Alum Dana Bauer: A Woman of Many Instruments

SAN JOSE MERCURY NEWS -- Dana Bauer is a woman of many instruments. She plays oboe, flute, English horn, saxophone and clarinet. That versatility keeps her in demand. She majored in oboe at San Francisco State, working her way through college by singing with her own band. But Bauer left school when the opportunity arose to be a last-minute replacement in the “A Chorus Line” touring band. “I left in a New York minute,” she says, laughing. “A girl’s gotta earn a living.” The 10-week job turned into three years of touring Europe and Asia. Six years on the road with “Les Miserables” followed. It was quite an adventure. “It was just incredible. I was suddenly lifted from growing up in a small town and suddenly found myself in Munster, Germany, with a bunch of New York musicians and Broadway legends. Most of them wore fur coats and had East Coast accents. It was a very different lifestyle. But it was phenomenal. It was the best learning experience I could ever have.”