NCSQ - Connie Frigo

New Century Saxophone Quartet

Connie Frigo

Connie Frigo Joining NCSQ in 2004, Connie has worn many hats as an accomplished performer, professor, administrator, and artistic director of numerous festivals. During her junior year at Ithaca College, Connie won a national audition with the premiere U.S. Navy Band, Washington, D.C., making her the youngest member of the band at that time. As a Fulbright Scholar to the Netherlands, she became the first American to study with Dutch virtuoso Arno Bornkamp and has since pioneered significant connections between Dutch and American musicians and composers.

In August 2009, Connie moved back to Washington, D.C. - where her professional music career began - to accept a teaching position at the University of Maryland, College Park. She is thrilled to be living in a thriving cultural center again. She is known for organizing full-scale events that bring together composers, performers, students and new music. Her career interests as of late have focused on music entrepreneurship, with the intent to foster creative learning environments that use the lens of chamber music to teach leadership.

As the saxophone professor at the U. of Tennessee from 2005-2009, she built an accomplished studio, founded and chaired the faculty chamber music series, and was voted “2008-2009 Distinguished Teacher of the Year” in the School of Music.

Connie is an active volunteer in her Washington, D.C. neighborhood, where she shares her love of learning, music and cooking with the community on a regular basis. On any given day, you can also find her in search of the world’s greatest café latte, often on her bike. Thai, Indian and Vietnamese (Pho) top her list of favorite cuisine – all of which seem to taste better in a small, tucked-away places.

Her degrees are from Ithaca College (BM), the U. of Illinois (MM), the Conservatorium van Amsterdam (perf. diploma), and the U. of South Carolina (DMA). Her principal teachers are Steven Mauk, Debra Richtmeyer, Arno Bornkamp, and Clifford Leaman. Connie also serves on the Executive Board of the North American Saxophone Alliance as the Coordinator of Competitions, where she manages the largest saxophone competition in the U.S.

E-mail: connie@newcenturysax.com