BIO

Deer Ma is a saxophonist committed to performing on stage and teaching in the classroom. He works to build and inspire his community in the concert hall, rehearsal space, and online.  

As a soloist, Deer successfully held his first solo recital at the Sichuan Conservatory of Music in 2020. And he also collaborated with piano, accordion, and flute and performed in more than five local venues in Chengdu. As an ensemble player, he has been playing the alto saxophone in Sunlight Saxophone Quartet since 2017 and won the second prize in the 3rd Chengdu “Yamaha” International Saxophone Quartet Competition. He was also the former first saxophone in the Sichuan Conservatory of Music Wind Orchestra from 2018 to 2020. Besides, he has attended master classes of John Sampen, Susan Fancher, Eric Nestler, Nathan Nabb, Sergey Kolesov, Shiro Hatae, and Xin Gao. 

Besides, He has been an active educator in his community since 2019, giving saxophone lessons and directing bands in public schools and institutions, including Chengdu Normal University in China. Besides, he expanded his teaching career by co-founding the Music Age Education Consulting Company with his mentor to provide private schools and institutions with customized music education curricula and band instructions. During the pandemic year, Deer Ma, together with another five classmates, helped a remote K-12 school that has limited music education resources build a marching band in Guangyuan, China through online lessons and onsite training. He is also passionate about the music industry, so he joined Pillz Record as an A&R intern in 2022 summer. 

Deer Ma received his B.F.A. in saxophone performance from the Sichuan Conservatory of Music in Chengdu, under Fan Hefeng and Li Yusheng, where he was awarded the annual Outstanding Student Scholarship three times, the Excellent Student Leader Scholarship two times, and graduated as a Merit Graduate of Sichuan Province. He is pursuing his M.M. at the Peabody Institute of The Johns Hopkins University, double majoring in saxophone performance and music education under Dr. Doug O'Connor and Dr. Harlan D. Parker.