Guest Artist Series: Kyle Blake Jones, saxophone
About
Blair School of Music welcomes acclaimed saxophonist, educator, and arts leader Kyle Blake Jones for a recital celebrating the artistry and expressive possibilities of the modern saxophone. A champion of contemporary music, Jones has commissioned and premiered works by leading composers and has performed as a soloist and chamber musician at major venues and conferences across the United States.
⭐ Monday, October 12, 2026, Turner Recital Hall, 7:30 p.m.
About Kyle Blake Jones:
Kyle Blake Jones is a saxophonist, educator, scholar, and arts administrator whose work spans performance, teaching, entrepreneurship, and arts leadership. A passionate advocate for new music and equitable practice in the performing arts, he has commissioned and premiered works by numerous composers and released his debut solo album, Dualities (Nuema Records, 2025). As a soloist, chamber musician, and clinician, he has appeared at venues and conferences across the United States, including the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, the Walters Art Museum, the Navy Band International Saxophone Symposium, and the North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conference.
Jones serves as Assistant Professor of Music Business at the University of Memphis, where he teaches entrepreneurship, marketing, copyright, publishing, and music industry studies. He is also an active guest artist and educator, presenting masterclasses and workshops at leading institutions nationwide. His acclaimed pedagogy presentation, From the Neck Up: Building Better Single Reed Fundamentals, has been featured at state and national music educator conferences, and he serves as a D’Addario Reserve Clinician and Rovner Ambassador.
Beyond the classroom and concert stage, Jones is a recognized leader in arts administration and development. He serves as Executive Director of Appalachia Winds and holds leadership roles with the College Music Society, the North American Saxophone Alliance, the Mechanical Licensing Collective, and other arts organizations. An experienced grant writer and arts advocate, he has helped secure more than 27 grants from organizations including the Aaron Copland Fund for Music and state arts agencies. Jones holds degrees from the University of Missouri–Kansas City, The University of Texas at Austin, the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, and East Tennessee State University, and was named both a 2024 College Music Society/NAMM Foundation GenNext Fellow and a Charlotte Street Foundation Artist Leadership Institute Fellow.
⭐ Monday, October 12, 2026, Turner Recital Hall, 7:30 p.m.
About Kyle Blake Jones:
Kyle Blake Jones is a saxophonist, educator, scholar, and arts administrator whose work spans performance, teaching, entrepreneurship, and arts leadership. A passionate advocate for new music and equitable practice in the performing arts, he has commissioned and premiered works by numerous composers and released his debut solo album, Dualities (Nuema Records, 2025). As a soloist, chamber musician, and clinician, he has appeared at venues and conferences across the United States, including the Kauffman Center for the Performing Arts, the Walters Art Museum, the Navy Band International Saxophone Symposium, and the North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conference.
Jones serves as Assistant Professor of Music Business at the University of Memphis, where he teaches entrepreneurship, marketing, copyright, publishing, and music industry studies. He is also an active guest artist and educator, presenting masterclasses and workshops at leading institutions nationwide. His acclaimed pedagogy presentation, From the Neck Up: Building Better Single Reed Fundamentals, has been featured at state and national music educator conferences, and he serves as a D’Addario Reserve Clinician and Rovner Ambassador.
Beyond the classroom and concert stage, Jones is a recognized leader in arts administration and development. He serves as Executive Director of Appalachia Winds and holds leadership roles with the College Music Society, the North American Saxophone Alliance, the Mechanical Licensing Collective, and other arts organizations. An experienced grant writer and arts advocate, he has helped secure more than 27 grants from organizations including the Aaron Copland Fund for Music and state arts agencies. Jones holds degrees from the University of Missouri–Kansas City, The University of Texas at Austin, the Peabody Institute of Johns Hopkins University, and East Tennessee State University, and was named both a 2024 College Music Society/NAMM Foundation GenNext Fellow and a Charlotte Street Foundation Artist Leadership Institute Fellow.
