Dominic Bierenga

Saxophone, Jazz Improvisation, Theory, Songwriting

Troy – $30 per half hour

A dynamic musician and educator, Dominic Bierenga has established himself as a singular presence in the Detroit area since moving there in 2016. With his 12-piece Moving Mind Orchestra, he has released two albums - Future Scene in 2020 and Dry After Rain in 2025 - featuring many of his original compositions and arrangements. He is also a current member of Moonship, the Zen Zadravec Quintet, the Dr. Prof. Leonard King Orchestra, and Northwoods Improvisers. He has made multiple appearances at the Detroit Jazz Festival, and has had the honor of performing at venues such as the Dirty Dog Jazz Cafe, Blue Llama, El Club, Cliff Bell's, and the Loving Touch. He was a 2012 winner of the ASCAP Young Jazz Composer Award, and his compositions and arrangements have been featured on numerous performances and recordings by his own ensembles and others.

Dominic began teaching private lessons in 2013, and his students have gone on to study music in college, play in local ensembles, and release albums of their own. He has been on the jazz faculty at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp six times, and held teaching and mentorship positions with the UM Youth Jazz Ensemble and the DSO Civic Youth Jazz Ensemble. Dominic holds a BS in Music from Central Michigan University, where he studied with Rob Smith and John Nichol, and a Master of Music in Improvisation from University of Michigan, where his primary teachers were Andrew Bishop and Ellen Rowe.

Hobbies/Interests

Reading, video games, Detroit history, gardening