Heather Mensch

Office: HPE-161
Phone: 903-510-3195
e-Mail: hmen2@tjc.edu

Mrs. Mensch is professor of jazz studies and applied low brass, including bass trombone, euphonium, and tuba at Tyler Junior College in Tyler, Texas.  She directs both TJC jazz ensembles, Jazz Combo, and assists with the Apache Marching Band.

She actively performs throughout the East Texas area, manages the Rose City Brass Quintet, and is bass trombonist with the Rose City Trombone Quartet and the Colonial Hills Baptist Church Orchestra. She and her husband, Tom, also tour internationally each year with the Metro Big Band, a professional level Christian jazz ensemble.  Mrs. Mensch’s orchestral experience includes performances with the Shreveport Symphony, the Orchestra of the Pines in Nacogdoches, and the North East Texas Symphony in Sulphur Springs.  Her jazz experiences include performances with Vince DiMartino, Randy Brecker, Miles Osland, John Fedchock, Mike Vax, and Lou Marini.

She is currently the treasurer for the Texas Jazz Educators Association and has served as the All-state Jazz Coordinator for the Texas Community College Band Directors Association. In 2006, Mrs. Mensch was chosen to select and perform the Texas 5A bass trombone All-state etudes at the Texas Bandmasters Association Conference. In September of 2008, she was selected as one of four finalists in a nationwide search for the US Army Jazz Ambassadors Bass Trombone position.  Most recently, Tom and Heather were honored jointly by the Tyler Junior College Alumni Association as the 2009 recipients of the “Apache Spirit” award. 

Mrs. Mensch holds a Bachelor of Music degree in Bass Trombone Performance from the University of Kentucky and a Master of Education degree from Houston Baptist University. She is a member of the Texas Music Educators Association, the Texas Bandmasters Association, Texas Jazz Educators Association, the International Trombone Association, and the International Tuba Euphonium Association.