Camilla Vaitaitis | 30 Under 30

Growing up with a saxophone and oboe playing, band director father, Camilla was always surrounded by music.

At four years old, she requested to take piano lessons and never looked back.

Camilla began playing jazz as an eight grader in her middle school’s band, but didn’t fall in love with the music until she joined Colorado Conservatory for the Jazz Arts in high school. Now jazz heavily influences all her music.

“The base is always jazz, especially with my personal compositions. There’s always an underlying jazz tone,” Camilla said.

She is currently pursing a bachelors in jazz and commercial music at the University of Denver Lamont School of Music.

“Jazz inherently is a style that draws elements from world music, from pop music, all of these other styles, and I think that’s what makes jazz so unique and so progressive,” Camilla said.

Like most artists, Camilla has struggled with self-doubt.

“Until recently I wasn’t playing very confidently and would always doubt myself, but then I realized that the music I have to give is the honest expression of what I have to say so I should just own it,” Camilla said.

“Once  I understood the confidence thing my music got to a different level.”

Camilla is the leader of a trio and a member of Cold Train, a quintet fusing elements of jazz with contemporary and hip hop grooves, underneath R&B, soul, and blues textures. You can also catch Camilla playing and singing with Denver Rock group Specific Ocean.

Surrounded by young musicians who are excited about jazz, Camilla says there is never a shortage of places to play jazz in Denver.

“I think the Denver jazz scene is just growing, definitely one of the best jazz scenes in the country,” said Camilla.

To celebrate 30 years on the air and invest in the future of jazz, KUVO interviewed 30 local musicians under the age of 30. These features will be released on-air and online June 29-October 31.

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