{{Short description|Filipino-American violinist (1957 - 2017)}} {{Infobox musical artist |birth_name = Jorge Corpus |birth_date = {{birth date|1957|3|19}} |birth_place = Manila, Philippines |background = non_vocal_instrumentalist |genre = Classical |instrument = Violin |occupation = Teacher |death_date = {{death date and age|2017|12|9|1957|3|19}} |death_place = New York City }} '''Joey Corpus''' (born Jorge Corpus; 19 March 1957 – 9 December 2017) was a Filipino-American violinist and violin teacher.
Born in Manila, Corpus was the oldest sibling in a family of six children. His father Hector Corpus was an amateur jazz musician, and both of his grandfathers were violinists. At age 11, a car accident took the life of his mother, Anita Corpus (née Aguilar), and left Corpus a paraplegic. His uncle was the artist Federico Aguilar Alcuaz, and Corpus had planned to start a career as a visual artist.
At age 14, Corpus began to teach himself the violin. He also took instruction from such teachers as Luis Valencia and Nelly Soregi, and additional advice from his amateur violinist uncle on his father's side.<ref name="Smith">{{cite news | author=Caeli Smith | title=An Interview with Joey Corpus | url=http://www.violinist.com/blog/caeli/20078/7453/ | work=Violinist.com | date=2007-08-27 | accessdate=2017-12-17}}</ref> He won a violin competition at age 15, which brought him to the attention of Edgar Schenkman of the Juilliard School. Schenkman offered Corpus a scholarship, but Corpus was physically unable to make the journey to the US at the time.<ref name="Sand">{{cite news | author=Barbara L Sand | title=Joey Corpus remembered: a profile from the November 2001 issue of The Strad | url=https://www.thestrad.com/news/joey-corpus-remembered-a-profile-from-the-november-2001-issue-of-the-strad/7360.article | work=The Strad | date=2017-12-11 | accessdate=2017-12-17}}</ref>
In 1982, Corpus moved to the United States with his brother. Corpus began studies in Philadelphia with Jascha Brodsky, with a scholarship from the Philippine government. Following the 1986 People's Revolution, the scholarship was terminated. Corpus chose to remain in the US and became a violin teacher, with his analytical skills honed from his earlier years of self-study.<ref name="Smith"/> His students included Lara St. John, Louise Owen, Wen Qian, Chuan Yun Lee, and Katharine Gowers. His reputation as a teacher among violin students and professional violinists earned him the nicknames 'The Underground Guru' and 'The Secret Weapon'.<ref name="Sand"/>
Corpus died in New York City on 9 December 2017. Three of his brothers, Gerardo, Hector, and Rolando, and his sister Rosario Maria survive him. His younger brother Roberto predeceased him.
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== * [http://www.joeycorpus.com Official website of Joey Corpus] * [https://www.liviolinshop.com/blogs/the-long-island-violin-shop-blog/82671428-an-interview-with-joey-corpus-the-violin-doctor The Long Island Violin Shop, 'An Interview with Joey Corpus: The Violin Doctor'. 30 March 2007] * [https://theviolinchannel.com/violin-teacher-joey-corpus-died-passed-away/ "Sad News: 'Underground Guru' Violin Teacher Joey Corpus Has Died". ''The Violin Channel'' blog, 11 December 2017]
{{DEFAULTSORT:Corpus, Joey}} Category:1958 births Category:2017 deaths Category:American music educators Category:Musicians from Manila Category:Musicians from Philadelphia Category:20th-century Filipino musicians Category:Educators from Pennsylvania Category:21st-century Filipino musicians Category:American people of Filipino descent Category:Filipino violinists