Lucia Sarmiento is a young Peruvian saxophonist with a huge sound and effervescent personality. Born and raised in Lima, Perú, Lucia has been influenced by classic jazz players like Sonny Rollins and John Coltrane, as well as modern players Chris Potter and Michael Brecker.
After graduating high school, Lucia moved to Buenos Aires, Argentina, to study at the Conservatorio Manuel de Falla, where she studied jazz performance. Wanting to fulfill her lifelong dream of learning jazz music from its origins and pursuing a music career in the United States, Lucia moved to Minneapolis, MN, after winning the Women in Music scholarship at Mcnally Smith College of Music in 2013. She studied there with Pete Whitman, graduating in 2017 with a Bachelor’s in Saxophone Performance.
During her first years in Minneapolis, Lucia was mentored by Eric Kamau Gravatt (Drummer for Weather Report, McCoy Tyner, Joe Henderson) as a permanent member of his jazz quintet, Source Code. In 2016, she joined funk/fusion band New Sound Underground, with whom she has played countless shows around the country.
An Analog Musician in the Digital World
In the recent years, Lucia has gained a massive social media following posting videos showing her charisma and skills as a saxophone and EWI player.
Besides performing, Lucia is passionate about providing affordable and accessible music education in Spanish and English. She regularly posts saxophone/jazz educational videos on her YouTube channel, and for the past year she has built a bilingual community of saxophone players on her Patreon, where she offers private lessons and more in depth tutorials and practice guides. In October 2020, Lucia released her first single, “Escape,” and is currently working on a full original album coming out 2021.
Lucia has worked as an ambassador for brands like Yamaha, Akai, BG, Jean Paul USA, Syos, Key Leaves among others.
Lucia Sarmiento Uses the Following Instruments & Gear
- Borgani pearl silver tenor saxophone
- Theo Wanne Slant SIG 2 6*
- Rigotti reeds 3 Medium
Check out Lucia demonstrating the Yamaha YDS Digitial Saxophone
Chris Klich & Fingering Techniques for B-flat
Super Cool Chat with Jeff Coffin on the Ethics of Sax
