ROBERT WEINBERGER (Saxophones, Flutes, Shekere, Didgeridoo, Kalimba,
Congas, Djembe, Djun Djun, Steel Pan, Percussion):
Robert has been a vital member of many different musical and dance ensembles
since he began performing creative music in 1974. An experienced improvisatonal artist, Robert has been called "a
soulful saxophonist who plays with passionate intensity." Robert composed
for and collaborated with notable modern dance choreographers Bill T. Jones, Arnie Zane, Lois Welk, Deborah
Miller, Jill Becker, and Deborah Gladstein. He
drummed West African and Caribbean dance music with Percival Borde and Caren Calder. Robert performed and recorded for ten years
in the NYC Lower East Side music scene with groups as diverse as The Worms,
Blues Traveler, and Joan Osborne. In 1990 Robert moved to Puerto Rico where he spent a year performing both
American and Latin music with various ensembles. Upon returning to the mainland
he joined Sylvain Leroux and the Maintanence
Crew, an exciting and influential World Music ensemble whose performances and
recordings were well-received by audiences throughout the East Coast. He
relocated to upstate New York in 1994 where he has been active in
all aspects of the regional musical community as a composer, arranger, teacher,
and performer. Robert enjoys playing all styles of music. In addition to his
experience in World Music, he has recorded and performed with classical, jazz, dixieland, fusion, avant-garde, Latin, folk, rhythm and
blues, and rock ensembles. Robert currently teaches flute and saxophone as a
member of Binghamton, NY's Community Music Center, and aesthetics and creativity in the
public schools as an artist affiliated with Southern Tier Institute for Arts
Education. In addition to his music endeavors, Robert has a second career in
the healing arts. He manages an active homeopathy practice, which provides a
unique, holistic opportunity for transformational growth and healing for people
afflicted by illness and injury. In 1997 Robert created UnityGroup
to provide a vehicle for his and Sylvain Leroux's
music of spirit and celebration. The band's first CD, released in November of
1998, has received critical acclaim and extensive radio airplay from regional
jazz, world, and independent music stations.
