Kyle Saulnier

Musical polymath Kyle Saulnier fuses the American musical vocabulary with modern orchestral techniques and industrial rock aesthetics. WNYC has described his music as “lush and inventive,” and DownBeat magazine referred to it as “a Great American Songbook of another order.” His compositions, arrangements, and orchestrations have been performed nationally and internationally by the Awakening Orchestra, the Metropole Orkest (as orchestrator), Jon Irabagon, the Westerlies, WeatherVest, the Osso String Quartet, the Vermont Symphony Orchestra, the Salina Symphony, Saturn People’s Sound Collective, TURNmusic, and the Champlain Philharmonic Orchestra. His professional work also includes scoring for National Geographic Television and orchestration for the independent feature film Nude Tuesday.

Kyle is the artistic director and conductor of the Awakening Orchestra and performs on acoustic and electric basses and baritone saxophone. His creative work is centered on composer-driven projects that integrate improvisation, orchestration, and interdisciplinary collaboration, with a particular focus on hybrid and genre-expansive forms. He has premiered works by Eve Beglarian and Erik Nielsen and has appeared with ensembles and artists including Moppa Elliott’s Acceleration Due to Gravity, Brian Boyes’ Saturn People’s Sound Collective, Myra Flynn, Kat Wright, Francesca Blanchard, Andy Gagnon’s LOVECRAFT, TURNmusic, and Cricket Blue. His collaborative practice includes work with the dance ensembles soft rocks and ERGO Movement. He is regularly invited to serve as a clinician and guest conductor throughout New England.

Kyle serves as Director of Jazz Activities at Middlebury College and also teaches in the music department at the University of Vermont. His prior academic appointments include Quinnipiac University and a teaching fellowship at the New England Conservatory. He is the founding director of the Vermont Youth Orchestra’s jazz program and is actively involved with the Music-COMP mentoring program, supporting creative music education for young composers. Kyle resides in Monkton, Vermont, with his wife, violinist Brooke Quiggins.

Press

“In effect, this is a Great American Songbook of another order… the ensemble captures an epic, sweeping sound in a quest to reach a higher realm.” - Herb Boyd, Downbeat

“Political protest meets ambitious orchestration… a reflection on this nation’s higher ideals and a showcase for some of the finest section players on the scene. Saulnier’s writing is focused and sure… this is music of clear conviction, matched by strong execution.” - Nate Chinen, WBGO

“[A] passionate tour-de-force… a unique and masterful work… those influences catalyze into a superbly performed and unremittingly emotionally charged statement… searing solos [and] the memorable unity of sound that distinctive orchestras project.” - Bill Donaldson, Cadence Magazine

“Stunning music… [that] exists in that space between Charles Mingus, Carla Bley, and Maria Schneider… easily one of the best large ensemble albums recorded in recent memory.” - Dustin Mallory, Cadence Magazine