Dr. Edwin Bingham earned a B.M. in Multiple Wood Instruments from the University of Tennessee in 1976, an M.M. in Saxophone Performance from the Juilliard School in 1978, and a D.M.A in Multiple Wood Instruments from the University of Kentucky in 1988. He joined the faculty at Marshall in 1990, holds the rank of Professor of Saxophone, and also teaches music theory. He has directed the Marshall University Jazz Ensemble and the Marshall Wind Symphony, has coordinated two annual jazz festivals on campus, and is a founding member of Marshall’s faculty jazz ensemble. Bingham has served as Director of Jazz Studies where he established the Jazz Studies degree program and helped design the Jomie Jazz Center. As a saxophonist, he has performed with the Knoxville Symphony Orchestra, the Huntington Symphony, the West Virginia Symphony, the Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp Festival Band and Orchestra, the Ohio Valley Symphony and the Lexington Philharmonic. In other genres, Bingham has performed with an extensive roster of jazz and popular artists such as Landau Eugene Murphy, Gregory Porter, Frankie Valli, the Temptations, Peter Duchin, Dizzy Gillespie, Claire Fischer and Louie Bellson.
Ed Bingham is a multi-instrumentalist who performs on saxophone, flute, bassoon and clarinet. He is an active recitalist in solo and chamber music settings. Tryptych, a trio comprised of saxophone (Bingham), clarinet (Ann Bingham) and percussion (Steve Hall), has concertized across the country and produced a CD recording featuring commissioned works for this combination of instruments.
Currently, Bingham leads the large and successful saxophone studio at Marshall. His students have won concerto competitions and the Belle and Lynum Jackson award—two of the most prestigious competitions in the School of Music. Graduates of the Marshall saxophone studio are enjoying successful careers in the Glenn Miller Orchestra, military bands, free-lance engagements, and in collegiate and secondary school teaching. Bingham’s Drinko Academy research explored the creative process in music. His travels to Cuba and Brazil have provided his students an international perspective to music study.