Greg Banaszak
"After many years of searching for a more ergonomic saxophone thumb rest, Rulon and Key Leaves has designed the perfect thumb rest that creates the bond needed by all saxophonists to play without tension allowing effortless technique. I had the opportunity to try the RULON sax thumb rest during our Saxophones on Saturday Festival here in Cleveland and I was so very impressed to say the least! It allows any unnecessary tension to be removed from our right hand, forearm and elbow."-Greg Banaszak (Professor of Saxophone at Cleveland Institute of Music & Case Western Reserve University)Greg Banaszak, one of today’s leading saxophonists, has performed with orchestras and at concert halls throughout the world. He has appeared as concerto soloist and recitalist throughout the United States, Eastern and Western Europe, the Middle East, and Asia, including the countries of France, Germany, Hungary, Poland, Austria, Sweden, Belgium, Egypt, South Korea, the Dominican Republic, Finland, India and Japan.
Mr. Banaszak is one of the most sought after orchestral saxophone soloists of his generation. As one of the few saxophonists active in both the classical and jazz mediums, Mr. Banaszak includes a combination of concerto performances, solo and chamber music recitals, and jazz festival appearances. He has presented recitals in such prestigious concert halls as Vienna’s Bösendorfer Concert Hall, the Royal Palace in Warsaw, Poland, and New York’s Lincoln Center’s Bruno Walter Hall. He has presented master classes at Austria’s Musik Hochschule, the Cairo Conservatory, Oberlin Conservatory, and the Tanglewood Institute and has served as Orchestral saxophonist for the leading opera orchestras of Warsaw, Berlin, Paris, and Cleveland. Mr. Banaszak was the first saxophone concerto soloist to appear with orchestras in India, the Middle East and Korea, including performances with the Symphony Orchestra India, the Cairo Symphony and the Taegu City Symphony. Mr Banaszak has been under the baton of such conductors as Gerard Schwarz, Leonard Slatkin, Philippe Entremont and Randy Newman.
Mr. Banaszak’s critically acclaimed CDs, “The Music of Alan Hovhaness” “Duo Concertos for Alto Saxophone, Flute, and Orchestra”, “Romances for Saxophone and Orchestra” and “Saxophone Concertos”, are available on the Naxos sand Centaur Records label. He has also recorded on the Chanson, DUX, Hyperion, MMO and Open Loop labels. Mr Banaszak recently recorded “I’ll Remember April...Bird with Strings Revisited”, a Cd of the renowned recording of Charlie Parker with Orchestra.
In 2009 Mr. Banaszak was the first saxophone soloist to appear at the 14th annual Henryk Mikołaj Górecki Polish Music Festival, performing with the Vienna Chamber Orchestra; he premiered two concertos dedicated to him by celebrated composer Krzesimir Dębski. He was also the first saxophone concerto soloist to perform and tour with the Berlin Opera Symphoniker Orchestra.
As a member of the National Academy of Arts and Sciences, Mr. Banaszak is a voting member for the annual Grammy Awards ceremony. He serves on the faculties of the Cleveland Institute of Music, and Case Western Reserve University. He is a Vandoren Performing Artist, Selmer Saxophone clinician, a Rovner Products and DeJacques consultant. He has performed as saxophonist for the Cleveland Orchestra.
Mr. Banaszak is a B.M. cum laude graduate of the Hartt School of Music. He holds an M.M. degree “with distinction” from the Chopin Academy of Music in Warsaw and an Artist Diploma from the Centre Musical d’Annecy in France. He cites his successful career on having studied with such prominent masters as Vincent Abato, Daniel Deffayet and jazz legend Jackie McLean, as well as David Pituch, and David Schiavone. Mr. Banaszak’s former students currently hold positions as both highly acclaimed performers and educators throughout the United States and abroad. In 2021 Mr. Banaszk was recently honored with the “Distinguished Alumni of the Year” award from the Hartt School of Music /University of Hartford. Mr. Banaszak takes great pride in educating the future generation of world class saxophonists and young artists. Hailed as a Saxophonist “Tour de Force” by the New York Times, Mr. Banaszak continues to perform world-wide.