​NATHAN MERTENS
Saxophonist・Teaching Artist

US-based saxophonist, Nathan Mertens (he/him) will begin as the Assistant Professor of Saxophone at the University of Colorado Boulder in the Fall of 2023. As an active soloist and chamber musician, he has performed recitals in Japan, South Korea, Thailand, Croatia, Bolivia, the United Kingdom, and throughout the United States. He has performed as a soloist with orchestras including the Busan Philharmonic Orchestra, Hastings Symphony Orchestra, The University of Texas Symphony Orchestra, and the University of Arkansas Saxophone Ensemble. Mertens’ orchestral experience includes performances with the San Antonio Symphony and the Omaha Symphony. In competition, he was awarded Third Prize in the 14th Kurashiki International Saxophone Competition, Second Grand Prize in the North International Music Competition in Sweden, and has been a finalist for many national competitions.

 

Previously, Mertens lived in Tokyo, Japan as a Monbukagakusho Research Scholarship recipient with the Japanese Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science, and Technology. As such, Mertens was the first American Saxophonist to formally study in Japan. Realizing that awareness and access to Japanese music were lacking in the West, Mertens created the Japanese Saxophone Database, a resource to connect the rest of the world with all things saxophone in Japan. While in Tokyo, he performed with the Kunitachi Saxophone Ensemble, the Japan Saxophone Orchestra, Marie Kikuchi, and Emi Kondo. 

 

As an advocate for new music, Mertens has commissioned and premiered works by composers including Lucy Armstrong, Akiro Ito, Sachie Kobayashi, Andrew Boss, Rob Buckland, and Zach Browning. He has premiered these works with many ensembles across the globe at the World Saxophone Congress, North American Saxophone Alliance Conference, and other concert venues. Most recently, he commissioned Anthony Greene for a work entitled, “kWEe(a)r(e),” which centers around celebrating and uplifting queer identities.

 

As a clinician, Mertens has been a guest artist at institutions including the Conservatorio Plurinacional de Música, Oklahoma State University, South Dakota State University, Texas A&M International University, and will be at UCLA this upcoming year. He has also worked with high schools throughout the Midwest and Texas. Mertens has been on the faculty at the University of Arkansas, Baylor University, and Hastings College.

 

Mertens studied at The University of Texas at Austin - Butler School of Music, Hastings College, and Kunitachi College of Music, with Stephen Page, Debra Rhodes, and Masato Kumoi, respectively. Mertens is a D'Addario Woodwind Artist, a Yamaha Performing Artist, and a Rousseau Artist Endorser, and performs exclusively on these products.

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ネブラスカ州ヘイスティングス大学卒業。テキサス大学大学院にて修士号を取得、同大学院にて博士号を取得。これまでにソリストとして釜山オーケストラ（韓国）、ヘイスティングスオーケストラ(米国)、テキサス大学オーケストラ(米国)と共演。 GAP講習会（フランス）に参加、優秀者として選抜されコンサートに出演。第14回くらしき国際サクソフォーンコンクール第３位受賞。北国際音楽コンクール（スウェーデン） 第２位受賞。北米サクソフォン・アライアンス・ソロコンクール、アラパホ・フィルハーモニーコンチェルトコンクール、イースタン・コネチカットシンフォニー・インストゥルメンタルコンクール、コーダレーン・シンフォニー・オーケストラ・ヤング・アーティストコンクールファイナリスト受賞。

 

文部科学省研究生奨学金を得る初のアメリカ人サクソフォーン奏者として東京を拠点に、国立音楽大学に留学中。日本のサクソフォーン演奏と教育学を主に研究。これまでにサクソフォーンをデブラ・ロードス、スティーブン・ペイジ、雲井雅人の各氏に師事。博士（音楽）。

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