Local jazz artist has international appeal
Saxophonist Woody Witt flew back to Texas Monday after a week of gigs in New York. Pianist Carl Vinthe, bassist Johny Amann and drummer Andy Mogrensen arrived Tuesday from Copenhagen, Denmark.
Having only met in person for the first time just this week, this fourpiece will perform two nights at Cezanne this weekend.
Such international musical blind dates aren’t uncommon, as the costs of touring jazz across the Atlantic can be prohibitive. Also, the internet affords musicians opportunities to familiarize themselves with the work of other artists they’ve never met, which is how Witt came across Vinthe’s trio.
As a composer, instrumentalist and educator Witt has been an anchor in Houston’s jazz scene for years. But the nature of his work often has him looking outside the city — for new music and artistic accomplices. He found Vinthe’s group through YouTube and sent an email to Vinthe expressing his admiration.
“That started this back-and-forth exchange,” Witt says. “So he was coming to the States to do other things, including a recording session. We worked out a way to extend their run here.”
Witt arranged a mini Texas tour that also includes stops in Fort Worth and Austin. The shows will be the first the esteemed band has ever played in Texas. Vinthe — the son of well-known trumpeter Jens Vinthe — is a particularly well-regarded player in Denmark and a regular collaborator with Boston-based saxophonist Jerry Bergonzi.
Witt describes the uncertainties around the collaboration as a positive.
“There’s an added level of excitement, not knowing what to expect,” he says. “We’re going to do some original material of Carl’s, which he sent to me in advance. It’s interesting music. If I had to characterize it, I’d tell you to imagine early- and mid-’60s John Coltrane Quartet, with that high energy and intensity in the music.”
Witt and the trio also plan to have a recording session on Monday before the group returns to Copenhagen.
Inviting Vinthe’s band here also opens up opportunities for Witt overseas. He spent a week playing shows earlier this year in Romania, thanks to a connection he made with a German pianist.
“Copenhagen, in particular, is quite supportive of jazz and the arts,” Witt says. “They look to have a great scene there, from what I can tell from the festivals and clubs and all that. I’m trying to build a network of people I can play with overseas. It’s just more cost-effective to travel alone and pick up the gigs there.
“Plus, each time I play with a different group, I get to play with a different repertoire. I get to hear others who are composing, and I get to hear my music played by different groups, which is inspiring, too. Jazz can be so conversational in the way it works. Bringing different voices to the conversation can be inspiring.”