Jonathan Brink is a conservatory-trained musician with experience in classical, rock, avant-garde, and jazz music. The spark for music began with blasting Duke Ellington and Rachmaninoff records from his parents’ music collection as a young child, but his path to music as a profession was a long one that traversed pre-med studies and environmental science studies before settling on an absolutely wonderful career in teaching music. Performing is a wonderful experience whenever the opportunity arises, but Jonathan specializes in teaching and cherishes the ability to work with students of all ages and experience.
Jonathan Brink
His college education in music began at Hope College, in Holland, Michigan, but his formal experience studying saxophone as a music major began at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point, studying saxophone with David Hastings and composition and saxophone with Charles Rochester Young. From there, Jonathan pursued a Master’s Degree at West Virginia University, studying jazz and classical saxophone with Curtis Johnson. It was during this time that Jonathan began to learn flute and clarinet for jazz gigs he was playing with Curtis. After gaining a Master’s Degree in Saxophone Performance, Jonathan began his doctoral studies in saxophone performance, particularly classical saxophone, at the University of Cincinnati College-Conservatory of Music (CCM). His primary teachers were James Bunte and Rick Van Matre.
Jonathan’s performance experiences have been wide-ranging, rock bands in undergrad, various jazz quartets for weekly gigs, experimental improvisation groups, and orchestral performances in addition to numerous solo recitals and chamber ensemble performances. He was a founding member of the Traverser Saxophone Quartet in West Virginia. This group toured Europe and the United States and specialized in jazz and classical repertoire for saxophone quartet. During his time in West Virginia, Jonathan also established the G.F.P. improvisation ensemble, a group that survives to this day. This group would play music by Frank Zappa, Phish, Sun Ra, Masada and music written by members of the group, but it often focused on long experimental improvisations. After moving to Cincinnati, Jonathan was a founding member of the Shredtet, a group that has stood at the doorstep of huge success for a saxophone quartet. They were invited to perform at Phish’s end-of-summer festival in 2018 with 45,000 people in attendance, and in the beginning of 2020, the group was working towards a DVD movie in Poland for PBS as well as performing at festivals all around the world. The pandemic put a temporary stop to all that, but the beauty of music is that it always endures.