Dave Sterner is one of Northern Ohio’s most sought after saxophonists and jazz educators.  Dave has spent over thirty years mastering his horn as a professional musician and developing a consistent model on how to teach jazz.  Today, with over 120+ gigs a year, Dave is a regular in several bands including Ernie Krivda’s Fat Tuesday Big Band and the band Red Light Roxy.   Additionally, Dave leads a trio, quartet and quintet under his own name as the venue warrants.  Other groups in Northeast Ohio that Dave performs with include The Don Kubec Big Band, Blue Water Kings Entertainment, Joe Bell & the Swing Lizards, and The Cleveland Jazz Orchestra, among others.

As a recording artist and composer, Dave has released two albums, What’s What (2006) and Sidetracked (2011) as the leader of The Dave Sterner Quintet.  The quintet won the “Best Jazz Band” music award from the Cleveland Free Times Magazine, and Dave has claimed the “Best Horn” title from the Cleveland Scene magazine.  He appears as a featured soloist on all three albums from Ernie Krivda’s Fat Tuesday Big Band, Perdido (1997), The Band That Swings (1999), and Body & Soul (2006).  He also appears on the N. Glenn Davis Quartet’s A Different View, the N. Glenn Davis Quintet’s Come Right In, Featuring Phil Woods and has recorded with the East Central Jazz Educators All Star Big Band, The Jazz Heritage Orchestra, and Tony Cuda’s Jazz Cats.

Dave also free-lances with national acts performing in town, playing jazz, show tunes, blues, rock and pop music as needed.  Among many others, he has performed with Tony Bennett, Harry Connick Jr., The Four Tops, Aretha Franklin, the Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band, David Sanborn, and Phil Woods.

As a part-time jazz faculty member at Cuyahoga Community College since 2007, Dave has taught an array of classes that include Ear Training, Jazz Theory, Arranging, Improvisation, and Music Skills. He also directed the Lakeland Community College Jazz orchestra and co-directed the Lakeland Jazz Festival from 2008-2020. He has been a clinician for Lakeland Jazzfest, TRI-C Jazzfest, Ashland University Jazz Festival, College of Wooster, and several local high schools. In 2024 Dave was hired to teach applied lessons at Cleveland State University and to perform with the CSU faculty ensemble.