Doug Bernstein, former saxophonist of local blues faves Queen Bee and the Blue Hornet Band, graduated from Penn State this past December and moved to Nashville, Tenn., leaving the band behind him.

Mark Ross, the band's guitarist, shed some light this week on steps the group has been taking to replace him. The band has been trying out several different saxophone players in search of the perfect horn to fill Bernstein's shoes, Ross said.

"We give each guy about 3 or 4 days," said Ross, who confirms that there is, at this point, no particular individual who has been playing with the band on a regular basis. "We're probably not going to make a decision for a while."

The band originally announced they did not expect to make a selection until February or March. Now, Ross clarifies, they have more of a concrete deadline due to a four-day stint in Canada scheduled for mid-March.

"We have until two weeks before the show to get all the paperwork completed," said Ross, referring to visas and other necessary arrangements that will ultimately govern the need to make a final decision.

As far as the candidates the band has tried out so far, Ross said things are looking good.

"The guy we tried out (Saturday night) sounded real, real good," Ross said. "This guy just blew us away -- we'd be highly surprised if anybody was hotter than this guy."

Because of commitments to candidates who travel considerable distances to tryout, they still intend to give others a chance, he said.