About

Leigha Turner is a saxophonist, composer, and educator from Greenville, South Carolina, whose work is driven by a passion for sharing the joy and power of music with others. She currently serves as a band director at a school in South Carolina, where she works to develop students’ musical skills and passion for performance. 

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Leigha holds a Master’s degree in Music Composition from Stephen F. Austin State University, where she continued developing her craft as a composer, performer, and educator. Her graduate studies allowed her to expand her compositional voice, explore new approaches to music education, and develop innovative ideas for musical expression.

As a composer, Leigha was selected as a finalist for the International Wind Academy Festival Composition Competition with her work Ionic, which was performed in Shenzhen, China. She has also composed Contours, a saxophone sonata that explores the expressive capabilities and distinctive sound of the saxophone. The work was premiered by Dr. Caleb Carpenter of Allen University and has been performed at the University of Georgia, the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, and additional venues.

Leigha studied saxophone at the University of Georgia with Connie Frigo and performed in the university’s Wind Ensemble.

 

In addition to her classical performance background, she has extensive experience as a composer and arranger in the marching arts, writing and arranging original shows and working  as a woodwind instructor with marching programs throughout South Carolina and Georgia.

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