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Kim Pensyl

About Me

Kim Pensyl is a prolific jazz recording artist, composer and arranger who has twice been named one of Billboard’s Top-20 Contemporary Jazz Artists of the Year. A pianist and trumpeter, he has had four Top- 10 albums on Billboard’s Contemporary Jazz chart. He has recorded with jazz legends such as Toots Thielemans, and modern greats like Joey Calderazzo and Bob Mintzer. He has performed at such esteemed jazz venues as The Blue Note and Blues Alley and toured with the Woody Herman Orchestra and Acoustic Alchemy. He has more than 100 published works recorded and over 150 compositions and arrangements in his catalog. Kim performs around Cincinnati and Central Ohio in various groups. In addition to his new trombone and piano composition premier in the fall of 2010, Kim has had two other premiers. In March of 2010 a new sax quartet was premiered at the North American Saxophone Alliance conference in Georgia and a new three movement brass quintet was premiered at the International Trumpet Guild conference in Sydney, Australia in July of 2010. In addition, he writes and performs with the Faculty Jazztet and guest artists at CCM, like Dave Liebman, Arturo Sandavol, Wynton Marsalis, Bob Mintzer, Terri Lyne Carrington, Rufus Reid, John Clayton, and Mulgrew Miller among others. Kim performs with Phil DeGreg and is also a member of the Blue Wisp Big Band, Pat Kelly’s Psycho Acoustic Orchestra, and Carmon DeLeone’s New Studio Big Band. Kim is an assistant professor of jazz studies at the College Conservatory of Music at the University of Cincinnati.