NO COVER 4:30pm Show
Saxophonist Sarah Navratil and drummer Emma Garau will be presenting two sets of groove-based improvisation and freely interpreted jazz stylings influenced by genres of jazz, punk, and avant-garde improvisation. They will use electronic wind instruments and pedals to explore new soundscapes. Instrumental covers of hyperpop and electronic music will be performed as well.
Emma Garau is a drummer and composer based in Minneapolis, MN. She graduated with a BFA in jazz and contemporary music from the University of North Carolina at Asheville in 2022 while independently studying with Dave King of The Bad Plus and touring extensively with Fortezza. Emma has toured and/or recorded with artists including Powderhorns, Grace Christian X, and Geologist (of Animal Collective). She currently tours and records with the art punk duo ¿WATCHES? and as a solo artist.
Originally from Minneapolis, MN, Sarah Navratil is an improviser, woodwind doubler, and recent graduate of the Eastman School of Music with a bachelor’s in jazz and contemporary media from the studio of Charles Pillow. Sarah has performed alongside musicians including Alexa Tarantino, Brian Lynch, Carmen Bradford, and Jeremy Pelt at notable festivals and venues such as the Twin Cities Jazz Festival, the Eau Claire Jazz Festival, the Rochester International Jazz Festival, and the selective JAS Aspen Academy small group sessions. As a member of the Women In Jazz Organization’s (WIJO’s) Women in Jazz Mentorship Program, Sarah is a passionate advocate for gender-minority musicians in jazz. She has facilitated, organized, and moderated panel discussions and presentations on the topics of patriarchy in jazz for the 2022 Rochester Woman in Music Festival and the 2023 Nazareth Women in Music festivals. These panels featured musicians including Roxy Coss, Ingrid Jensen, and Kelin Hanas. Through the WIJO program, Sarah has been mentored by and has worked closely with Camille Thurman and Maria Grand. In 2020, she was awarded the Louis Armstrong Jazz Award by Apple Valley High School, and in 2024, she was recognized by the DownBeat Student Awards as a part of the Eastman Jazz Ensemble under the direction of Christine Jensen for Outstanding Graduate College Performances.
