John Coffey Boston Trumpet Instructor

My Father, Robert Shepley Amato, as well as Robert’s three brothers, Harold, Frank, and “Tank” Amato were all born in North Adams, Massachusetts in a home that was located directly across from the home of Pasquale “Patsy” Cardillo who was a clarinetist with the Boston Symphony Orchestra for 45 years. (1939-1984).  Patsy was a child prodigy on clarinet.

“Patsy” Cardillo received a full paid scholarship to attend the New England Conservatory where “Patsy” excelled and was immediately hired to perform at the BSO after graduation in 1939 when an opening for a clarinetist became available at the BSO summer home at Tanglewood in Lenox, Massachusetts in 1939.

The four Amato brothers and “Patsy”  were all close friends and they all walked to North Adams public schools including Drury High School together.

When I was in my early teen years, “Patsy” encouraged my parents to provide to me a  trumpet lessons with someone in Boston.  “Patsy” made arrangements in the early 1960’s for me to begin taking trumpet lessons with John Coffey.  John Coffey was actually a trombone player who played bass trombone with the Cleveland Symphony as well as the Boston Symphony Orchestra from 1941-1952.   “Patsy” was well acquainted with Coffey because of their

professional relationship with the BSO.  Although a trombone player, Coffey had an excellent reputation as a trumpet teacher and taught an enormous number of trumpet players.  Coffey’s better known ‘commercial’ trumpet player students who enjoyed success were Bill Chase and Don Ellis.  John Coffey would teach trumpet to just about anybody who walked into his studio which was very close to Symphony Hall on Huntington Avenue in Boston.

My parents moved from North Adams, Massachusetts, to Adams, Massachusetts in 1950. The drive from Adams, Massachusetts was quite arduous and would take my father a minimum of 6 hours round trip down Route 2, over the 2 lane and always hazardous to drive Mohawk Trail.  Consequently, I only had 3 or 4 lessons with John Coffey.

I remember very little about John Coffey other than the lessons were about 30 minutes long.  And, the three or four Coffey provided lessons revolved around Arban’s Complete Conservatory Method for Trumpet.  John Coffey was a chain smoker and the studio reeked of cigarette smoke.   John had a very graveley ‘smokers voice’ whose first words when I entered the Coffey lesson studio were “HEY KID!”.  During the course of the lessons, Coffey would also advise me to “TONGUE AND BLOW” or “DON’T FORGET TO TONGUE AND BLOW” as well.  In a humorous way, I always thought that these prescient comments in particular contributed greatly to my development as a professional trumpet player.

I attended UMASS-Amherst from 1967-1972 where I was the 2nd student to ever be awarded a B.A. in Trumpet Performance.

During my studies at UMASS-Amherst, I was friends with at least two trumpet players who were Music Education Majors who were long time students of John Coffey.