Dedicated to wind chamber music performance, composition, and promotion, the Aeolian Winds of Pittsburgh was founded in September 2003 by the original University of Pittsburgh Wind Quintet. The group has since expanded to include wind chamber ensembles of varying sizes, and players who are not directly a part of the University community. The name change in May 2004 formalized this status and strengthened the group's mission to integrate high-quality wind music into the greater Pittsburgh community. The group's members bring the diverse experiences of their daily lives and chosen professions to the music-making, creating a truly unique ensemble.

While primarily a wind quintet, the group also performs both smaller and larger-scale wind works, such as trios and octets, in both public and private venues. The diverse venues and programs presented reach a larger audience than might be found in a typical concert-hall setting. In addition to formal concerts on the Citiparks' Bach, Beethoven, and Brunch concert series and various local church recital series, the group has provided music at Heinz Hall during the First National Performing Arts Convention, and performed in nontraditional spaces such as the first Gallery Crawl sponsored by the Pittsburgh Cultural Trust. They also gave a series of educational concerts for children through the Allegheny County Library Association.

In their quest to reach an audience that might not typically hear a wind quintet, the group has performed at the National Aviary and at Giant Eagle grocery stores. The group was featured on Bayer Arts Magazine in July 2005 and was invited to perform on the inaugural broadcast of The Morning Show in August 2006. In addition, the group regularly performs at private dinners, weddings, fundraisers, and other functions.

The Aeolian Winds are particularly dedicated to performing, featuring, and commissioning works by American composers. The group has performed works by Eric Ewazen, Stephen Foster, Herman Stein, Robert Muczynski, Aaron Copland, Leroy Anderson, and Peter Schickele. In addition to working with Greg Bartholomew on the commission of his work for wind quintet, the group was a consortium member for a recent work by composer Bill Douglas and gave the Pittsburgh premiere of the work in 2008. The group is no stranger to premieres, having completed the Pittsburgh premier of a new edition of the Wind Quintet in A-flat by Gustav Holst containing previously unreleased material. This past Fall, the Aeolian Winds recorded Three American Perennials for Rick Sowash's newly released CD.