Dr. Joshua Heaney is a saxophonist and music educator based in Oklahoma City. Described as, “a sparkling and emotionally charged elixir of sound” (Morning Classics with Mary Claire Murphy), Dr. Heaney’s music and research have taken him to Italy, Switzerland, and throughout the United States for regional and national conferences, festivals, music series, and radio programs. Striving for human connection through contemporary music, Dr. Heaney has commissioned and premiered over 40 works, collaborating with composers such as Augusta Read Thomas, Marc Mellits, Marilyn Shrude, Matthew Kennedy, Viet Cuong, Evan Ziporyn, and many others. A musician in demand, Dr. Heaney most recently performed as a concerto soloist with the Oklahoma City Symphonic Band, Keene State College Concert Band, Heidelberg University Symphonic Band, Atlanta Chamber Collective, Georgia State University Wind Ensemble, among others. He has also performed in the Oklahoma City Philharmonic, Fort Wayne Philharmonic, Lima Symphony, Macon Symphony, Snow Pond Music Festival Orchestra, and the Eastern Music Festival Pops. Dr. Heaney can be heard on his debut album ALCHEMY (Clarinet & Saxophone Classics Recordings) alongside pianist Benjamin T. Nylander, commercial single releases of music by Steve Reich and Viet Cuong, and commercial album releases by composers Stephen Woods and Matthew Quayle.
Dr. Heaney serves as Saxophone Instructor & Recruitment Coordinator at Oklahoma City University’s Wanda L. Bass School of Music and directs the Oklahoma Saxophone Ensemble. During summers, Dr. Heaney teaches saxophone at New England Music Camp as well as the internationally recognized Frederick L. Hemke Saxophone Institute at Snow Pond Music Festival. Dr. Heaney holds music degrees from Susquehanna University, Georgia State, and Bowling Green State University (DMA). His teachers include Gail B. Levinsky, Jan Baker, John Sampen, David Bixler, and Frederick L. Hemke.
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