Saxophones / Woodwinds Performance, Jazz Studies, Woodwinds Instruction
(714) 417-9290 Orange County office
(415) 924-7255 Marin County office
PERFORMING EXPERIENCE
34 years free-lance professional saxophone/woodwinds experience in: recording (on a variety of albums, demos, and jingles), jazz duos and trios, rock show bands, funk, rhythm and blues, pop, disco etc.... Broadway and Las Vegas type shows, big band jazz, swing and society orchestras, including 4 years' cruise ship experience as a sideman and then as conductor/bandleader.
Most recently, has performed with: Llew Matthews & Jennifer Hart, Lauren Koval, Swingtown, Pat Rizzo Orchestra, Mark Waggoner, Riner Scivally, Kendal Kay, Johnny Mathis & San Francisco Symphony, Bob Newhart, Tony Bennett, Natalie Cole, Carol Burnett, Frederica von Stade & San Francisco Symphony, Bob McDaniel, Bob Sheppard, Patti Austin, Tony Curtis, Maria Schneider, Ingrid Jensen, Harold Jones, Jon Hendricks, Denise Perrier, Mel Martin, Barry Finnerty, David Liebman, Mike Zilber, Steve Smith, Bob Berg, Tim Hagans, Donald Harrison, Rodney Holmes, Liza Minelli, Don Rickles, Barry Manilow, Keely Smith, Mary Wilson & The Supremes, Ron Hawking, The Temptations, Michael Feinstein, Hal Linden, The Four Freshman, Marvin Hamlisch, Frank Sinatra Jr., Robert Giaullme, Ray Charles, Marilyn McCoo, David Benoit, Jeff Kashiwa, Crystal Gayle & San Francisco Symphony, Jack Sheldon, Rita Moreno, Larry Dunlap & Bobbie Norris, Cleo Laine & John Dankworth, Morning and Jim Nichols, Jesse Colin Young, Rich Little, The Four Tops, Barry White, Roberta Flack, Isaac Hayes, Joel Gray, Dionne Warwick, Nancy Wilson, Helen O'Connell, Marvin Stamm, James Moody, and many others.
SHOW EXPERIENCE
"BROADWAY" Shows played (in the San Francisco theaters) in recent years include: "FOSSE", "MINELLI on MINELLI", "SOME LIKE IT HOT", and "CHICAGO".
Other shows played in regional theater, etc.....include: "West Side Story", "A Little Night Music", "City of Angels", "Guys and Dolls", "Will Rogers Follies", "Three Penny Opera", "The Mystery of Edwin Drood","Into The Woods", "Music Man", "Thouroughly Modern Millie", "The Full Monty", "All shook Up", "Andrews Brothers", "Wizard of Oz",....and more.
Played lead alto saxophone for Harold Jones' big band the last 3 years (2000-03). He calls the band, "The Bossmen". Harold is the hardest swinging big band drummer I have ever had the opportunity to work with. Harold was Count Basie's drummer for quite a few years beginning in the late 1960's. He also toured for quite some time with Ella Fitzgerald, Nancy Wilson, Carmen McRae, Tony Bennett and Sammy Davis Jr., Sarah Vaughn, and Natalie Cole. He is one of the "legends of the straight ahead style of big band drumming".
For the last five or six years (1997-2003), Wenhardt was Lead Alto saxophonist with a relatively new big band that went by the name "CARMA" (Creative Artists and Musician's Alliance).
Led by Mike Zilber, this band included some of the best and hottest jazz musician's in the bay area. In Sept. 1999 we did a "standing room only" performance at the Monterey Jazz Festival. We were one of the featured artists at the Fairfax Jazz Festival in September, 2000 with guest artist, John Handy. The band opened for Wayne Shorter on the SFJAZZ in the fall of 2001.
Wenhardt was Lead Alto with the Black Market Jazz Orchestra, for many years. The band co-sponsored a nuerous clinics at bay area high schools. Performed for mainly for corporate functions, and occasionlly made public appearances. 1999 at San Jose Jazz Festival.
