Biography
Since moving to the metro Detroit area in early 2016, Dominic Bierenga has established a presence there as a progressive and creative musician and educator. In his performing and teaching, he strives to harness and propagate the same powerful, unspeakable quality of music that draws each of us to it initially.
As a performing musician, Dominic is able to seamlessly integrate and situate his unique sensibilities within any musical landscape in which he finds himself. This has led to his being in demand for a wide variety of situations. He is a current member of Paddlebots, the Zen Zadravec Quintet, Northwoods Improvisers, and the Dr. Prof. Leonard King Orchestra. He has also performed or recorded with such a wide variety of artists as Gary Burton, Beartrap, Marcus Elliot, Grey Matter, Nick Small, the Planet D Nonet, the Jeff Hamilton Trio, and many more. He has made multiple appearances at the Detroit Jazz Festival, and has had the honor of performing at venues such as the Dirty Dog Jazz Cafe, El Club, Cliff Bell's, and the Loving Touch.
Dominic is also active as an educator, where the core of his work is his private lesson studio. He teaches in-person and online lessons in saxophone at all levels, improvisation (jazz and otherwise), and composition and arranging. Dominic has also had the honor of teaching at Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp, University of Michigan Youth Jazz Ensembles, Detroit Symphony Orchestra Civic Youth Jazz Ensembles, Central Michigan University Summer Music Institute, and as a clinician in jazz and saxophone pedagogy at several area schools. Dominic holds a M.M. in Improvisation from the University of Michigan, where he studied with Andrew Bishop, Ellen Rowe, and Ed Sarath, and a B.S. in Music from Central Michigan University where his primary teachers were Rob Smith, John Nichol, and José-Luis Maúrtua.