Timothy J. Owen, D.M.A. — Saxophone Performance Portfolio

About this portfolio. Three decades of professional performance and post-secondary teaching, anchored by a Doctor of Musical Arts from the University of Iowa and twenty years of concert performance with U.S. Army bands across the Pacific Northwest, Europe, Korea, and the Middle East. Doctoral research: "Integrating the Music Learning Theory of Edwin E. Gordon with a Beginning Saxophone Curriculum" (2005). Post-secondary teaching spans five institutions; 100% student pass rate across four years at the U.S. Army School of Music. Primary instrument: saxophones. Secondary: clarinet, flute.

World Premiere Recording

Adelaide Coles — Sonata for Alto Saxophone and Piano (2011)

World premiere · Chandler Hall, Old Dominion University · November 2012

This recording documents the first public performance of the commissioned work.

I. Allegro

II. Lento

III. With Rhythmic Drive!

Performance Videos

A 30-minute curated playlist demonstrating proficiency across classical and jazz repertoire, drawn from solo recitals, ensemble performances, and Army Band concert recordings.

D.M.A. Final Recital — University of Iowa (2004) Complete recital recording · YouTube playlist

Sacred & Ceremonial Performances

Selected performances from ceremonial and sacred contexts, including an original saxophone quartet arrangement distributed by U.S. Army chaplains for Easter devotional use (2023).

O Divine Redeemer — Saxophone Quartet

Original arrangement for saxophone quartet, recorded at Joint Base Lewis-McChord. Distributed by Army chaplains for Easter devotional use, 2023.

Silent Night (arr. Lex de Azevedo)

America’s First Corps Band virtual performance.

I Saw Three Ships (arr. Kurt Bestor)

America’s First Corps Band.

Pedagogical Tools

These tools emerged from the questions at the center of my doctoral work. Each applies principles from Edwin Gordon’s Music Learning Theory or performance psychology to instrumental practice problems that rote methods tend to leave unsolved.

SIP — Systematic Instrumental Practice

Android-first mobile application applying FSRS-5 spaced-repetition scheduling to instrumental practice. Treats technical performance elements as discrete reviewable items scheduled at optimal intervals for durable retention. Grounded in Music Learning Theory (Gordon) — the subject of my D.M.A. dissertation. Multi-model AI design council produced canonical specification v1.0.

Flutter Python FastAPI FSRS-5 Android

In active development

Tempo Finder

Binary-search algorithm for systematic tempo progression in practice. Locates the precise boundary between control and breakdown, removing guesswork from incremental speed work.

Python Algorithms

Open demo →

Music Practice SRS

Spaced-repetition flashcard system for saxophone technique built on the Anki platform. Custom Mustache templates with JavaScript event handling; SQLite access for Anki note type extraction.

Python JavaScript Anki SQLite

Open demo →

Additional Resources

Doctoral Dissertation — ProQuest “Integrating the Music Learning Theory of Edwin E. Gordon with a Beginning Saxophone Curriculum.” University of Iowa, 2005.
D.M.A. Final Recital (2004) University of Iowa. Full recital recording, YouTube playlist.
David Maslanka composer site Notable mention of the Maslanka Sonata, Movement II performance.
North American Saxophone Alliance (NASA) Professional membership.