Ithaca College

Steven Mauk, professor of saxophone, was recently honored by the North American Saxophone Alliance with an honorary life membership. This is the highest award presented by the US/Canadian association and was bestowed at their Biennial Conference held at Arizona State University (Tempe) from March 15-18. Included in the short list of past honorees are Sonny Rollins and Jamey Aebersold (jazz legends), and Sigurd Raschér, Jean-Marie Londeix, Larry Teal, Donald Sinta, Frederick Hemke, and Eugene Rousseau (classical artists/pedagogues). The award is given for significant contributions in the fields of saxophone performance, pedagogy, research/scholarship, and service.

Mauk also presented a performance at this conference. He played Karel Husa's Sonatina for soprano saxophone and piano (1945/2012), an arrangement that he prepared of a composition originally written for violin and piano. This is only the latest piece in a collaborative project between Husa and Mauk to transcribe previous works by this composer for the saxophone.