John Klemmer

John Klemmer (born July 3, 1946) is an American saxophonist, composer, songwriter, and arranger.He was born in Chicago, Illinois, and began playing guitar at the age of 5 and alto saxophone at the age of 11. His other early interests included graphics and visual art, writing, dance, puppetry, painting, sculpting, and poetry. He studied at the Art Institute of Chicago and began touring with various local midwest "ghost big bands" (Les Elgart, Woody Herman) as well as playing with small local jazz and rock groups. After switching to tenor saxophone in high school, Klemmer participated in the Chicago jazz scene, playing with commercial small groups and big bands while leading his own groups and touring.