The Sinta Quartet
Gold Medalists: The Sinta Quartet
Saturday, October 5, 2024 | 3 P.M. ET | Gore Recital Hall
Approximately 100 minutes including intermission | Ages 10+ | In Person, Livestream or On Demand
The international prize-winning Sinta Quartet returns to Master Players after their electrifying sold-out debut performance in 2015. Since making history as the first saxophone ensemble to win the Victor Elmaleh First Prize from the Concert Artists Guild Competition in 2013, the Sinta Quartet has won numerous gold medals and grand prizes, published three acclaimed albums, and performed in great halls and nontraditional venues around the world. Praised as "virtuosic to the core" (Textura), the ensemble engages deeply with audiences by programming a unique blend of repertoire that includes classical favorites, modern commissions by leading composers, and in-house arrangements, all performed entirely from memory.
This concert will feature an eclectic mix of works by composers ranging from Antonín Dvořák and György Ligeti to Mark O'Connor and Béla Fleck.
"tight-knit ensemble exploding with power and virtuosity"
-Boston Musical Intelligencer
This is a past event
Artist Bios
Soprano Saxophonist Dan Graser, originally a New Yorker, now resides in Grand Rapids, Michigan where he is Professor of Saxophone and Associate Department Chair for Music, Theatre, and Dance at Grand Valley State University. His primary teachers are saxophone virtuosi Timothy McAllister and Donald Sinta at the Crane School of Music – SUNY Potsdam and the University of Michigan. He teaches a full studio of undergraduate music majors of education, performance, and arts industry backgrounds. He recently completed a trilogy of saxophone methods, the Chops series, currently in use throughout the world and available from Conway Publications. When he isn’t practicing notes that only dogs can hear (and love!) he can be found reading incessantly, pretending his coffee habits are entirely healthy, heading to the gym to work off the caffeine buzz, finishing his next series of saxophone methods The Saxophone Manual, and seeking out the next great string quartet to improve upon with a saxophonic arrangement!
Alto Saxophonist Zach Stern enjoys a career as a saxophone soloist, chamber musician, and educator. A native of Houston, Texas, Zach currently resides in Cape Girardeau, Missouri where he serves on the faculty at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville and Southeast Missouri State University, and is in demand in the region as a saxophone clinician and adjudicator. During the summer he teaches at the South Shore Conservatory's Summer Music Festival in Hingham, MA. Aside from his musical activities, Zach thoroughly enjoys both eating and cooking, and spending time with his lovely wife and objectively adorable dogs.
Michigan native, Tenor Saxophonist Joe Girard, currently resides in Columbus, Georgia where he serves as Associate Professor of Saxophone at the Schwob School of Music at Columbus State University and maintains a full saxophone studio of undergraduate and graduate (masters and artist diploma) students. He has appeared as a soloist throughout the United States, most notably with the Columbus Symphony Orchestra on Glazunov’s Concerto and Ibert’s Concertino da Camera during the 2018-2019 season. As an educator, Dr. Girard has presented masterclasses and clinics across the United States, including at the Brevard Music Center, Eastman School of Music, University of Michigan, and the Frost School of Music among others. He currently serves as co-director and teaches saxophone at the Schwob Summer Music Festival, an immersive week-long music camp at Columbus State University for high school students. When he’s not busy performing and teaching, he enjoys spending time outdoors with his dog, Maizey (Go Blue!), and refining his grilling and culinary skills with his wife, Maureen.
Born and raised in San Francisco, Baritone Saxophonist Danny Hawthorne-Foss began his musical career at the age of 5, playing Bluegrass, American Old Time, and Irish folk music on the mandolin. He now lives in Ann Arbor, Michigan where he teaches a private studio of all ages, coaches young saxophone quartets, and runs sectionals at local middle and high schools. When he's home from teaching and performing, Danny spends his free time learning riffs on electric guitar and teaching his pet cockatiel to whistle movie soundtracks.