Check Out Camilla Vaitaitis’ Story

Today we’d like to introduce you to Camilla Vaitaitis.

Hi Camilla, thanks for sharing your story with us. To start, maybe you can tell our readers some of your backstories.
I’ve been playing and writing music my entire life. Growing up in a musical family allowed me to find my passion at a young age and the encouragement and support from my parents allowed that passion to blossom.

I decided to pursue music as a career, receiving my Bachelor’s degree in jazz piano in 2016 and my Master’s degree in jazz composition in 2020. Since graduating, I’ve maintained a busy schedule between teaching and performing around Denver. I’m grateful to also perform original music regularly with my indie rock bands Barbara and Specific Ocean and my jazz group, the Camilla Vaitaitis Quartet.

So much of the progress I’ve made throughout my career is thanks to the incredible support of my family, teachers, mentors, and friends in the wonderful Colorado music community.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall, and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Pursuing a career in music can, of course, be a difficult and unconventional path. Navigating life as a self-employed, freelance musician presents a variety of challenges, as each day carries something new. It has been incredibly important for me to have the ability to pivot and be flexible – something I believe my jazz education really prepared me to do. Because my professional schedule shifts on a day-to-day basis, I try my best to create routines in small ways that help to ground me.

The other major struggle that I think most artists face is the balance between work and personal identity. It has sometimes been hard for me to create a separation between the two since the very medium I use to process my emotions and express myself creatively is also my means of income. I’ve also struggled with my artistic identity, questioning whether I “fit” into a certain genre, or am making the “right” music. However, I recently have allowed myself to embrace whatever music naturally feels best to me – trying my best to allow my genuine creative voice to emerge and not judge it. Since doing so, I’ve been more creative, and happier.

Thanks for sharing that. So, maybe next you can tell us a bit more about your work?
I am a pianist, vocalist, guitarist, composer, and educator. While my formal training is in jazz piano and composition, I spend an equal amount of time writing for other genres, singing, and playing guitar.

I am incredibly proud of the bands I’m currently performing with and writing for – Barbara, Specific Ocean, and the Camilla Vaitaitis Quartet.

Barbara is an indie rock band comprised of myself, Bridget Hartman, and Anna Panella. We recently released our debut full-length album “Escape Artist” in September with a celebratory performance at Twist & Shout Records. I’m so fulfilled by this project and looking forward to a busy 2023 writing our second album and performing around Denver and beyond.

Specific Ocean is an indie rock project that my friend Alec Wenzel and I started in college. I’m grateful that we’ve been able to release music each year since 2018, have performed at the Underground Music Showcase multiple times, and had the opportunity to play at the Gothic Theater earlier this year. This band is so meaningful for me and I’m excited to say that we also have plans to record a full-length album in 2023 that we’re in the process of writing.

Finally, the Camilla Vaitaitis Quartet is the group that performs my original jazz music. Myself, Taylor Clay (sax), Patrick McDevitt (bass), and Kevin Matthews (drums) have had the opportunity to perform this music at a month-long residency at Nocturne in early 2022, and live on the air at 89.3 KUVO. Again, I’m looking forward to recording with this band for a 2023 release as well.

What makes all of this music special to me is the collaboration with the amazing musicians I have the honor of working with. I love the way our individual voices and perspectives all come together to create something truly unique.

Is there something surprising that you feel even people who know you might not know about?
Something most people might now know about me is that even though I’ve only been publicly/professionally writing and performing on the guitar for the past year and a half or so, I’ve been songwriting on the guitar for almost my whole life.

The very guitar I got for my 10th birthday is the guitar I play in Barbara now. It’s really fulfilling to see some of the songs I wrote at a very young age re-emerging and becoming part of my writing so many years later.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.camillavaitaitis.com/
• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/camillavaitaitis/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/camillavaitaitismusic 

Image Credits
Anna Panella, Ethan Michael, Ben Machlin, Susan Gatschet, Adrienne Kendall