He was Lead Alto with the Full Faith and Credit Jazz Orchestra. The Band performed concerts twice monthly and in recent years was featured at several festivals, including the Monterey Jazz Festival and the Pacific Coast Collegiate Jazz Festival (Berkeley, CA).
He continues to free-lance playing shows, private parties, corporate functions, clubs etc. Everything from classical, to jazz, to rock n roll....
Primarily a Tenor man, Wenhardt owns and play everything from sopranino to baritone saxophone; piccolo, flute and alto flute, clarinet and bass clarinet.
He performs regularly with his own Jazz groups and also with a saxophone quartet.
DISCOGRAPHY
As sideman:
Pete Peterson & The Collection Jazz Orchestra, STRAIGHT AHEAD , (Fort Worth, TX. , 1986) Chase Music Group CMD-8020
Univ of North Texas One o'clock Lab Band (Neil Slater, dir.), LAB 88, (Irving, TX. , May 14-15, 1988) NT Lab Band Recordings LA8801-NS
Phares Corder Orchestra, REMINISCING WITH PHARES CORDER (Dallas, TX. , May 1992) PCO 200
Univ of North Texas One o'clock Lab Band (Neil Slater, dir.), THE BEST OF ONE O'CLOCK, (Irving, TX, May 14, 1988) 1992 Amazing Records AMZ-1027
Black Market Jazz Orchestra, ART ATTACK , (Los Altos Hills CA. , Jan 17-18, 1994) Sea Breeze Records CDSB-2057
Chet Smith Orchestra, BLUE CRESCENDO , (San Jose, CA. , April, 1994) CSO 3494
Richard Oleson Orchestra, AS LONG AS I'M SWINGING , (Sausalito, CA., 1998) Hep Cat Records
Dan Buegeleisen, WEST COAST ALTERNATIVE , (Hayward, CA, April 17, 2001) Corridor Records
Michael Smollens, Kriya, untitled, 2006 Berkeley, CA
Joel Evans, swingin Big Band Session, Marin County, CA
ADJUDICATION EXPERIENCE
University of North Texas (1988-90) as teaching fellow in Jazz Studies and Saxophone: sat in auditions for jazz band placement and in semester juries for saxophone students.
During November of 1992, presented saxophone clinic, improvisation clinic, and performed as guest soloist at Santa Rosa Junior College, for Bennett Friedman.
Co-led the saxophone clinic at the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival in February 1994 with Bill Murphy of the Air Force's "Band in Blue": The Commanders.
April 1994, performed, adjudicated big bands, and presented saxophone clinic at the Univ of Cal Hayward Jazz Festival, for Dave Eschelman.
November, 1994 adjudicated big bands at the Foothill College Jazz Festival for Mark Anderson. Los Altos Hills, CA.
1994-2000:Black Market Jazz Orchestra. Co-sponsored numerous Jazz clinics at bay area high schools.
Spring 2002 adjudicated big bands at the Univ of Cal Hayward Jazz Festival, for Dave Eschelman.
Fall 2002 adjudicated big bands at Univ of Cal Berkeley, for Bevin Manson.
Summer 2002, 2003, 2004 teach jazz studies: combo/improvisation, woodwinds master classes, theory master classes at Bob Athayde's Lafayette Summer Music Workshop. Lafayette, CA.
HONORS AND ORGANIZATIONS
EDUCATION
University of North Texas, Denton, Texas
TEACHING EXPERIENCE
Recognize anyone? "Mirage" Band promo shot: 1978, Dallas, Tx!!
  This Sax Ring site is owned by colwen@cox.net. Want to join The Sax Ring? |
|---|
| [Previous 5] [Prev] [Next] [Skip] [Random] [Next 5] [List Sites] |
Links to other sites on the Web
Fairfax Jazz Festival
Steve Smith Vital Information
Larry DeLaCruz
Bruce Mishkit