Yamaha Performing Artist, Ken Nigro, has over 25 years of experience teaching college at the University of Miami, CCSU, UCONN, NVCC, and he’s now teaching saxophone and clarinet here at Southern Connecticut State University.  In addition to teaching sax and clarinet at the college level, he’s also taught jazz ensemble, combo, improvisation, sax ensemble, clarinet, flute, and woodwind methods. He performs with orchestras, ensembles, and shows such as “A Chorus Line” (national touring company), “Happy Days” (2007 premier performance at Goodspeed in Chester) and “Chicago” (touring company).  He also backs artists such as Aretha Franklin, John Pizzarelli, the Temptations, and Manhattan Transfer. The Ken Nigro Band is a nonet featuring music from Supersax, original compositions, and unique arrangements of jazz styles with vocals from the ’50s through the present.

Ken is an adjunct woodwind lecturer at the Taft School in Watertown, CT, he’s a visiting woodwind artist for the Waterbury Arts Magnet School in Waterbury, CT, and teaches a jazz improvisation program at Cheshire High School. Ken’s performance highlights include venues such as the Newport Jazz Festival (Saratoga), Friehofer’s Jazz Festival (Hartford) and the White Nights Jazz Festival in Russia. Ken is featured as a soloist on the New Millennium Jazz Ensemble’s CD. He’s also been very active adjudicating, conducting and presenting clinics in the Northeast. Ken plays Yamaha instruments and uses AMT microphones.