Meet Che Buford

CHE BUFORD (b. 2000) is a Violinist and Composer from Brooklyn, NY. He is currently pursuing his BM in violin performance as a presidential scholar at the Boston Conservatory at Berklee where he studies with Rictor Noren. He started playing at the age of 10 and self-taught for three years until taking violin lessons at the Mozart Academy in NYC. He has participated in programs such as the Curtis Summerfest, Interschool Orchestras of NY, and the National Youth Orchestra 2. He has played for violinists such as Juliette Kang, Steven Copes, Kelly Hall Tompkins and Ray Chen. He has also performed with renowned artists such as Esperanza Spalding, Simon Estes, and Giancarlo Guererro.

Buford began composing in his junior year of high school, and has written solo, chamber, and orchestral music. He created a chamber adaptation of his art song “We Lived Happily During The War,” which premiered at the American Composers Orchestra gala in 2019. His orchestral piece “If We Must Die,” inspired by Claude McKay, was premiered by the NY Philharmonic at its Very Young Composers concert. Che has studied with composers such as David Ludwig, Nina C Young, Jonathan Bailey Holland, and Kevin James. He recently participated in the Westben’s Performer-Composer Digital Residency, Black Composers Miniature Challenge hosted by Castle of our Skins, and Curtis Summerfest. Che frequently improvises as part of his practice while creating new narratives in the world of music.

Connect with Che on SoundCloud