Jamal, Paul Desmond, Wayne Shorter, Nancy Wilson and Burt Bacharach. He was also part of the house band of The Tonight Show Starring Johnny Carson during the program's New York years.
His career also created memorable connections with Italian music. After performing with the Metropolitan Opera in 1967, Bertoncini later appeared with legendary Italian tenor Luciano Pavarotti at Madison Square Garden – a particularly symbolic collaboration for a Bronx-born son of Italian immigrants who had learned Italian songs from his father.
Bertoncini remained deeply connected to New York, living for more than 60 years in the same Manhattan apartment and continuing to perform late in life. Remarkably, on the day he died, he played a 45-minute set for fellow residents at the Lillian Booth Actors Home.
His legacy bridges two musical worlds – American jazz and the Italian musical tradition that first put a guitar in his hands.
