Department of Music
Faculty
Rhett Bender
Associate Professor
Dr. Rhett L. Bender (李 德), is an Associate Professor of Music at Southern Oregon University Department of Music where he teaches saxophone, clarinet and music theory and serves as Graduate Coordinator. In the summers he is the Director of both Britt Festival’s Siskiyou Saxophone Workshop and SOU’s Ashland Chamber Music Workshop and serves as graduate faculty for the American Band College. Additionally, he is the Region 1 Director of the North American Saxophone Alliance (Alaska, Idaho, Montana, Oregon, Washington, and Wyoming). He frequently teaches as saxophone artist/teacher-in-residence at the Sichuan Conservatory in Chengdu, China. Bender has played principal clarinet and Eb clarinet with the Rogue Valley Symphony Orchestra, Redding Symphony Orchestra, Rogue Music Theatre, and the Rogue Opera. As a saxophonist he has performed with the Britt Festival, the Des Moines and Augusta Symphony Orchestras. Bender has been a member of the critically acclaimed Oregon Shakespeare Festival as a Green Show performer and on stage musician in As You Like It. Prior to his appointment at SOU, he taught at the University of Georgia, Georgia College in Milledgeville, Emory University in Atlanta, and the Georgia Governor’s Honors Program for the Artistically Talented in Valdosta. Bender attended the University of Nebraska, Instituto Tecnologico de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey, and earned degrees from Iowa State University (BM) and the University of Georgia (MM, DMA) where he was a student of Kenneth Fischer.
An active soloist and clinician, he has performed and presented master-classes at the XIIIth and XIVth World Saxophone Congresses, Chengdu China International Contemporary Music Festival, Montana Saxophone Festival, the College Music Society, the Kentucky Music Teachers Association Conference, the Iowa Band Master’s Association, the College Band Directors National Association, the North American Saxophone Alliance, and the Southeastern Composers’ League. In 1998 he won a first prize in the Ladies Musical Club of Seattle Debut Tour Competition. In February of 2003 Bender organized and hosted the NASA Region 1 Conference on the campus of SOU. As a member of the Athens Saxophone Quartet (now the Globe Saxophone Quartet), Bender was a first prize winner in 1995 National Association of College Wind and Percussion Instructors National Symposium Chamber Music Competition and twice competed in the semi-final round of the Fischoff National Chamber Music Competition.
As a founding member and soprano saxophonist of both the Globe Saxophone Quartet and Siskiyou Saxophone Quartet much time is spent performing and commissioning new works for quartet. Successful tours of Mexico in 2001, and China in 2005 and 2007 attracted the attention of several composers and have generated dozens of new works for saxophone quartet. As a member of Trillium Ensemble with hornist Jody Schmidt and pianist Alexander Tutunov, Bender has performed in Guiyan and Sichuan Province in China as well as Ljubljana, Slovenia. Additionally, Bender is the director of the twelve member Siskiyou Saxophone Orchestra which recently returned from a tour of Yantai and Shanghai, China. In Shanghai they performed at the China Music Trade Show as guests of Mercury Saxophones.
Many composers have written solo or ensemble works for Bender including Todd Barton, Carleton Macy, John Kline, Wayne Slawson, P. Peter Sacco, Gregory Yasinitsky, Stephen Truelove, Mark Jacobs, Derek Keller, Mark Knippel, Jenifer Jaseau, Travis Moddison, Keith Smelcer, John Cooper, Robert Romza, Howard Frazin, Shih-Hui Chen, John McDonald and Tim Waters. He has been a featured soloist with the Rogue Valley Symphony Orchestra, St. Norbert Wind Ensemble, Skyline Brass Quintet, Rogue Wind Ensemble, Emory Wind Ensemble, Ashland City Band, and numerous university bands and orchestras. His live performances have been broadcast over KING-FM in Seattle, Peach State Public Radio, Iowa Public Radio, and Jefferson Public Radio. He is one of the featured saxophonists (volume 1 and 4) on AUR’s landmark seven volume CD set, America’s Millennium Tribute to Adolphe Sax – nominated for a Grammy in 2000. As clarinetist, Bender recorded the Lev Abeliovich Sonata with pianist Alexander Tutunov for Altarus Records. His solo saxophone CDs Transformations and Meldings were distributed by mp3.com.
Rhett Bender is a Yamaha performing artist and clinician. He plays the YSS-875EX soprano saxophone, the YAS-875EXGP alto saxophone, the YTS-875EX tenor saxophone, CSGH Bb and A clarinets, YCL-622 bass clarinet and the YCL-681 Eb Clarinet.
Click to view performances of the Siskiyou Saxophone Orchestra
| Upcoming Events of Rhett Bender, his students and Guest Performers | |
| April 3 |
James Umble Master-class SOU Music Recital Hall 12PM |
| April 15 | Globe Saxophone Quartet Performance at the University of West Georgia |
| April 17 | Performance of 'Tag' by Eric Stokes for the North American Saxophone Alliance |
| April 17 | Globe Saxophone Quartet Performance at North American Saxophone Alliance |
| May 3 | Master Class at the University of Wyoming Day of Saxophone TBA Yamaha Performing Artist |
| May 3 | Globe Saxophone Quartet Performance at University of Wyoming Day of Saxophone |
| May 19 | Travis Moddison Senior Composition Recital featuring the Siskiyou Saxophone Orchestra 8PM Music Recital Hall |
| May 21 | Siskiyou Saxophone Orchestra Concert 8PM Music Recital Hall |
| May 23 | Jenifer Jaseau Senior Composition Recital featuring the Siskiyou Saxophone Quartet 8PM Music Recital Hall |
| May 26 June 6 | Artist in Residence Sichuan Conservatory of Music Chengdu, China. Visit Beijing Central Conservatory |
| June 23 | Saxophone Clinic at the American Band College SOU Music Recital Hall 1PM |
| July 7-11 | Britt Festival Saxophone Workshop at SOU Music Building |
| July 8 | Globe Saxophone Quartet Performance Eden Valley Winery 7PM |
| July 10 | Globe Saxophone Quartet Performance Oregon Shakespeare Greenshow 7PM |
| July 13-18 | Ashland Chamber Music Workshop Week 1 |
| July 20-25 | Ashland Chamber Music Workshop Week 2 |
Rhett Bender is a Yamaha Performing Artist.
Saxophone and Clarinet related links
Link to Saxophone Repertoire List [PDF]
Link to Clarinet Repertoire List [PDF]
Link to Saxophone Quartet
Link to Clarinet Ensemble
