September Update

September is upon us with concert seasons, new school years, and (hopefully) cooler temperatures! As we head into Fall, your Alliance is working for you, and we have a LOT of exciting news to share with you this month!

2026 NASA Biennial Conference

We are excited to announce that the next North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conference will be at The Ohio State University! Mark your calendars for March 12-15, 2026. Many thanks to Michael Rene Torres, our gracious host!

NASA GRANTS

We’re happy to announce the following recipients of our first round of NASA Seed Grants! Each will be receiving up to $300 to complete these exciting projects!

Hannah Hickman

The goal of this project is to develop a specialized curriculum for senior saxophone students. Recognizing their unique physical, cognitive, and motivational needs, I aim to optimize their learning through tailored instructional strategies and repertoire.

A pilot program will test the curriculum, with the ultimate goal of creating a comprehensive guide for music educators to fill a gap in resources and promote the well-being of senior musicians through the joy of saxophone playing.

Matthew Storie

“The Payadores of the 19th century once traveled the Argentinian countryside telling stories in the form of song. Comparatively, the Payadora Trio, founded in 2023 by Matthew Storie, Madison Booth, and Carmen Quesada, is an ensemble dedicated to “singing” the stories of those who have historically not had a voice in music through the performance and commissioning of works written by underrepresented composers.

Comprised of saxophone, flute, and piano, this trio performs works inspired by many different cultures, styles, backgrounds, and experiences. Its commissioned works have included an arrangement of Julian Plaza’s Argentinian tango that inspired their name, titled “Payadora,” and a Cuban Bolero entitled “La Gloria Eres Tu” composed by José Antonio Méndez. Both arrangements were done by Mexican-born pianist Jesús Fuentes. With the assistance of the NASA Seed Grant, the ensemble will commission Colombian-born composer, Felipe Hoyos González, to create a brand-new work for our ensemble’s instrumentation with fixed media. After the completion of this new commissioned work, the Payadora Trio will record its first album. With the support of the NASA Seed Grant, our trio is one step closer to the recording of our album.”

Brian Wansink

“My objective for this NASA Seed Grant is to create and disseminate a handbook or guide that encourages nonprofessional (or even professional) saxophonists to share their music with seniors in a way that brings joy to everyone. These are the specific objectives of this program:

• Encourage hesitant saxophonists to play in nursing homes

• Develop a Guide that shows them how to develop set lists, how to approach a retirement facility, how to set up equipment, how to encourage participation, and other issues that could otherwise prevent them from doing so.

• Disseminate this guide through a website, NASA, and through online sax groups”

THOMAS LILEY MEMORIAL SAXOPHONE RESEARCH GRANT

Adrianne Honnold was selected as the recipient of the 2024-2025 Thomas Liley Memorial Research Grant! An award of $500 will help Adrianne complete the edited volume, “Revolutionary Sounds: Black Women Saxophonists in the Early Twentieth Century.”

As Adrianne describes, the project:

“This edited volume seeks to explore the implications of race and gender as they relate to the saxophone and its performance. By tracing the lives and careers of African American women saxophonists from the early twentieth century, we are compelled to ask: who were these women, and what is their legacy? Why and how did the saxophone act as a conduit for Black expression and identity? What were the distinctive aesthetic and musical practices that Black women brought to the saxophone, and how do these translate to performances today? Combining historical/archival research, critical musicological methods, and the extensive applied saxophone knowledge of the contributing authors, this volume unearths how these musicians challenged societal and musical conventions reified by white, male saxophonists. The instrument’s popularity during the Jazz Age virtually assured its adoption by aspiring musicians across the United States and across genres; nevertheless, the revolutionary sonic and corporeal contributions of these players remain overlooked. By examining the saxophone’s historical associations with—and brokerage of—gender and race in musical performance, we render visible the artistic work that Black women carried out and redress the omission of their contributions from the saxophone imaginary.”

Combining historical/archival research, critical musicological methods, and the extensive applied saxophone knowledge of the contributing authors, this volume unearths how these musicians challenged societal and musical conventions reified by white, male saxophonists. The instrument’s popularity during the Jazz Age virtually assured its adoption by aspiring musicians across the United States and across genres; nevertheless, the revolutionary sonic and corporeal contributions of these players remain overlooked. By examining the saxophone’s historical associations with—and brokerage of—gender and race in musical performance, we render visible the artistic work that Black women carried out and redress the omission of their contributions from the saxophone imaginary.”

NASA OFFICER ELECTIONS

The slate of nominees for the upcoming election will be finalized in September. The Nominating Committee looks forward to presenting all of the qualified candidates to the general membership. Please be on the lookout in the coming months for information about casting your vote!

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT & ENGAGEMENT COMMITTEE WEBINAR SERIES CALL FOR PROPOSALS

Have great ideas on pedagogy, career development, or anything else you’d like to share with your colleagues? Then we’d love to hear from you! The Professional Development & Engagement Committee is seeking applications for presenters for a regular series of one-hour Webinars on a variety of topics! Please see the call, an adjudication rubric, and the application here.

REGIONAL CONFERENCES

We’re excited to announce yet another regional conference!

Journées du saxophone / Conférence de la région 10, NASA

Saxophone Days / NASA Region 10 Conference

24-26 octobre, 2024/October 24-26 2024

McGill University, Montréal, Québec, Canada

Host: Marie-Chantal LeClair

Feature concerts:

Thursday October 24, 7:30 pm, Salle Bourgie

Quasar Saxophone Quartet and Stockholm Saxophone Quartet

Friday October 25, 7:30 pm, Music Multimedia Room, McGill University

McGill Contemporary Music Ensemble

The call for proposals will be available soon and sent to all Region 10 members. For more information contact Professeur Marie-Chantal LeClair marie-chantal.leclair@mcgill.ca

Dates and locations for regional conferences have now been announced for nine of our ten NASA regions! Keep an eye out here for more information as it becomes available! We look forward to seeing you at one or more of these events!