Saxophonist Brian Rodesch joined the faculty of East Tennessee State University in the fall of 2022 as Instructor of Saxophone and Jazz Studies. For the preceding five years, he served as Assistant Professor of Saxophone and Director of Jazz Studies at Simpson College (Indianola, IA). He has additionally served as faculty at the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camps, the University of Minnesota-Morris, MacPhail Center for Music, the University of Northern Colorado, was a director with the Minnesota Youth Jazz Bands (MYJB), and served as Interim Director of Bands at Apple Valley High School (MN). Beyond his formal appointments, he has given master classes and clinics at colleges and universities throughout the United States, frequently presents workshops at junior and high schools in eastern Tennessee, and has been invited to present at the Minnesota Music Educators Association’s (MMEA) annual Midwinter Clinic.
As a concert saxophonist he has performed with the Blue Lake Festival Orchestra, the Boulder Philharmonic, was a featured soloist on the inaugural Aquila Performing Arts Series (Greeley, CO), and has been invited to perform at regional and national meetings of the North American Saxophone Alliance (NASA), the American Single Reed Summit, the International Music by Women Festival, the SHE Fest, and looks forward to future engagements as a concerto soloist with the State Line Wind Band. Along with Dr. Lisa Perry (East Tennessee State University), Brian is a founding member of the Nexus Duo, a clarinet/saxophone duo dedicated to outreach through performance and education. As advocates for new music, with an emphasis to expanding the repertoire for clarinet and saxophone duo, the ensemble has commissioned works from composers Katherine Bergman, Peter Gustav Weston II, Sam Krahn, and Neal Endicott. As a jazz musician and improviser, he has been featured with the ETSU Jazz Ensemble alongside Grammy-winning multi-instrumentalist Justin Stanton (Snarky Puppy), has performed with the Des Moines Big Band, the NOVA Contemporary Jazz Orchestra, the Soya Vista Jazz Orchestra, the Simpson College Faculty Jazz Quintet, and currently plays lead alto in the Tri-Cities Jazz Orchestra.
Brian holds a Doctor of Arts degree in Saxophone Performance and Jazz Pedagogy from the University of Northern Colorado, where he was a student of Dr. Andrew Dahlke. He holds additional degrees from East Carolina University (M.M. in Saxophone Performance & Jazz Studies) and the University of Minnesota (B.M.E.). His teachers have included Eugene Rousseau, Brian Grivna, Greg Keel, David Milne, Jeff Bair, and additional studies in improvisation with Adam Larson and Steve Kovalcheck.
Brian is a Conn-Selmer and Dahlke Mouthpiece performing artist and performs exclusively on Selmer Paris saxophones and the Virtuoso Series RS mouthpiece.