91³Ô¹ÏÍø

U.S.-based saxophonist Nathan Mertens (he/him) currently teaches at the 91³Ô¹ÏÍø. For Mertens, teaching the next generation of musicians is a great honor, and he is constantly reshaping the ways he teaches and mentors students. Through his past teaching and performing experiences around the world, and additional education with the Global Leaders Institute, Mertens aims to develop saxophonists who serve as socially and culturally responsible stewards of music, remaining deeply connected to their communities.

One of the core tenets of Mertens’ artistry is teaching and performing music that represents and reflects our shared world and current realities. This commitment has led him to commission and premiere 40+ works, with upcoming projects with Anthony R. Green and Zinia Chan. During the 2025–2026 school year, Mertens will embark on a recital tour with UK saxophonist Gillian Blair, perform David Maslanka’s Saxophone Quartet Concerto, present at the Midwest Clinic, premiere new commissions that blend saxophone with house/dance music and share the stage with Japanese and American artists in a Potpourri chamber saxophone concert at Suntory Hall. Moreover, as a queer individual and a former scholar in Japan, Mertens’ performance output centers around uplifting and highlighting Japanese composers and LGBTQIA2S+ composers.

Mertens owes much of his development as both an artist and individual to the mentorship and guidance he received from Stephen Page at The University of Texas at Austin, Debra Rhodes at Hastings College and Masato Kumoi at Kunitachi College of Music. He found artistic voice with Yamaha saxophones, D’Addario reeds and Rousseau mouthpieces, and he now proudly represents these companies as an artist.