It’s safe to say that if you’re a student of Dr. Stephen Page, Associate Professor of Saxophone at The University of Texas at Austin Butler School of Music, you are almost guaranteed a job upon graduation. His students have nearly 100% job placement at universities and public schools, performance venues, cultural nonprofits and other companies. “One of the best things about being a mentor is witnessing students seek and discover their passion and, more importantly, their purpose,” Page says. “The biggest thing I can do is to let students be open to their own curiosity. From there, I do what I can when I can to foster things forward.”

Page helps students connect with organizations and people who align with their interests in a way that supports turning their own motion into momentum. “In essence, the best thing I can do is to lead students on their way,” he says. “What a gift to do so!”

Page challenges his students with studio projects that involve other subjects like philosophy and neurology. He hopes that these opportunities will create an ongoing sense of curiosity that sets each student on individual paths of discovery. “It’s been great to explore a number of things together as a studio. Whether reading books by artists of other disciplines, watching documentaries about famous chefs or exploring our brain and the ways we can better incorporate our natural selves into our work, we always walk away with something new to think about,” he says.

Another project that Page spearheads is a UT Saxophone Studio YouTube Channel. Many performance videos have been shared on the platform, including one that’s quickly approaching 500,000 views. “New this year is a series of educational videos on all-state audition material. This series put a few of our students in the driver’s seat, performing the etudes and sharing several practice tips for viewers. We’re excited to expand on this into general topics on pedagogy and more to create a valuable resource,” Page says.