Federico Bonacossa, D.M.A.

Associate Teaching Professor | Music History and Music Theory

Email: fbonacos@fiu.edu

Location: WPAC 144B

Federico Bonacossa is Associate Teaching Professor of Music Theory at the Herbert and Nicole Wertheim School of Music & Performing Arts at Florida International University, where he teaches music theory, musicology, and MIDI technology.

Bonacossa’s musical path began in his early teenage years playing punk music and skateboarding, before a chance encounter with a classical guitar recording of Mussorgsky’s Pictures at an Exhibition sparked a deep interest in classical music. He went on to study classical guitar at the Conservatorio Statale G. P. da Palestrina in Italy, and later moved to the United States, earning a master’s degree from the Peabody Conservatory and a doctorate in classical guitar performance and music theory from the University of Miami. He also holds a master’s degree in music composition from Florida International University, where he focused on composition and electronic music.

His eclectic work creative work spans electronic and computer-assisted composition, acoustic and improvisational forms, interdisciplinary collaborations, as well as traditional forms and materials. In 2024, New Focus Recordings released Elettroarmonico, an album of his electroacoustic works. Most recently, his piece Rests on Water for flute, digital guitar, and electronics was featured on an experimental music anthology by Soundologia Records. His compositions have been performed across the U.S. and internationally at festivals and conferences, including the International Guitar Research Conference at CUNY Buffalo and MOXsonic, where he presented innovative microtonal works for digital guitar.

Bonacossa has composed extensively for dance, particularly in collaboration with Dance NOW! Miami. His works for the company include This Moment Here and Anusim: What Is Hidden Is Never Lost, an acclaimed work that was performed across the U.S. and internationally. His latest collaboration with DNM, Terra Mia, recently premiered at the Broward Center for the Performing Arts. He has also collaborated with GodoyPradera Creations, most recently on Brookdale, an autobiographical work that has been performed in the Czech Republic, Germany, and Spain.

As a performer, Bonacossa is committed to promoting contemporary music, especially those featuring electronics, microtonality, and alternative tunings. He is co-founder of The Last Hundred Ensemble, a group dedicated to music composed within the last century. The ensemble’s debut album, released in 2022, features his composition Omaggio a Marinetti—an eclectic work for soprano, harp, electric guitar, and percussion (including balloons), inspired by the futurist poetry of F. T. Marinetti.