Carrie Koffman is Associate Professor of Saxophone at The Hartt School of Music, Dance and Theater at the University of Hartford and Lecturer of Saxophone at the Yale School of Music. Prior to this, she held positions as Assistant Professor of Saxophone at Penn State University, Assistant Professor of Saxophone at the University of New Mexico, and Lecturer at Boston University. She has performed as a soloist and chamber musician in 26 states, 1 federal district, 14 countries and on 5 continents. One review in Fanfare Magazine calls her playing “suave, subtly nuanced, and technically secure in its every gesture,” while another refers to her “melting tone and touching sensitivity.” She also has an ongoing recording and performing series entitled Pink Ink that is dedicated to promoting the music of living women composers. Committed to new music, commissions and premieres include 52 compositions.
She performs in a contemporary chamber music duo, The Irrelevants, with violist Tim Deighton. Their “excellent playing” of several new works in a New York recital was noted in The Strad. She also recently completed tours of Italy, Cyprus and the United States as tenor saxophonist in the Transcontinental Saxophone Quartet. Additionally, she appears frequently as a soloist, chamber musician, and clinician.
In addition to traditional performance spaces, Koffman enjoys bringing live music to unexpected places. She recently hiked the Camino de Santiago across northern Spain, sharing impromptu performances in 33 different cathedrals and churches along the historic medieval route. In this way, she was able to reach people from all over the world in contemplative spaces while they made their own pilgrimages.
Her saxophone students have placed in over 120 different performance competitions including winning 22 university concerto competitions at all five of the universities where she has taught. Koffman holds a bachelors degree from the University of Michigan and a masters degree from the University of North Texas. Koffman is a certified Kripalu Yoga Teacher and teaches Yoga for Performers. She is also a Conn-Selmer artist/clinician, and performs exclusively on Selmer Paris saxophones.
Rob Wilkerson is Adjunct Professor of Jazz Saxophone in the Instrumental Studies Division at The Hartt School. Based in Brooklyn, NY since 2001, Rob is an Albuquerque, NM native. In addition to writing and performing his own music, Rob is currently a member of Darcy James Argue’s critically acclaimed and Grammy-nominated group Secret Society and Alan Ferber’s Big Band (nominated for Grammys in 2014 and 2017), and from 2005 - 2014 he toured the world playing lead alto with Warner Brothers artist Michael Bublé. Rob has been a featured soloist with New Mexico Symphony Orchestra, performs regularly with the Chelsea Symphony, recently performed with the Philadelphia Orchestra, and has played with musicians both contemporary and legendary, including the Village Vanguard Orchestra, Joe Lovano, Jim McNeely, James Moody, Jon Gordon, Randy Johnston, and Chris Cheek.
Rob’s discography includes his own original work, recording projects of fellow New York artists and several albums of Michael Bublé; including the Grammy award-winning album “Michael Bublé Meets Madison Square Garden.” In the words of Marc Meyers (All About Jazz), Rob’s “…music is personal, profound, and thoroughly refreshing.” Imaginary Landscape, Rob’s debut album on the Fresh Sound New Talent label, reflects his diverse influences and was deemed worthy of several “best of 2004” lists.
Rob holds a B.A. in Saxophone Performance from the University of New Mexico, and a master's degree in jazz studies from the University of North Texas, where he played lead alto in the One O’clock Lab Band. Rob’s career as an educator has included posts teaching classical and jazz saxophone for undergraduate and graduate studios at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, Boston University, The Hartt School, and University of North Texas. Rob is a Selmer Paris Performing Artist and a Vandoren Artist.
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