Back in September 2024, I had the pleasure of starting to teach saxophone at Meyta Music Classes, a music school in Birkenhead, Auckland. We started with a small group of saxophones, and while the number of members was a bit of a mystery at first, after a few weeks of hard work, we were delighted to form a saxophone quartet in the SAAB format (soprano, alto, alto and baritone saxophones), and it was so lovely to see the group come together!
We worked on Karen Street’s ‘Street Collection’ suite, which has six movements, and we presented the first four in the final concert in December 12, 2024, when we enjoyed seeing dozens of students and teachers performing. It was a really great way to start a Saxophone Ensemble class in that music school and to show a little about this wonderful music group format.
On the other hand, Natalia Meyta, the pianist and director of the music school, invited me to play with her a couple of pieces. We performed ‘Aria’ from Eugene Bozza, and ‘Brief Encounter’ from Nigel Wood.