Allen Cordingley

Allen Cordingley comes to us most recently from the University of Wisconsin-Platteville where he currently serves as a Distinguished Lecturer in Saxophone and directs their Jazz Orchestra, among other duties.

Allen enjoys an eclectic career as a musician performing in a variety of styles on all the saxophones.  He is currently a Distinguished Lecturer at the University of Wisconsin-Platteville where he teaches saxophone and directs the Pioneer Saxophone Ensemble, the Pioneer Jazz Orchestra, and the Pioneer Pep Band. As interim director of the UW-Platteville Jazz Festival from 2013-2018, Allen brought in guest artists like Marvin Stamm, Wycliffe Gordon, and Maria Schneider.  He also created the Festival Big Band, which included distinguished alumni and local musicians to back up the guest artists.

Before joining the music faculty at University of Wisconsin-Platteville in the fall of 2006, Allen was on tour with the Glenn Miller Orchestra throughout the United States, Canada, and Japan. He currently performs with the Paul Dietrich Jazz Ensemble and The Big Payback.  As a concert saxophonist, he is currently principal saxophonist in the Dubuque Symphony Orchestra and has performed with the Green Bay Symphony Orchestra and Youngstown Symphony Orchestra. He is a founding member of Ensemble Nouveau, which toured in China in 2020.

Allen studied saxophone with Steven Jordheim and James Umble and holds degrees from Lawrence University and Youngstown State University.