TJ Cole (they/she) is a composer and synthesizer performer, originally from the suburbs of Atlanta. They are currently in a yearlong residency with the Louisville Orchestra, part of the inaugural year of the Louisville Orchestra Creators Corps, where they are writing new large-scale works for orchestra and organizing community engagement projects throughout Louisville, Kentucky.​​

They have been commissioned by the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Carnegie Hall, the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra, the Louisville Orchestra, the New Haven Symphony Orchestra, Nashville in Harmony, Intersection, Time for Three, the Sun Valley Summer Symphony, Play On Philly!, the Music in May Festival, Music in the Vineyards, the Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival, One Book One Philadelphia, the Bakken Trio, among others.

Their music has been performed by various ensembles including the Minnesota Orchestra, the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, the Utah Symphony, Ensemble Connect, the St. Louis Symphony Orchestra, the St. Paul Chamber Orchestra, the Detroit Symphony Orchestra, the Curtis Symphony Orchestra, the Interlochen Arts Academy Orchestra, the Dover Quartet, the Bakken Trio, the Nebula Ensemble, among others. They have also worked on numerous projects with Time for Three as an orchestrator and arranger, and served as a composer-in-residence at the Cabrillo Festival of Contemporary Music in 2014.

Known for his “soaring flute… where dance and song become possible again” (The Boston Musical Intelligencer), Anthony “Toney” Trionfo is a “breezily virtuosic” (The New York Times) musician who is actively building one of today’s most exciting musical careers. 

At home in front of an orchestra, Anthony performs frequently as a concerto soloist and has worked with the Grant Park Festival Orchestra, Orchestra of St. Luke’s, Edmonton Symphony, ProMusica Chamber Orchestra, McCall Festival Orchestra, Stockton Symphony, Riverside Symphony, and Gulf Coast Symphony Orchestra, among others. In recital, Anthony presents thoughtful, varied, and dynamic programs for listeners all over the world. Recent highlights include engagements with The Kennedy Center, The Morgan Library & Museum, The Juilliard School, Festival de Ibagué in Colombia, Tennessee Arts Academy, Kravis Center, Alys Stephens Center, Clemson University, and Ithaca College. 

This season, Anthony continues sharing music with audiences both familiar and new. He is excited to present concerto debuts with Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Longwood Symphony, and the Oregon Chamber players in addition to premiere recitals for the Cosmos Club in Washington, DC, and the Artists Series of Sarasota. Anthony currently serves as second flutist with ProMusica Chamber Orchestra in Columbus, OH and appears often with the Orpheus Chamber Orchestra, Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra, and Jupiter Chamber Players. 

Anthony began studying the flute at age eleven before appearing as a concerto soloist just three years later with the Las Vegas Philharmonic. In 2016, Anthony won First Prize in the Young Concert Artists Susan Wadsworth International Auditions and made his YCA Series debuts at New York’s Merkin Concert Hall and Washington, DC’s Kennedy Center along with pianist Albert Cano Smit in 2018. Anthony works extensively with former YCA Composer-in-Residence Katherine Balch and gave the world-premieres of drip/spin (2017) and Musica Spolia (2021). 

Anthony is devoted to creating positive change in organizations and removing barriers for musicians. In 2020, Anthony curated the panel discussion “Learning to Listen: A discussion addressing the nuances of the Black experience within classical music.” Its success allowed him to create the “Illuminate!” series, presented by the Sphinx Organization alongside fellow musicians Steven Banks and Randall Goosby, which explored relationships between pedagogy, allyship, and queerness in the music field. Anthony is also a founder of the Umoja Flute Institute, a non-profit dedicated to providing flutists of African descent with the tools needed to succeed and thrive at all levels of music making. He is a faculty member with MusicAlly, an international virtual learning platform that provides musical instruction to all interested students regardless

of their financial needs and serves on the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee for the Aspen Music Festival and School. 

With true passion for nurturing the growth of musicians at all levels, Anthony has been on faculty for programs at The Juilliard School and Interlochen Center for the Arts. He presents masterclasses, clinics, and workshops often and has worked with organizations including DC Youth Orchestra Program, Harmony Program (NY), Harmony Project (CA), Jumpstart Young Musicians Program (CA), Edmonton Flute Association, Florida State University, Iowa State University, and University of the Pacific. He maintains a successful private studio of wildly individual and inspiring students. 

Anthony completed both his master’s and bachelor’s degrees from the Colburn School Conservatory of Music in Los Angeles, California under the tutelage of James Walker, former principal flute of the Los Angeles Philharmonic. While at Colburn, he served as Student Council President, Performance Forum Master of Ceremonies, and became a 

Teaching Fellow, where he studied the art of pedagogy under Dr. Robert Duke. He completed his high school studies at the Interlochen Arts Academy in Interlochen, Michigan as a student of Nancy Stagnitta. He has had additional studies with Nadine Asin, Timothy Day, Dr. Megan Lanz, Emmanuel Pahud, and Mark Sparks. 

Anthony is a Burkart Flutes & Piccolos artist and plays a 998 Elite silver flute with a 19.5k gold headjoint. 

You can learn more about Anthony by visiting him at his website, trionfoflute.com or on Instagram @toneyflute