Benny Hill
Alto Jazz Saxophone

For over thirty years, Benny Hill has performed with a diverse set of musical groups and venues, ranging from orchestra pits to cruise ships and as featured-artist and soloist at numerous performances across the country and abroad.

Benny is well-versed in the many styles and genres of popular and classical music while specializing in jazz performance.  He is steeped in the tradition of many of the past jazz greats, including Julian “Cannonball” Adderley, Jackie McLean, Dexter Gordon, John Coltrane and Charlie Parker.  His improvisations on the Alto Saxophone are reminiscent of these legends, yet he has a distinct style and voice of his own.

Benny is a true crowd pleaser and never fails to produce excitement and enthusiasm on stage.

Benny has shared the stage with such notable jazz musicians as Trumpeter Ray Codrington, Guitarist Melvin Sparks, Trombonist and Arranger Slide Hampton, bassist Percy Heath, drummer Winard Harper, Saxophonist Ron Blake, Guitarist Randy Johnston, Trombonist Delfaeyo Marsalis, Trumpeter Eddie Henderson, drummer Joe Chambers and New Orleans’ “Dirty Dozen Brass Band”.  He has also opened for roots rocker, Edwin McCain, and RatDog, with legendary Guitarist/Vocalist Bob Weir of The Grateful Dead, and Bassist Rob Wasserman. He also performed with James Brown’s “Soul Generals”. 

Benny has showcased at the North Carolina Jazz Festival, Surf City Jazz Festival, Myrtle Beach Jazz Festival, The Wilson Center, Dizzy’s Jazz Club and Smalls Jazz Club in NYC, and was a chosen artist for the “Hear North Carolina” music series.

Benny has a Bachelor’s of Music from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington and a Masters in Jazz Studies from Northern Illinois University. Benny currently resides in Wilmington, N.C. and is a full-time professor at Cape Fear Community College.

Traditionally in January, the Benny Hill Jazz Quartet hosts a fundraising concert benefiting the Cape Fear Community College Music Department.

You can see Benny Hill perform at various Wilmington, NC, venues, from The Cameron Museum of Art to restaurants, breweries and clubs in the Cafe Fear Region.