Today we’d like to introduce you to Woody Witt.
Woody, we’d love to hear your story and how you got to where you are today both personally and as an artist.
First and foremost, I am a jazz musician – https://www.woodywitt.com/. I have 10 CDs out currently under my name as a leader and many others as a sideman. I have 3 new releases coming out before the end of the year – a trio CD recorded live at Cezanne, a jazz quartet CD of Taiwanese and Chinese folk songs and a free improvised trio CD with a group from NY. I often travel around the country and abroad to perform and teach. Over the past few months, I traveled to Brazil, Denmark, Sweden, and New York City to perform, record and teach. I work full time as a college professor (full-time instructor in academic music, jazz, and saxophone at Houston Community College since 2000 and as a part-time instructor in jazz and saxophone at University of Houston Moores School of Music since 1996). I also manage the music programming at Cezanne, Houston’s longest continuously running jazz club, since 1984 – http://cezannejazz.com/. I have served in that capacity off and on since 1999. Additionally, I work as a freelance musician on the local scene, working regularly with the Houston Symphony Orchestra, the Jazz Houston Orchestra (https://jazzhouston.org/orchestra), as well as other groups in the surrounding area.
We’d love to hear more about your art. What do you do you do and why and what do you hope others will take away from your work?
I make music. I do this because it is what I have done for most of my life. Quite simply, it is what I do. It comes through me. It is not mine. I believe it comes from a very deep place, yet I am able to tap into it. I have spent countless hours developing my craft as a musician and instrumentalist so that it can flow through me as freely as possible. That is what the purpose of practice and study is – so “I” might be able to get out of the way to the music can flow through me without being impeded.
My artwork is true. I have never set out to create something that is to impress others. All of the recordings that I have released have been documents of where I am at a given point and time. Improvisation is such a pure form of music. It is the music of the moment. Recordings are nothing more than mere snapshots that can help to preserve those moments like a photograph.
What do you know now that you wished you had learned earlier?
Going to school to study music can be a wonderful experience, but even now, almost all efforts go toward learning one’s instrument and studying music history, theory, aural skills, etc. This is essential, but in today’s world, we are not preparing the future musicians by graduating them with these skills alone. A large component of their study should focus on business, marketing, entrepreneurship, etc. If music is to be your career, it is a business and you must treat it as such. To be successful, much time will be focused on the business, often more than on music making itself. That said, if you don’t have a product to market yourself, your business will not succeed.
Do you have any events or exhibitions coming up? Where would one go to see more of your work? How can people support you and your artwork?
I have many recordings available. The most recent is available on my website – www.woodywitt.com. Ordering directly from me is the best way to support my music. Other recordings can be found on Apple Music, Spotify, Pandora, however, I will not receive compensation if you listen there. If you are in Houston and want to hear me play live, I often perform at Cezanne, the area’s longest running jazz club at 4100 Montrose Avenue, above the Black Labrador restaurant. Come by a get a cd directly from me. Also, here are some selected videos on YouTube:
First, 3 videos from a recording session in March 2018 with Banda Urbana, an amazing big band based in Sao Paulo.
Contact Info:
- Website: www.woodywitt.com
- Email: woody@woodywitt.com
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/woody.witt/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/woody.witt
Image Credit:
(soprano sax) Pin Lim, (tenor sax), Michael Hart, New CD cover art, Sarah Aranella
Getting in touch: VoyageHouston is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
