Dr. Larkin Sanders is a native of Branson, Missouri. She completed her Doctor of Music degree in Clarinet Performance and a Certificate in Arts administration at Florida State University in 2015. At FSU, she studied clarinet with Dr. Frank Kowalsky and Dr. Deborah Bish, while teaching a course in clarinet fundamentals for first-year undergraduate students. Larkin also holds a master of music degree from Michigan State University where she studied clarinet with Dr. Justin O’Dell and composition with Dr. Ricardo Lorenz. Previously, she earned her bachelor of arts degree from the University of Kansas, while studying clarinet with Dr. Stephanie Zelnick and Dr. Larry Maxey.
Larkin Sanders currently lives in Kansas City, Missouri where she is the clarinet instructor at Washburn University, owns the Clever Clarinetist, performs with Xiphias Trio and other various ensembles, and is the Vice President of the American Single Reed Summit. Most notably, Larkin is the founder, executive artistic director, and is a clarinetist of the Taneycomo Festival Orchestra, a summer music festival in Branson, Missouri.
In addition to her activities as a clarinetist, teacher, and administrator, Dr. Sanders is also a composer and author who has a fondness for songs and unique chamber ensembles. Larkin has had her works performed in a variety of settings. Her works are inspired by the talents of her friends and colleagues, and the genres of her works span from chamber operettas, art songs, children's music, and more. She is also the author of The Creation of the Taneycomo Festival Orchestra: The Performer’s Field Guide to Music Festival Foundation and The Olympic Clarinetist Daily Scale Method: Scales and Exercises for Everyday Use, used by The Florida State University and other studios as their official fundamental method.
