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Soprano Saxophonist Michael Keepe is Instructor of Saxophone and Music Industry at Pima Community College in Tucson. He is an active member in local and national teachers associations and is Immediate Past President of the Tucson Music Teachers Association. Mike’s involvement with public and private schools has led him to serve as clinician, adjudicator, and band director for the Tucson Unified School District and the Arizona Music Educators Association, and he has been an independent instructor of saxophone for over 25 years. In addition to performing and touring with PSQ, Mike performs regularly with the Tucson Symphony, the Tucson Chamber Orchestra, the Arizona Opera and The Rodriguez & Keepe Duo: a classical piano and saxophone duo active since 1992 and has performed and recorded with the University of Arizona Wind Ensemble.
Mike is owner of MLKEEPE Publications, a music publishing company dedicated to promoting the finest of today’s concert saxophone repertoire. Focusing solely on saxophone literature allows the company to take a more personal interest in the composer’s works and helps to nurture the connection between composer and performer.
Mr. Keepe received his Bachelors and Masters degrees in Music Education and Saxophone Performance at the University of Arizona. He is currently pursuing a Doctorate in Saxophone Performance with a minor in Music Business at U of A where he is the Graduate Teaching Assistant for the saxophone studio and the Camerata Career Development Program. He is a Performing Artist and Clinician for the Selmer Company, and can be heard on the Albany and AUR recording labels. Mike lives in Tucson, Arizona with his lovely wife Jessica, and beautiful daughters Temperance and Lucille. For more information please visit www.mikekeepe.com.
Alto saxophonist Daniel Bell received a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Saxophone Performance from the University of Arizona in 2004, where he studied with Elizabeth Zinn Ervin. An example of Dr. Bell’s scholarly work appears in the peer-reviewed journal The Saxophone Symposium (2004) titled “The Saxophone in Germany 1924-1935: A Cultural History.” Dan is currently on the faculty of AmeriSchools College Preparatory Academy, an excelling charter high school in Tucson where he teaches courses in science, history, and the arts. A person with diverse interests, he also spent ten seasons conducting wildlife surveys throughout Southern Arizona and New Mexico. In addition to performing with the Presidio Quartet, Dan was a founding member of the critically acclaimed saxophone quartet SaxMania, winner of two consecutive Downbeat awards. Prior to Arizona, he studied music at the University of Michigan and at Drake University in Des Moines, Iowa.
Tenor saxophonist Jonathan Wintringham made his professional debut at the age of seventeen as a soloist with the New Jersey Greater Shore Symphonic Band. Currently, he is active as a soloist, chamber musician, and teacher. Jonathan has performed in recitals, residencies, and master classes throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, and Japan. Jonathan is also an advocate of contemporary music, and is constantly working with composers to commission and premiere new works.
As a soloist, Jonathan was a participant in the 2008 MTNA National Young Artist Competition, having won at both the state and regional level. Jonathan was awarded third place, finishing as the top saxophone entrant in the country. In April of 2008, he performed as a soloist with the Tucson Chamber Orchestra, having won the TCO Young Artist Concerto Competition earlier that year. Additionally, Jonathan was awarded honorable mention in the 2008 Yamaha Young Performing Artists Competition. In the summer of 2008 during his studies in Japan, Jonathan was awarded 2nd place in the 14th Annual Hamamatsu International Wind Instrument Academy and Festival Competition as a student of saxophonist Nobuya Sugawa.
As a chamber musician, Jonathan has performed in concerts throughout the Tucson metropolitan area including at the University of Arizona’s Centennial Hall, in the Festival Dr. Alfonso Ortiz Tirado Internacional in Alamos, Mexico, and in the Chamber Music Sedona 2006-2007 concert series. As a former member of the Catalina Quartet, Jonathan was named the winner of the MTNA Southwest Regional Collegiate Chamber Music Competition in both 2007 and 2008. During the 2008 National Conference held in Denver, the Catalina Quartet was awarded third place among the top American chamber ensembles. Jonathan’s former quartet can be heard on Arizona University Recordings’ “America’s Millennium Tribute to Adolphe Sax, Volume XIV” presenting the North American premiere recording of Gavin Bryar’s “Alaric I or II”.
Jonathan is currently pursuing a Bachelor of Music degree in saxophone performance at The University of Arizona, under the instruction of world-renowned concert saxophonist Dr. Timothy McAllister. In addition to short-term studies with Nobuya Sugawa, Hitomi Hara, and Masataka Hirano, Jonathan has studied extensively with Masato Kumoi, Asako Inoue, Marshall Taylor, and Scott Wright.
Baritone saxophonist Ryan McCormick maintains a devoted interest in exploring contemporary music and is a frequent performer at both the World Saxophone Congress and North American Saxophone Alliance conferences. He has performed locally as a soloist with the Catalina Chamber Orchestra and internationally with the Arizona Ambassadors of Music. Ryan has also worked with and premiered pieces by composers such as Scott Winshop, Jason Biggs, Alisha Nichols, and Kip Haaheim.
In addition to performing with the Presidio Saxophone Quartet, Ryan has a thriving private instruction studio in Tucson and is an adjunct faculty member in music at Pima Community College. He is also instructor of Saxophone at the Arizona Academy of Music and Dance. Mr. McCormick holds Bachelors and Masters degrees in Saxophone Performance from the University of Arizona, where he studied under Dr. Kelland Thomas.
