- DMA, University of North Texas
- MMus, Music Education, University of Central Oklahoma
- BMus, Oklahoma City University
- DMA, University of North Texas
- MMus, Music Education, University of Central Oklahoma
- BMus, Oklahoma City University
An active performer of both jazz and classical music, Idit Shner has played in various distinguished venues in the United States and abroad, such as The Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. and Lincoln Center in New York.
As a classical saxophonist Idit has commissioned and recorded new music and performed solo recitals in the US and Israel. Her third CD, Le Merle Noir, featuring music by Messiaen, Bozza, Partos, and Glass, was released on Origin Classics in August 2013. Her previous classical recording, FISSURES: 20th Century Music for saxophone and Harp with renowned harpist Yumiko Schlaffer, received great acclaim and was played on NPR's All Things Considered. Idit has collaborated with Fireworks, Beta Collide and Third Angle (new music ensembles), and performed with the Oregon Symphony and the Eugene Symphony. Other appearances include CBDNA, the Northwest Percussion Festival, Electronic Music Midwest, the Oregon Bach Festival, and many North American Saxophone Alliance Conventions. During March 2006 she played in Israel as a featured soloist with a symphonic orchestra, and performed contemporary music at the national convention of the Society for Electro Acoustic Music in the US. Her last solo recital in Israel was broadcasted live on Voice of Music, a national public radio station.
As a jazz saxophonist, Shner performed at the Diet Coke Woman in Jazz Festival (NY), Bellayre Festival (NY), and New-Trier Jazz Festival (IL); toured with pianist Jangun Bae in Korea and Japan; and continues to perform with her jazz quartet in the Pacific Northwest. Her jazz debut, Tuesday’s Blues, was released on OA2 Records and received great reviews from Jazz Times, All Music Guide, and Jazz Review. Her second jazz recording, Nine Short Stories, received a four-star review from Downbeat and excellent radio airplay.
Idit serves as Professor of Saxophone and Jazz Studies at the University of Oregon. She was recently awarded two prestigious teaching awards: The 2015 Thomas F. Herman Award for Excellent in Pedagogy in areas of saxophone technique and chamber music coaching; and the 2016 University of Oregon Faculty Excellence Award. Her students consistently win Concerto Competitions as well as Downbeat magazine awards. She is a sought-after clinician, who taught numerous master classes throughout the USA and Israel.
SELECTED DISCOGRAPHY
- Nine Short Stories (OA2 22147)
- Fissures: 20th Century Music for Saxophone and Harp (OC 33008)
- Tuesday's Blues (OA2 22046)
- le Merle Noir (Origin Classics 33017)
- MINERVA (Origin Classical 33024)