Christopher Creviston

Hailed as "one of the world's top saxophone artists..." (Audiophile Audition) with "the personality and fingers of a first rate soloist..." (American Record Guide), "subtle, perceptive phrasing, and flawless control of vibrato..." (Fanfare Magazine), YAMAHA Performing Artist Christopher Creviston has played venues ranging from Carnegie Hall to Paisley Park and the Apollo Theater. 

Internationally recognized as a performer and clinician, Creviston has been featured with some of the world's top orchestras and wind ensembles, including the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, and National Symphony Orchestra, working with conductors André Previn, Neeme Järvi, Randall Craig Fleischer, Jack Everly and Steven Reineke, to name a few. Creviston performs regularly in chamber ensembles with pianist Hannah Creviston, guitarist Oren Fader, and the Capitol Quartet.  
  
Creviston has appeared in concert with notable jazz musicians Wycliffe Gordon, John Pizzarelli, Ken Peplowski, Ann Hampton Callaway, Jon Faddis, Bobby Shew, Dennis DiBlasio, Bunky Green, Jim Snidero, Bob Mintzer, Wayne Bergeron, Steve Houghton, Vinny DiMartino, Dave Liebman, Peggy Cone, and Marvin Stamm, and has had the pleasure of working with pop performers Crystal Gayle, Maureen McGovern, Billy Porter, Patti Russo, Marty Thomas, Lisa Vroman, David Raleigh, Ben Vereen and Kim Sozzi, as well as playing shows with jokester Bob Hope. 

Presently on faculty at Arizona State University, Dr. Creviston has held positions at the Crane School of Music (SUNY Potsdam), the Greenwich House of Arts (NYC), the University of Windsor (Canada), and the University of Michigan. In the Summer 2016, Creviston will be joining the faculty of the Great Plains Saxophone Saxophone Workshop, held at the University of Oklahoma.

Matthew Hess

Saxophonist Matthew Hess is an active performer, teacher, and repair technician.  Based in Atlanta, Matthew maintains a large private saxophone studio in addition to his career as a saxophone repair technician and owner of Saxocentric.  Matthew frequently presents masterclasses on saxophone pedagogy and saxophone repair topics throughout the United States.

In addition to performing with a variety of chamber music and community wind ensembles, Matthew has been a featured soloist with the UNCSA Graduate Percussion Ensemble, and as part of artist Alexander Lee's project, "The Tupapau Within" in New York City.  Matthew has given solo performances throughout the Southeast as a participant in North American Saxophone Alliance regional conferences, and as a guest artist at various universities.

With a large private saxophone studio in northern metro Atlanta, many of Matthew’s students have participated and advanced in regional and state-wide competitions.  Matthew has co-hosted and directed saxophone summer camps in the greater Atlanta area for the last several years and is dedicated to cultivating this concept in Georgia.

In 2012, Matthew began his instrument repair career as an apprentice and team member in the Sax ProShop of MusicMedic.com in Wilmington, NC.  Quickly immersed in the world of saxophone repair, Matthew soon realized his extreme passion for a career in instrument repair.  While at MusicMedic, Matthew learned the intricacies of high-end, meticulous saxophone repair, specializing in setup and a unique tuning and toning process.  Today, Matthew continues to grow his own saxophone repair business, Saxocentric which is provides repair services to professional saxophonists across the country.

Matthew received a Bachelors in Music Education from The Crane School of Music at SUNY Potsdam and a Masters in Saxophone Performance from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts.  Matthew’s teachers include Wildy Zumwalt, Timothy McAllister, Patrick Murphy, Christopher Creviston, and Taimur Sullivan.  Matthew is a Selmer Paris Performing Artist and plays on Selmer Paris saxophones and mouthpieces exclusively.

Shawna Pennock

​Shawna Pennock has been described as “rich and powerful, yet lightly effervescent” (Classical Voice of North Carolina). Dr. Pennock is the Adjunct Professor of Saxophone at University of Nevada, Las Vegas. At UNLV, she teaches applied saxophone, music theory, woodwind pedagogy, and coaches chamber music. She recently earned her Doctor of Musical Arts degree at the University of Georgia. She holds a Master of Music degree and a Professional Artist certificate from the University of North Carolina School of the Arts and a Bachelor’s of Music with an Education certificate from The University of Iowa. Her former teachers include Connie Frigo, Taimur Sullivan, Kenneth Tse, and Robin Ciccotelli.

She has won top prizes in competitions including 1st Prizes at the North American Saxophone Alliance Quartet Competition, ENKÖR Chamber Music Competition, Southern Division of Music Teachers National Association Chamber Competition North Carolina MTNA Chamber Competition, University of Georgia Concerto Competition, and the North Carolina MTNA Young Artist Competition. She has performed across three continents in Panama, France, Hong Kong, Thailand, Russia, and the United States.

An advocate for contemporary music she has premiered over 20 works. She has worked with composers such as Joel Love, Al Thiesen, Sam Lipman, Corey Dundee, David Vess, Kathryn Koopman, Bruce Tippette, Aaron Jay Meyers, Owen Davis, K. Scott Eggert, Sally Wyche Cohen, and Stephen Medlar. Her debut solo CD Fledglings includes new works pedagogically conceived for saxophonists exploring extended techniques. She worked closely with the composers to incorporate extended techniques in ways that guided the saxophonist to properly execute each technique. 

Pennock is currently the tenor saxophonist for the Dasch Quartet. Formed in 2013, Dasch Quartet has rapidly developed a reputation as one of the most exciting emerging chamber ensembles in the United States. Dasch is as proficient in the music of living composers as it is of those of the past. Their debut CD "Necessary Edges" a collection of romantic string transcriptions by Dvorak, Puccini, and Smetana, was described as "immaculate" and "exquisitely done and played" (Clarinet and Saxophone Society of Great Britain). 

Brandyn Taylor

Atlanta-based saxophonist Brandyn Taylor is an Artist-Affiliate at Reinhardt University and Georgia State University. He also serves as the principal saxophonist of the 116th United States Army Band.

Brandyn has performed with the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra, Atlanta Ballet, Columbus Symphony Orchestra, Bent Frequency, Terminus Ensemble, and Chamber Cartel. As a commercial player, he has performed with Grammy Award winners Patti LaBelle, Maxwell, and Brandon Bush.  He has been featured on various NPR programs broadcasted across the country including "Not Brahms and Liszt," "Atlanta Music Scene," and "In a Mellow Tone."

Brandyn holds degrees in music performance from Columbus State University (B.M.) and Georgia State University (M.M.). His primary teachers were Dr. Jan Berry Baker, and additional studies with Dr. Frederick Hemke, Joseph Lulloff , and Mace Hibbard. Brandyn is a Vandoren Regional Artist and a Conn-Selmer Performing Artist.