Gao Participates in World Saxophone Congress

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Xin Gao, associate professor of saxophone, participated in the 20th World Saxophone Congress, the world’s largest and most prestigious gathering of saxophonists, July 26-31, in Harbin, China. 

Founded in 1969, the Congress convenes once every three years in different locations around the world. This year’s edition was hosted at the Harbin Conservatory of Music, providing an inspiring setting for performances and masterclasses. It attracts leading performers, composers and educators from across the globe and serves as a hub for artistic exchange, the presentation of new works and the celebration of the saxophone’s evolving role in classical, jazz and contemporary music. Selection to perform is highly competitive, with hundreds of proposals reviewed internationally.

At the Congress, Gao was invited to perform the Tomasi Concerto with the “L” Saxophone Ensemble from Zhejiang Conservatory of Music. He premiered two new works he has commissioned or been part of commissioning, performed with pianist Casey Dierlam Tse — “Discrete Structures” by Marc Mellits and “Threads of Celebration” by Yunfei Li — both receiving their Asia premieres. He also presented a masterclass for saxophonists attending the Congress.

At the same conference, Gao’s former student and Truman alumnus, Jichen Zhang (’19), was featured as one of the concerto soloists performing with the Harbin Symphony Orchestra at the opening concert of the World Saxophone Congress. Zhang is an instructor of saxophone at North University of China.

In addition to the Congress, Gao’s earlier summer engagements included performing a recital with pianist Cecila Ratna at the Singapore Raffles Music College. He also gave a lecture on music career development, conducted a masterclass and participated in a filmed interview. Gao also led a full-day masterclass with students and reconnected with colleagues to share new works at the Wuan Conservatory of Music.
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