BIOGRAPHY
Hailed as a “young saxophone virtuoso”, Stacy Wilson has won top prizes in many national and international competitions. In 2009, she became the first American Saxophonist to win one of the top prizes as a saxophone/piano duo in the Gaudeamus International Interpreters Competition in Amsterdam, widely considered as one of the most prestigious competitions in the world for the interpretation of contemporary music. Stacy won 1st Prizes in the William Byrd International Competition becoming the first saxophonist in the history of the competition, the MTNA Young Artist Collegiate Competition, Indianapolis Matinee Musicale Competition, GMTA Competition and was the winner of the Indiana University and the University of North Carolina Greensboro Concerto Competitions. Additionally, she received 3rd Prize in the North American Saxophone Alliance Classical Competition in 2004 and was selected as a semi-finalist in the Jean-Marie Londeix International Saxophone Competition in Bangkok, Thailand in 2008.
As a soloist and chamber musician, Stacy has performed throughout the United States, Europe and Asia. Her recent concert appearances include performances at Japan’s Izumi Concert Hall, Amsterdam’s Muziekgebouw, Juilliard, Eastman, and Mahidol University in Thailand. As a concerto soloist, she has also appeared with the Flint Symphony, the Indiana University Orchestra, the UNCG Symphony Orchestra and Eisenhower Hall in New York with the West Point Concert Band. Most recently, she was a featured concerto soloist with the United States Army Band in Europe, giving two concerts in Oftersheim and Eppelheim, Germany. In 2011, Stacy was featured on national TV performing "The Arrival of the Queen of Sheba" by G.F. Handel arranged for saxophone quartet on the FOX Broadcasting Network. Additionally, she has performed with the New York Philharmonic at Lincoln Center’s Avery Fisher Hall as a part of their annual Independence Day concert. Stacy performs frequently at the World Saxophone Congress, Navy Band International Saxophone Symposiums, NASA Biennial and Regional Conferences and numerous concert series throughout the United States. She has also been a jury member for the NASA Young Artist Competition Finals.
Dedicated to chamber music, Stacy is the soprano saxophonist with the Zzyzx Quartet based out of New York and Washington D.C. Featured in the Saxophone Journal as an up-and-coming young saxophone quartet, ZQ was described as “a superb ensemble with impeccable musical taste”. They won 2nd Prize in the inaugural NASA Quartet Competition in 2008 and are one of the only American chamber ensembles and the first American Saxophone Quartet ever invited to compete in the OSAKA International Chamber Music Competition. They were selected as one of 7 semi-finalists from 211 applicants and 29 countries. In 2010, they released their debut CD “Zzyzx Rd” receiving critical acclaim. In 2009, they established the Zzyzx Educational Outreach Program which has lead to numerous workshops, clinics, masterclasses and residencies at middle schools, high schools and universities throughout the United States. They have been featured artists at NASA Regional Conferences and the Carolina Saxophone Symposium. Most recently, Zzyzx was a featured concerto soloist at the NASA Biennial Opening Gala Concert performing "Hell's Gate" with the Arizona State University Wind Ensemble. In 2012, they will be premiering a new work for saxophone quartet dedicated to them by John Mackey.
Currently residing in New York, Stacy won a position as a saxophonist with the West Point Concert Band in New York in 2008, one of America’s premier military bands. Prior to her appointment, she was pursuing the Doctor of Music degree in Saxophone Performance (in progress) at Indiana University Bloomington as an Associate Instructor of Saxophone. Stacy received the Master of Music degree in Saxophone Performance from Indiana University as a recipient of the school of music’s prestigious Performer’s Certificate, the institutions highest honor for instrumental performers, and the Bachelor of Music degree in Saxophone Performance from the University of North Carolina Greensboro. As a scholarship recipient, Stacy pursued additional lessons at the International Masterclass for Classical Saxophone in Laubach, Germany where she studied with Arno Bornkamp, Jan Schulte-Bunert and Vincent David. Her primary teachers include world-renowned saxophonists, Steve Stusek and Otis Murphy.
Stacy is a Rico Performing Artist.
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