Katie Webster

Bio

Katie Webster is a saxophonist, composer, and improviser based out of Brooklyn, NYC, and is originally from Seattle, WA. Her work aims to capture a bold and expressive approach to improvisation and composition. She is passionate about centering the communal and collective aspects of musical process.

Katie has performed at renowned venues including Bird's Eye Jazz Club, Porgy and Bess, The Loft Köln, Bern International Jazz Festival, The Royal Room, Vermont Jazz Center, Monterey Jazz Festival, and Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival. She has performed in bands led by artists such as Tony Malaby, Pablo Held, and Julia Hülsmann. Fascinated by the relationship between music, storytelling, and visual media, in August 2024 she released an EP of her ongoing project “Within the Garden We Planted,” which is a growing series of interdisciplinary tributes to women activists throughout history.

In October 2022, she was selected by Institute of Jazz and Gender Justice and Mass Art Art Museum to write and perform a composition inspired by the life and contributions of Elizabeth Mumbet Freeman. She premiered her work, in collaboration with Joana Vasconcelos' Valkyrie Mumbet, a large-scale multimedia installation. While a member of JGJ, she had the opportunity to learn from esteemed musicians such as Terri Lyne Carrington, Kris Davis, Linda May Han Oh, and Val Jeanty. Katie is an awardee of the 2023/24 Focusyear Fellowship in Basel, Switzerland. The band performed regularly with internationally recognized musicians such as Wolfgang Muthspiel, Sara Serpa, Guillermo Klein, Lionel Loueke, Ingrid Jensen and others. The band’s album, “Nine Realms,” was released June 2024.

Katie is an awardee of the prestigious Jimmy Lyons Scholarship presented by Berklee in conjunction with Monterey Jazz Festival. She has performed as a featured soloist with Seattle Repertory Jazz Orchestra, Basel Jazz Orchestra, the Conservatorium van Amsterdam Keep an Eye Large Ensemble featuring Dick Oatts, and the 2023 GRAMMY Museum Affiliate Collective. A 2022 graduate of the Berklee College of Music, Katie went on to pursue her Master’s degree at the Global Jazz Institute, studying with artists such as Danilo Pérez, Joe Lovano, Ben Street, Tony Malaby, George Garzone, and Francisco Mela.