The Saxophone Cartel is an energetic, adventurous, experimental, and unique woodwind collective exploring the boundaries of jazz and free improvisation. The Cartel sound ranges from jazz to classical to noise to funk to world to blues to free improv, all with humor and joie de vivre. The Sax Cartel was founded at the IU School of Music in Bloomington, Indiana in April 2003. The Saxophone Cartel is: Morgan Price - soprano, alto, baritone sax, recorder: Morgan Price comes from Rockville, Maryland. He is a senior at IU majoring in Jazz Studies. He has appeared locally with the Monster Zero Orchestra, IU Soul Revue, the Threepenny Opera, The Flat Five, the Mew-Tant Trio, the Art Deco Quartet, and his own ensembles. Recent 2005 projects have included tributes to the music of Charles Mingus. Morgan is now co-leading a band with saxophonist Michael Eaton called the (x)tet, which hosts a weekly Tuesday performance and jam session at Max's Place in Bloomington. A pet project of both, the quintet is inspired by and exploring music of such contemporary instrumentalists as Steve Coleman, Greg Osby, Gary Thomas, Mark Shim, Ravi Coltrane, Steve Lehman, Rudresh Mahanthappa, Mark Turner, Andrew Hill, and others. In July 2005 he served on the faculty of the Birch Creek jazz camp. Matt Cashdollar - alto, tenor, baritone, C melody sax, flute, didjeridoo: Matthew Cashdollar is a multi-intrumentalist that hails from Fort Wayne, In. After graduating North Side High School in 1996 with an academic-honors diploma, he attended Indiana-Purdue University in Fort Wayne. He was one of Dr. James Ator's principal students during his enrollment. While at IPFW, he was part of the saxophone quartet, the wind ensemble, and the jazz ensemble every semester of enrollment, as well as one semester a piece in choir and vocal jazz. Outside of IPFW, Cashdollar also played with several groups (including jazz, funk, soul, reggae, hip-hop, and modern rock) that toured around Indiana and its surrounding states, including the Freak Brothers and Goza. He finished his Bachelor's in Instrumental Music Education in the Fall of 2001. During his final year at IU, he studied saxophone with Tom Walsh, played lead tenor in David Baker's jazz band, led the Mad Cap 4, and finished a Master's Degree in Jazz Studies. Michael Eaton - alto, tenor sax, clarinet: Michael Eaton is a native of Liberty, Missouri, a suburb of Kansas City. He attended IU-Bloomington from 1999-2004, where he studied with Eugene Rousseau and Tom Walsh. He performed in David Baker's Jazz Band, and recorded a CD with that ensemble in 2001. Michael has also appeared with local groups in various genres, including the Bloomington Pops, jazz/rock Monster Zero Orchestra, eclectic rock band Blue Moon Revue, top 40 band Double Exposure, the Buselli-Wallerab Jazz Orchestra, Soundcrimes, Üt Haus, Art Deco Quartet, and others. In June 2002, Michael attended the Steans Institute for Young Artists at the Ravinia Music Festival and was coached in combos by such luminaries as David Baker, James Moody, Danilo Perez, Rufus Reid, and Nathan Davis. Michael has studied privately with James Moody, David Baker, and Gary Foster, and has performed in masterclasses for Michael Brecker, David Liebman, Ingrid Jensen, Dick Oatts, and Nick Brignola. Michael has performed live in concert with David Baker, Jim Snidero, and with Fred Hersch. Colin Renick - alto, tenor, baritone sax, bass sax, bass clarinet: Colin Renick is a multi-instrumentalist who performs in a variety of styles. Mr. Renick earned Masters degrees in Classical Saxophone Performance and Jazz Studies from Indiana University, where he also studied under Otis Murphy and served as an Associate Instructor. Mr. Renick is involved in many creative and educational endeavors in which he is active as a composer and performer. In addition to several University ensembles, he plays the bass and baritone saxophones, and bass clarinet with The Saxophone Cartel; soprano and tenor saxophones with the blues band Eggie and the Timers; tenor and baritone with the funk band GOZA; and alto and soprano saxophones and clarinet with The Mustard Cats Dixieland Jazz Band. In October 2004, he performed in concert with saxophonist David Sanchez and the Indiana University Latin American Popular Music Ensemble. Mr. Renick has performed across the United States and in Mexico and Italy. Peter Sparacino - alto, tenor sax: Peter is from San Francisco, California and is a jazz studies major entering his fourth year. Locally he has performed with the IU Soul Revue, Monster Zero Orchestra, Bahama Llama and various small groups in jazz, funk, R&B, and other genres. Associates, past & present: Tony Salas - tenor sax: Tony Salas is a professional saxophonist living in the Indianapolis area. Tony is a founding member of the Soundcrimes trio, in which he plays saxophone, laptop, and keyboard. He frequently appears with Soundcrimes at various Indianapolis venues such as Dunaways, The Melody Inn, Coaches Tavern, and the Patio; and Bloomington locations like Second Story, Upland Brewery, Max's Place, and Roots. Tony graduated from Indiana State University, where he studied saxophone and composition. Benjamin Himpel - tenor sax, baritone sax, bass sax: Benjamin Himpel founded the Saxophone Cartel in April 2003. Originally from Berlin, Germany, Ben came to Bloomington in 1998 to pursue a PhD degree in mathematics. He has privately studied saxophone and Jazz with Gebhard Ullmann, Mack Goldsbury, Mike Zilber, and Uli Lenz among others. He writes and arranges music, and has played in several groups over the past years including the Berlin Youth Jazz Orchestra and the IU Big Bands. He earned his PhD in 2004 and as of September, he is a postdoctoral research fellow at the Max-Planck-Institut in Bonn, Germany. Mike Reifenberg - alto, soprano sax: Originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, Mike earned his MM Jazz Studies degree from Indiana University. Prior to his studies at IU, Mike received a BM Saxophone Performance degree from the University of Wisconsin - Whitewater, where he studied with Rob Wilkerson, Matt Sintchak, and Steve Wiest. He is now lead alto saxophonist in the Jazz Knights, a US Army band. He has been fortunate enough to perform with some of the most recognized names in jazz, including Doc Severinsen, Bob Mintzer, James Moody, Slide Hampton, the late Frank Mantooth, Clay Jenkins, Ed Peterson, Tom Garling, Tom Matta, Scott Harrell, Clem DeRosa, Steve Wiest, and others. Mike has also performed twice with the Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra, under the musical direction of Andreas Delfs. Music aside, Mike has admitted to many that golf is in fact his true favorite pasttime, and is probably the main reason he is not a better musician! Ariel Alexander - soprano sax, alto sax: Ariel Alexander graduated from IU with a Bachelor's degree in Jazz Studies. At Indiana she studied under Tom Walsh and played in David Baker's big band. She released her first CD with the group, Conspiracy Theory, co-led with Pat Harbison. Ariel will begin attending the University of Southern California in Los Angeles in the fall of 2005. Active in and committed to jazz education, she plans to create an ear training and improvisation method to be used with middle school students. Joshua Goldberg - alto, baritone sax, clarinet: Originally from Massachusetts, Josh moved from Boston to Bloomington to pursue a PhD in Cognitive Science and Computer Science, but he hasn't let studying keep him from blowing. His musical endeavors in Indiana have included the AfroPop group Afro Hoosier International, children's klezmer-rock goofiness with Kid Kazooey and the Ballroom Roustabouts, and the baritone sax chair in David Baker's big band (2000-01). Josh joined the Cartel on alto and clarinet.