School of Music - Trent P. Kynaston
Trent P. Kynaston (1973)
Saxophone, Jazz
B.M. Arizona
M.M. Arizona
Medaille d'Honneur (France)
Trent Kynaston is Professor of Music at Western Michigan University where he teaches saxophone and jazz studies, and performs as a member of the Western Jazz Quartet, a resident faculty ensemble in the School of Music. He is a recognized artist in both classical and jazz music and has performed throughout the United States, Canada, Europe, Central America, South America, and Asia. Kynaston holds degrees from the University of Arizona in Tucson and the coveted gold Medal of Honor in saxophone and chamber music from the French National Conservatory of Music in Bordeaux.
Kynaston founded and directed the WMU Jazz Orchestra for 30 years. Under his leadership the award-winning ensemble received national acclaim for its high performance standards and creative approach to big band jazz. Notable recognitions include 1995 and 1998 winner in the college big band category of the Down Beat magazine annual “DB” student music awards, a heralded performance in New York City′s Carnegie Hall, thirteen consecutive performances at the Detroit International Jazz Festival, annual Outstanding Band recognitions at the Notre Dame Collegiate Jazz Festival, and performances at the 1995 and 1996 IAJE International Conferences. The ensemble′s CDs, Spritely Overdue (1996), Disposable Income (1997), Blue Miles (1998), Sweet Tango (1999), and Cosmosis (2001), have received rave reviews from the United States to London, and are available on Sea Breeze Vista Recordings.
Kynaston has published numerous compositions, books, and articles on various aspects of music. In 1990 he arranged and orchestrated the score to Brel, l'escapade de musique, a very successful review of the music of French singer/songwriter Jacque Brel, which ran in an Off-Broadway production in New York City in 1995. He has performed with such notable jazz artists as Art Farmer, Red Rodney, Billy Hart, Bobby Shew, Mark Murphy, Kenny Werner, and Randy Brecker. His recordings with the Western Jazz Quartet include Live at the Akwarium Jazz Club (Warsaw, Poland), Firebird (listed in the January 2000 issue of Down Beat magazine as one of the best CDs of the 1990s), Blue Harts, and Sabine's Dance (on Sea Breeze Jazz), all featuring Billy Hart, Turtles (with Randy Brecker), The Waning Moon (1999) on Universal, and Mayan Myths on Sea Breeze Jazz. In addition, Kynaston is the recipient of Down Beat magazine's annual Achievement Award for Jazz Education, and the Outstanding Service Award and Dean's Outstanding Teaching Award from the WMU College of Fine Arts. He received the Western Michigan University Distinguished Teaching Award in 2007, and was WMU's 2008 "Professor of the Year."
Music Samples
 |
Title: III. Cadenza (MP3) Mike Mower - Concerto for Alto Saxophone and Wind Orchestra |
|
Title: I. The Summons (MP3) John Harbison - San Antonio |
|
Title: III. Couples' Dance (MP3) John Harbison - San Antonio |
|
Title: III. Allegro Giocoso (MP3) Robert Muczynski - Concerto |
|
Title: The Warrior Temple (MP3) Trent Kynaston from Mayan Myths |
Email: trent.kynaston@wmich.edu