The Wind Ensemble, directed by Jason Caslor, in the Herberger Institute School of Music, Dance, and Theatre at Arizona State University honors its rich history while reflecting the “state of the art” through dynamic and innovative performances. The Wind Bands at ASU have performed multiple times at national conventions of the College Band Directors National Association (CBDNA), the American Bandmaster’s Association (ABA), the Music Educators’ National Conference (MENC), and the Midwest International Clinic.

Hailed as “one of the world’s top saxophone artists” (Audiophile Audition) with “the personality and fingers of a first-rate soloist” (American Record Guide), “subtle, perceptive phrasing, and flawless control of vibrato” (Fanfare Magazine), Yamaha Artist Christopher Creviston has been featured in venues ranging from Carnegie Hall to Paisley Park and the Apollo Theater.

As soloist and with the Capitol Quartet, Creviston has been showcased with outstanding ensembles across the U.S., including the National Symphony Orchestra, the Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, the Indianapolis Symphony Orchestra, and many others. As a recitalist and clinician, he concertizes globally with the Capitol Quartet, and in the Creviston Duo with pianist Hannah Creviston.

Creviston’s recent releases include the premiere recordings of the Soprano Saxophone Concerto by Pulitzer Prize Finalist Carter Pann (Jeffrey Meyer conducting the Arizona State University Symphony Orchestra), and the Concerto for Soprano Saxophone and Band by Pulitzer Prize Winner William Bolcom (Gary Hill conducting the Arizona State University Wind Orchestra).

The Creviston Duo’s recordings include the CDs Phoenix Rising and Breaking, presenting works specifically commissioned (or co-commissioned) by the duo from recognized composers Stacy Garrop, Carter Pann, John Anthony Lennon, Mark Lanz Weiser, Katherine Hoover, John Fitz Rogers, and Eric Mandat. These and several other Creviston recordings can be found on Spotify and other digital media.

Now on the faculty at Arizona State University, Professor Creviston has held positions at the Crane School of Music (SUNY Potsdam), the Greenwich House of Arts (NYC), the University of Windsor (Canada), and the University of Michigan, and serves on the faculty of the Great Plains Saxophone Workshop. His students have garnered accolades at some of the world's most prestigious competitions, including the Fischoff Chamber Music Competition, the American Prize, the MTNA National Competition, the Coltman Chamber Music Competition, and many others.

Creviston is a Yamaha Artist and a Past President of the North American Saxophone Alliance.

Joshua Gardner is Clinical Associate Professor of Music and Director of the Performance Physiology Research Laboratory at Arizona State University, where he has taught since 2011. He maintains an active performance career, performing with several ensembles, including the internationally recognized Paradise Winds and Égide Duo, and is a frequent soloist with high school and college ensembles. He has performed and lectured at conferences for the International Clarinet Association, European Clarinet Association, International Double Reed Society, and North American Saxophone Alliance and has been featured on American Public Radio’s Performance Today.

In addition to performing and teaching, Gardner has a strong interest in woodwind pedagogy and research. He won first prize at the International Clarinet Association Research Competition in 2008 and has presented lectures on tongue motion during clarinet performance throughout the US, often accompanied by live tongue imaging. He is currently exploring the use of ultrasound for quantified research and performance diagnostics. As part of the PPR Lab, Gardner often mentors student research initiatives ranging from examining embouchure force dynamics using thin-film force transducers to exploring non-articulatory tongue motion during saxophone performance using ultrasound imaging. He is also a member of the interdisciplinary ASU research group, SAMBA – Science of Art, Music, and Brain Activity. The group plans to integrate ecologically-based perceptual scene-analysis theory, music performance and education principles, and neural brain modeling tests to further our understanding of music perception and education. They recently won a collaborative grant with neuroscientists from the Mayo Clinic to develop pre-surgical mapping procedures to preserve cognitive functions important to professional musician patients.

Dr. Gardner received Bachelor’s degrees in Music Education and Clarinet Performance from the University of Kentucky and the Doctor of Musical Arts degree from Arizona State University. Gardner is a Henri Selmer Paris/Conn-Selmer Performing Artist playing Privilege clarinets, a Silverstein Pro Team Artist, and uses Vandoren mouthpieces.

Born and raised in North Battleford, Saskatchewan, Canada, Jason Caslor is currently an associate professor of music and the director of bands at Arizona State University (ASU). In addition to directing the wind ensemble, he also mentors graduate conducting students and teaches undergraduate and graduate conducting courses. Recent highlights include the first commercial recordings of Kevin Day’s 2022 Pulitzer Prize in Music nominated Concerto for Wind Ensemble and Carter Pann’s Double Concerto “Baroque” with the ASU Wind Ensemble.

From 2015–2019, Caslor was an assistant professor and the associate director of bands and orchestras at ASU. Highlights of that time include founding the now firmly established ASU Philharmonia and being nominated for ASU’s Outstanding Master’s Mentor Award. From 2010-2015, Caslor was an assistant professor of instrumental conducting at Memorial University in St. John’s, Newfoundland, Canada where he conducted the wind ensemble and oversaw the undergraduate and graduate instrumental conducting programs. Prior to that, he spent three seasons as resident conductor with the Thunder Bay Symphony Orchestra (TBSO). During his tenure with the TBSO, he conducted more than 75 concerts (including a CBC Radio national broadcast) and recorded a full-length, internationally distributed CD with Canadian blues artist Rita Chiarelli.

A Conn-Selmer Educational Clinician, Caslor has guest conducted or adjudicated in every province in Canada and throughout the United States. In addition to numerous regional engagements, Caslor has conducted the United States Army Field Band, the National Youth Band of Canada, the South Dakota All-State Band, the South Dakota Intercollegiate Band, and the Alberta Wind Symphony. He also served as a conducting clinician for the inaugural CASMEC Conducting Symposium.

A fiercely proud Canadian currently living amongst cacti, Caslor’s co-founding and leadership over the Canadian Band Association’s (CBA) Howard Cable Memorial Prize in Composition lead to him being the recipient of the CBA’s 2022 International Band Award. The award recognizes those individuals who have embraced the ideals of the CBA and have contributed to the promotion, growth and development of the musical, educational, and cultural values of Canadian bands outside of Canada.

As a researcher, he has presented his work at the Midwest Band and Orchestra Clinic, the WASBE International Conference, the CBDNA National Conference, the IGEB International Conference on Wind Music, the International Society for Music Education World Conference, and the Riksförbundet Unga Musikanter Wind Band Symposium (Sweden). He has also published numerous articles, most prominently in the Canadian Winds journal.

Caslor completed his doctorate in conducting at Arizona State University. Prior to earning a master's in conducting from the University of Manitoba, he earned dual bachelor's in music and education from the University of Saskatchewan, Canada.

Featuring ASU faculty Christopher Creviston (saxophone) and Joshua T. Gardner (clarinet), supported by the ASU Wind Ensemble, this first commercial release of Carter Pann's Double Concerto showcases the composer's craft and humor. From Bach to the Blues, this three-movement work is full of stunning counterpoint, virtuosic cadenzas, and rich, sonorous melodies.