Carrie Koffman is Associate Professor of Saxophone at The Hartt School of Music, Dance and Theater at the University of Hartford and Lecturer of Saxophone at the Yale School of Music. Prior to this, she held positions as Assistant Professor of Saxophone at Penn State University, Assistant Professor of Saxophone at the University of New Mexico, and Lecturer at Boston University. She has performed as a soloist and chamber musician in 30 states, 1 federal district, 17 countries and on 5 continents. One review in Fanfare Magazine calls her playing “suave, subtly nuanced, and technically secure in its every gesture,” while another refers to her “melting tone and touching sensitivity.” Music Web International describes her as “brilliant and dauntless.” She also has an ongoing recording and performing series with the tongue-in-cheek title Pink Ink that is dedicated to promoting the music of living women+ composers. Committed to new music, commissions and premieres include 67 compositions.

In addition to traditional performance spaces, Koffman is interested in bringing live music to unexpected places through her Wandering Troubadour Project. The first installment was hiking 566 km of the Camino de Santiago across northern Spain, sharing impromptu performances of Bach in 33 different cathedrals and churches along the historic medieval route. In this way, she was able to reach people from all over the world in contemplative spaces while they made their own pilgrimages.

Her saxophone students have placed in over 130 different performance competitions including winning 23 university concerto competitions at all five of the universities where she has taught. The careers of her alumni are varied, ranging from university professors, premiere military band musicians, performers (including one who has been on five Grammy nominated albums), acoustical engineers, elementary, middle and high school music educators, a Big Ten marching band director, freelance musicians, musical theater pit orchestra performers both on and off Broadway, recording engineers, professional orchestra administrators, private studio teachers, composers, community ensemble conductors, a full time Disneyland musician, a full time member of the Glenn Miller Orchestra, and music librarians.

Koffman holds a bachelors degree from the University of Michigan and a masters degree from the University of North Texas. Koffman is a certified Kripalu Yoga Teacher and teaches Yoga for Performers. She is a founding member of the Committee on the Status of Women+ in the North American Saxophone Alliance and is the project manager for CSW’s Community Engagement Initiative. She is a Conn-Selmer artist/clinician, performing exclusively on Selmer Paris saxophones, and a Vandoren performing artist.