Andy Wen is an Associate Professor of Saxophone, Clarinet and Theory at the University of Arkansas Little Rock. He is a founding member of the Arkansas Saxophone Quartet and plays Principle Alto Saxophone in the Little Rock Wind Symphony. He has performed in twenty-three states, Belgium, Canada, China, France, Japan, Scotland, Spain, Sweden, Taiwan and Thailand. His performances include concertos with bands and orchestras, solo recitals, and chamber concerts. He has premiered three concertos that were written for him: moduli mundi, by Karen Griebling, with the Little Rock Wind Symphony under the direction of Karen Fannin; Concertino for alto saxophone and band, by Sy Brandon, with the Sam Houston State University Wind Ensemble, under the direction of Brian Gibbs, at the Region IV North American Saxophone Alliance Conference; An Appeal Amid the Razing for alto saxophone and band, by L. A. Logrande, with the University of Arkansas Monticello Symphonic Band, under the direction of Martin Reynolds, at the American School Band Directors Association National Convention. He has recently released another CD, Apparitions 2, through Emeritus Recordings.
He presented the first saxophone recital in the National Concert Hall in Taipei, Taiwan, in 1992. He has performed at conferences of the North American Saxophone Alliance (NASA), World Saxophone Congress, Association de Saxophone de France (AsSaFra), Southeast Composers League, Hawaii International Conference of Arts and Humanities, American School Band Directors Association, Etats Generaux Mondiaux du Saxophone, United States Navy Band International Saxophone Symposium, Arkansas Bandmasters Association, Georgia Music Teachers Association (GMTA), Ohio Music Teachers Association, Pennsylvania Music Teachers Association, and Music Teachers National Association (MTNA) where he was the 1990 MTNA National Collegiate Artist Competition winner. KEDT in Texas, WOUB in Ohio, and KUAR in Arkansas have broadcast his performances on television and radio.
His performances have been described as follows:
He touched all bases in a professional saxophone performance: long lyrical passages filled with beautiful resonant tone; control of phrasal entrances and exits with eloquent finesse at all dynamic levels; articulations and bravura passages that were exciting and convincing; and a general subordination of technique to the point of speaking freely and musically through the instrument. --John Mitchum, GMTA Newsletter
Andy exhibits a mastery of some of the most difficult and dynamic works in the saxophone literature. [He] displays a formidable technique, mature, sensitive musicianship, and a deep understanding of twentieth-century musical language and aesthetics.