Jazz…. bassoon?

Yep.

That’s one of several instruments on which Ray Pizzi plays jazz. He also plays tenor sax, flute, soprano, etc.

I stumbled across his website the other day and listened to some cool music tracks.  Songs like ‘Ode to a Toad’ played on bassoon.

L.A Times says that he has a “cutting edge imagination.” Jazz Podium Magazine claims that his “original compositions achieve melodic lyricism to rhythmically propulsive exuberance.”.

Ray Pizzi, born in 1943, is one of the few jazz bassoonists who can be seen as a versatile bassoon player. Pizzi’s love for music began at a young age, studying at the Boston Conservatory and the Berklee School of Music in the 1960s. After finishing his studies, Pizzi started a career as a music teacher, eventually saving enough money to move to California to pursue his true dream – to become a full time musician.

Since his move to California, Pizzi has worked with a variety of artists including Michael Bublé, Steven Bishop, Alan Price, Mark Levine, and Gladys Knight to name a few. His music has also been heard in a variety of movies and popular televisions shows. These include Grease, Star Wars, Forrest Gump, Family Guy, and Wheel of Fortune.

On top of working with tons of artists and playing for movies and television shows, Pizzi has also played in some sweet musical venues around the world. The Hollywood Bowl, the Disney Concert Hall, The Los Angeles Philharmonic Orchestra, and the Rochester Symphony Orchestra are just a few of the them.

Who does Pizzi credit for his success? Ray offers thanks to a variety of his teachers growing up including Irving Kams, Joe Viola, Herb Pomery and Albert Harris. In highest regard is Pizzi’s bassoon teacher, Simon Kovar, who Pizzi refers to as the “Father of the Bassoon.”

What advice does Pizzi have for practicing musicians? According to Pizzi, if you want to make it in the music industry, you are going to want to move to Los Angeles and aim to have your music heard in movies, recordings, and television. He advises practicing artists to start saving their money now and head to Los Angeles later.

Why? Making it big in the music industry requires a lot of spirit, talent, time, and commitment. Trying to hold down a job, while at the same time searching for gigs and auditions can be tiring and can lead you down a path of failure.

If there is one piece of advice for upcoming musicians to take from Pizzi, it would have to be the “Hollywood rule” – If you want to succeed, you need to make yourself available.

Ray Pizzi has a number of recordings available to check out on his website as well as a number of albums for sale. Website isn’t exactly a dream to navigate, but it’s got cool stuff on it.

Ray Pizzi Website