Dr. Sarah Dunbar

Assistant Professor of Saxophone
(256) 282-5577
sdunbar2@jsu.edu  

An active performer and pedagogue, Dr. Sarah Dunbar has performed as a concert soloist throughout the United States, Canada and Europe, winning awards in ten international competitions on saxophone and flute and performing in prestigious venues such as Carnegie Hall in New York City and the Beethoven Haus in Bonn, Germany. She has performed with many ensembles, including the North Texas Wind Symphony, UNT Two O’ Clock Lab Band, Wichita Falls Symphony Orchestra, Wichita Falls Symphony Jazz Band, Red River Lyric Opera Orchestra, and the Lone Star Wind Orchestra. She will be performing as the featured jazz saxophonist at the North American Saxophone Alliance (NASA) Biennial Conference in March 2024.

Equally adept in research, Dr. Dunbar holds a certificate in Performing Arts Medicine and is an active member of the Performing Arts Medicine Association (PAMA). She conducted a study entitled, “Facial Muscle Activation Patterns Across Woodwind Instruments,” in collaboration with the UNT Health Science Center and Texas Center for Performing Arts Health, which required extensive knowledge in electromyography and human anatomy. This study was presented at the 2019 PAMA International Symposium, winning second prize in the research competition. Dunbar recently designed the first “Introduction to Arts Medicine” course to be approved by the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board and added to the college undergraduate core curriculum in the state of Texas.

Dr. Dunbar holds a Doctor of Musical Arts degree in Multiple Woodwinds with a related field in Performing Arts Health, a Master of Music degree in Multiple Woodwinds with a related field in Music Education, and a dual Bachelor of Music degree in Jazz Studies and Classical Saxophone Performance from the University of North Texas. She completed additional studies at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Massachusetts. Dr. Sarah Dunbar held the position of Assistant Professor of Woodwinds at Midwestern State University from 2020-2023, and is currently the Assistant Professor of Saxophone at Jacksonville State University.

An artist for SYOS Music, based in Paris, France, Dr. Dunbar performs on a custom signature SYOS mouthpiece.