The Saxophone Heard Around the World Comes to ESU

Posted by: admin on February 16, 2015, 2 Comments

Phil-Woods
Comforted by shelves filled with hundreds of books, racks crowded with CDs, and natural oak walls that display photographs and art, Phil Woods, 83, takes a seat on his familiar couch and reflects on his life to date.

“Every day inspires me,” he said. “I get up every morning and give myself a round of applause.”
Woods knew he would spend his life playing music when he was 12 years old. He claims his first teacher, Harvey LaRose, taught him almost everything he knows. It is because of LaRose that Woods fell in love with jazz music and playing the saxophone.

The beginning of his career took full force during World War II. In those days, Woods remembers singing along to all the songs on the radio with his family and appreciating music as a powerful force that brought families together.

The world renowned musician has been playing the saxophone for over 60 years. In his career he was nominated for seven Grammy awards and won four. He was honored as a composer by the National Endowment for the Arts recently with the prestigious Jazz Master Fellowship Award. He will make his next appearance at East Stroudsburg University of Pennsylvania’s Cecilia S. Cohen Recital Hall in the Fine and Performing Arts Center on May 17, which will be the debut of the World Premiere Saxophone Celebration. Tickets can be purchased here.

“I am excited about this concert with some of the best Pocono saxophonists in the business-and having Phil Markowitz, an international jazz musician, is the cherry on the top,” Woods said.

All the music played at the World Premiere Saxophone Celebration is his original work. The hardest and best part of being a musician is composing music, according to Woods. He started writing music shortly after learning to play the saxophone, finding himself immersed in the process of creating a unique sound.

This crafted sound is one that was heard around the world.

While he may be paying a visit to the university next month, Woods has traveled far beyond the Poconos. The musician has traveled all over Europe, including living in France for five years, and has visited many different countries around the world, including Iran and Japan.

“My wife could never afford to pay me to be a musician at home so traveling the world became a normal lifestyle,” he said.

Woods’ love for the world grew from country to country as he experienced different cultures and cuisines. Spain and Italy take the prize in cuisine, in his opinion.

He returned to Pennsylvania in 1973. The Pocono’s has always been one his favorite places for music. Woods credits the Deer Head Inn, the oldest continuous running jazz club in the world , for being the venue that brings the whole vibrant music community together.

Whether performing in the Pocono’s or across the world, 60 years of experience doesn’t do much for his nerves, says Woods, who still gets nervous before every show.

“If you’re not nervous, you’re not doing it right,” he said. “I am an old man playing the saxophone – I have to remind myself to not fall off the stage.”

Spending most of his life marching to the sound of his saxophone, Woods realizes he is so blessed for his “magnificent” journey.

“I treat every day like it’s my last and every gig like it’s my last because I’ve learned that every moment is sacred and sweet,” he said.