UGA's Connie Frigo to Perform for A Little Lunch Music, September 19, 2013

On Thursday, September 19, 2013, from noon to 1:00 pm, saxophonist Connie Frigo will perform with pianist Greg Hankins at the Jule Collins Smith Museum of Fine Art as part of its A Little Lunch Music series. I know Connie because of her association with the New Century Saxophone Quartet and its Artist in Residence position at the Wildacres Saxophone Retreat led by my teacher and mentor James Houlik. I have heard Connie play with tremendous power and with equal finesse. She holds great respect in the concert-saxophone community, and I am overjoyed that she is coming to play for us. Her performance is being sponsored by Marvin and Susan Price. For more about the series, click here.

Connie Frigo

Saxophonist Connie Frigo has worn many hats as a soloist, chamber musician, teacher, columnist and founder of festivals. Highlights of her career include six years with the premier U.S. Navy Band; seven years touring nationally with the New Century Saxophone Quartet; a Fulbright scholarship to the Netherlands; and faculty positions at the Universities of Tennessee and Maryland. In 2011, she joined the University of Georgia as saxophone professor. At UGA, she is working with psychologists from the Torrance Center for Creativity to measure creativity’s impact on classical music performance. In 2012, Connie formed the ROC Ensemble, a 9-piece band with the purpose of performing in non-traditional settings such as corporate business meetings, to demonstrate how musicians and business professionals can benefit from each other’s insights and work. Her performance degrees are from Ithaca College, University of Illinois, Conservatorium van Amsterdam and the University of South Carolina.

Greg Hankins

Greg Hankins, a Virginia native, is an active freelance collaborative pianist based in Athens, Georgia. He has performed with members of the Atlanta Opera, Metropolitan Opera, Metropolitan Opera Orchestra, Saint Louis Symphony, Atlanta Symphony, Cincinnati Symphony, Knoxville Symphony, Sotte Voce Quartet, Georgia Brass Band, and faculty of the University of Georgia. As a jazz pianist, Greg has performed in venues such as the Kennedy Center for Performing Arts and at festivals such as the University of Northern Colorado’s Jazz Festival. He serves on the faculty of the New York State Summer School of the Arts’ School of Choral Studies in Fredonia, New York. His teachers include Richard Zimdars, Eric Ruple, Joseph Trivette, Gabriel Dobner, Chuck Dotas and Wells Hanley. He earned a Master’s degree from the University of Georgia and a Bachelor’s degree from James Madison University, both in piano performance.