ryan richman

Saxophonist Educator and Composer, Dr. Woody Witt, is a Professor of Music at Houston Community College and is the Instructor of Saxophone at the University of Houston Moores School of Music. 

He got his Masters degree in Jazz Studies from the University of North Texas, where he taught saxophone and jazz methods.

As a jazz artist, Woody has had the opportunity to perform and record with Randy Brecker, Billy Hart, David Kikoski, and Tim Hagans among countless others.

In Fall 2023, Witt released his first book/video project of standards based jazz etudes, Stream of Consciousness, inspired by techniques he uses for himself and his students.

Woody has been a performing artist for Eastman Saxophones since 2018, and was integral in the design and testing of the Eastman Saxophones Rue St George and the new 52nd Street 852 model with Bob Mintzer and Ryan Richmond.

The link to his full biography, along with more links for this episode, is on our website.

In this episode, we talked about:

• How Woody got into music
• Improvisation tip
• Importance of melody audience connection
• Effects of social media on music
• The process of writing a dissertation Sonny Stitt
• And more!

Did you know you can get a complete listing of all our shows, as well as Bonus videos and searchable transcripts?

All you need to do is become a Patron!

Patrons play a huge role in helping to defray the costs of storing each episode’s video and audio, and producing and hosting the show.

And, with their small monthly donation of $2 or more, they help keep the great interviews coming.

If you want to become a patron and support the show, head on over to our Patreon site.

Ryan Richman is the Vice President of Eastman Music Company.

He has worked in the music business for 27 years in various roles including performing, teaching, sales, and repair.

His career began in the repair shop of his local music store cleaning rental returns and helping with sales and rental events.

During his time in music retail, Ryan served as a Music Education Representative for many years, assisting instrumental music teachers throughout the state of Utah.

Along with his work in music retail, Ryan has performed in many musical venues as a woodwind doubler, taught private woodwind lessons, and taught clinics across the country.

Ryan joined Eastman in 2011 as a Sales Manager and has had the privilege to serve as the Sales Manager for 30 states in the U.S. He also filled the roles of Wind Product Manager and Director of Wind Product Development before being appointed Vice President of the company in 2016.

As Vice President, Ryan oversees many aspects of business including sales management and product development for Eastman and the other brands in the Eastman family.

Ryan resides in Utah with his wife Rochelle, who is the Director of Bands at Kaysville Jr High, and their three daughters Emma (Flute), Hannah (Clarinet), and Stella (Bassoon).

The link to his full biography, along with more Resources for this episode, is on our website.

SPONSOR:

Rovner Products: www.rovnerproducts.com

We talked about:

🎷 How the Eastman Music company evolved

🎷 The difference between lacquered vs unlacquered

🎷 One important part of the saxophone that’s often overlooked

🎷 Differences between Rue St George & 52nd St

🎷 The influence of Bob Mintzer in the making of the new 52nd Street model

🎷 Three attributes that are very important for any brass-bodied instrument

🎷 and much more!

Did you know you can get a complete listing of all our shows, as well as Bonus videos and searchable transcripts?

All you need to do is become a Patron!

Patrons play a huge role in helping to defray the costs of storing each episode’s video and audio, and producing and hosting the show.

And, with their small monthly donation of $2 or more, they help keep the great interviews coming. If you want to become a patron and support the show, head on over to our Patreon site: https://www.patreon.com/everythingsaxophone