February 2025
Back at it... Up There release Feb 7th
What’s up!
Here we are, back at the helm of this thing that’s like a newsletter. I really appreciate you all sticking around and supporting me on this platform, and in general.
I’m including my usual brief note for new-comers, but please note that I’ll be elaborating on this sentiment in a slightly different way in this months newsletter.
Anyway — let’s get to it…
As always, upcoming performances are at the top, and you can scroll on for other announcements and what-not!
A brief note for new-comers:
Unfortunately the algorithms that run mainstream social media have made it increasingly difficult to reach people through the noise of sponsored content, ads, and suggested posts (e.g., Taylor Swift sightings, bomb shelter tours, etc). Substack offers a convenient way to give fans, friends, and family a monthly report of what I’m up to, straight to your inbox — no ads or doomscrolling required! All of my “content” is free, and you do not need to make/pay for an account to receive these posts.
If you don’t want to receive these updates, I won’t be offended — feel free to trash or unsubscribe at any time.
Where am I playing next? Good question!
Here are some public performances you can check out this month. Keep in my that my schedule is subject to change as other performances come up. The best way to stay fully up to date is check the calendar at wyattambrosemusic.com/calendar and follow me on instagram and facebook.
You can also ask for more details on any performance by contacting me at wyattambrosemusic@gmail.com.
Friday 2/7, 7:30-9pm — Up There Album Release Concert! featuring Keith Pray, Jason Emmond, and Matt Niedbalski. Anderson Theater, Hartwick College, Oneonta NY. FREE Music! And, free FOOD afterwards! Read on for more details.
Sunday 2/16, 6-8pm — Yolanda Bush Trio at the Walton Theater Coffeehouse, Walton NY. Featuring me, Yolanda, and Evan Jagels. FREE Admission - Details here
Thursday 2/20, 7:30-9pm — Wyatt’s Up There Quartet at The Park Theater, Glens Falls NY. Featuring Keith Pray, Matt Niedbalski, Jason Emmond. $12 tickets, student discount available at door. Details and tickets here.
Friday 2/21, 6-8pm — Wyatt w/ TBD at The Tasting Lab, Greenville NY. Music to eat burgers and drink to. Free Admission, Food/drinks required.
Up There: February 7th!
It’s here! Next week, that is…
After months of work the album is finally coming out one week from today. My Substack readers have already heard all about the record, so I’ll just hit you with the bullet points.
The official release concert is happening at Hartwick College’s Anderson Theater on Friday Feb 7th at 7:30pm. It is 100% free, and will include a reception afterwards with free food. I’ll be giving a brief artist talk discussing the album, then we will play the music start to finish.
The album will be available for listening on all streaming services, and for purchase on Bandcamp and physical CDs. It’s also available for pre-order on Bandcamp, where you can listen to the track “Doldrums” right now!
In December I filmed a trailer for the album with Otsego Media, at the site of my first ever paid gig — The B-Side Ballroom in Oneonta. It was filmed and edited by Paul “King” Konye — Hartwick College Alum, and recording artist. Big thanks to Alyssa Blasetti for facilitating filming, and to Wayne and Rebecca Carrington for letting us use the B-Side.
Shoutout to my editor, album art designer, and biggest supporter:
Up There would not exist without the support of this person. She proof-read and edited my application for the grant that funded this project, designed the album artwork, and is now editing the liner notes to the album. In fact, she took the photo for the front cover which inspired the whole concept for the album.
This person is my wife, the amazing, multi-talented, creative-force-of-nature — Katie Huntington!
Katie designed the artwork using photos of Otsego County taken on a point-and-shoot film camera. The collage of photos on the inner left fold doesn’t line up with individual tracks, but rather represents the varied landscape that inspired the music. The opposite side is a layering of scans from my journal I used to compose the music.
I honestly couldn’t have imagined or asked for a better design… So, extra big thanks to Katie for being willing to take on the project and for following through with such excellent work.
Scenes from January 2025
Since February is still a bit slow up here, I thought I would share a few photos and videos of things I got into this January.
One of my solo improvisations from Soloists in The Round at The Gatehouse in Morris NY.
Grooving on “Jan Jan” with Organ Party to a packed house at The B Side Ballroom:
My camera placement was bad, so you can’t hear too much of the guitar, but you can hear the rhythm section bringing the heat and the intro to a gnarly hammond organ solo from Mr. Conor Murphy.
Avella-Ambrose & Associates at The Van Dyck: A short clip from the end of my solo on my tune “You Are Here,” and the beginning of pianist Brian Halliday’s solo.
A note about Substack and the Internet
This post marks my 8th month writing and sharing about my career/life/music on Substack. I originally started doing this with the hope that I could get the word out about various things in a more direct way than mainstream social media can offer, and I feel that I’ve been successful in that regard.
To be blunt — The realities of using mainstream social media platforms such as Facebook and Instagram are becoming bleaker by the day. Not only are these sites designed to be addictive, inflammatory, and detrimental to our mental health, but they simply do not work in the way we want or need them to. However, the unfortunate truth is that these are still by far the most used platforms, and it’s difficult to imagine a way to operate as an artist without some presence on such sites.
With all that said, more creators and artists are finding ways to create community around their work that subvert norms, and break the cycle. To me, Substack is a particularly inspiring place for this. If you need any more reassurance or information on that fact, I encourage you to subscribe to Substack Reads, and Ted Gioia’s “The Honest Broker”
This year, I’m deciding to make Substack my HQ for sharing my work on the internet, along with help of Youtube, Bandcamp, and my website. I will still use meta for the time being since I have about 5x as many followers at the moment, but I’m going to try and get as many people to follow me here as possible.
I’m not trying to go viral — I just want to share my work with folks who care about it. Platforms like this are much more suited to that effort than anything else.
Practically speaking, what is changing?
I’ll continue with monthly newsletters as usual, interjecting some short mid-month posts reminding about upcoming events or announcements. These may be longer than an instagram/facebook post, but practical and to the point.
Youtube will be the place to hear clips from gigs/practices/writing sessions. All those 60 second clips from instagram will be going to Youtube first, then possibly here if they pertain to what I’m writing about.
I currently have 36 subscribers, and I’m grateful for every single one. We still choose how we want our world to look, and I appreciate you supporting my efforts to build something that doesn’t align with the cultural status quo for art-making (not content creation).
The End!
That’s it for this month! If you enjoyed this newsletter and aren’t subsrcibed, feel free to subscribe with button below or by contacting me at wyattambrosemusic@gmail.com.
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