Sarah Navratil is a Minnesota-born saxophonist, woodwind doubler, artist, and composer based in New York City. Growing up in close proximity to midwestern natural landscapes and wildlife, Sarah takes compositional and artistic inspiration from nostalgic sounds of the natural world from bird calls, coyote calls, and natural soundscapes. This work translates to her visual art as well. Both areas of her work carry themes of the natural world as well as childhood nostalgia, the human experience, and are intended to draw closer relationships between humans and the natural world.
Sarah holds a Bachelor's degree in Jazz and Contemporary Media from the Eastman School of Music. She also studied Saxophone performance and Woodwind doubling under Charles Pillow. During her time at Eastman she performed with The Eastman Jazz ensemble, where she was recognized by the DownBeat Student Awards for outstanding graduate big band performance under the direction of Christine Jensen in 2024. Sarah was also a member of Eastman's Empire Film and media ensemble in 2024 where she accompanied acts like Rene Elise Goldsberry and performed in the live to picture screening of La La Land in Kodak Hall directed by Emmy winner Mark Watters.
Sarah has bandled and performed as a sideman at venues all over the united states but most notably the Twin Cities Jazz Festival, Rochester International Jazz Festival, Rochester Women in Music Festival, the Eau Claire Jazz Festival, and Minnesota's Orchestra Hall.
As a passionate advocate for underrepresented identities in jazz, Sarah has organized and facilitated panel discussions on the topic of patriarchy in jazz. These panels notably featured musicians such as Roxy Coss, Ingrid Jensen, and Kellin Hanas. Sarah also curates and leads live performances celebrating identity in the jazz community. She organized and bandled performances for the 2022 Eastman Chamber jazz concert, 2023 Nazareth College Women in Music Festival, and the 2023 Rochester Women in Music Festival celebrating gender minorities in jazz.
Sarah is also a member of the Women in Jazz Organization where she has worked closely with acclaimed saxophonists Camille Thurman and Maria Grand. Sarah still continues her mentorship under Maria Grand and remains committed to advocacy through continued effort of community engagement, organized events, and the promotion of underrepresented communities in jazz.
