• Jay Pettit (he/him) has so far committed over a decade to concert saxophone performance.

    Born and raised in Fort Wayne, Indiana, Pettit is the proud product of low-income, inner-city schools and is passionate about making classical concert music accessible and engaging to a wide variety of audiences. Pettit also takes particular interest in the performance of works by composers from historically marginalized communities.

    His current research interests center around the use of the saxophone in sacred, liturgical worship settings. To promote the use of the saxophone in these contexts, he has arranged numerous settings for solo saxophone and organ, as well as several works for a mix of saxophone-based chamber configurations.

    Pettit earned his Bachelor of Music Education (B.M.E.) degree at Ball State University, then pursued his Master of Music (M.M.) degree in saxophone performance at Stephen F. Austin State University, where he served as the graduate teaching assistant for the musicology area until 2024. 

    Pettit is currently working on completing his Doctor of Musical Arts (D.M.A.) degree in saxophone performance and graduate certificate in Arts Entrepreneurism at Texas Tech University where he serves as a graduate teaching assistant for the music theory area and saxophone studio.

    His primary teachers of saxophone include Dr. Nathan Bogert, Dr. Bob Eason, and Prof. David Dees.

    • Nox Quartet performance of Caprock Sketches at the 2026 North American Saxophone Alliance Biennial Conference

    • World Premiere of Austin Perry’s Quartet No. 1 for saxophone quartet (2026)

    • World Premiere of Zach Franklin’s Psilocybin for saxophone quartet (November 2025)

    • Solo performance of L’Arlésienne Suite No. 1 (Georges Bizet) with the Stephen F. Austin State University Symphony Orchestra (2023)

    • Performance with the Stephen F. Austin State University Wind Ensemble at TMEA 2023

    • U.S. Premiere of Miniatura #1: Hormigas (Nelson Ramírez Díaz) with the Ball State University Wind Ensemble Quartet (2019)

    • Prof. Debra Richtmeyer (2026)

    • Dr. Myles Boothroyd (2024)

    • Dr. Don-Paul Kahl (2024)

    • Kenari Quartet (2023, 2020)

    • ~Nois Quartet (2023)

    • Dr. Robert Young (2021)

    • Dr. Kenneth Tse (2021)

    • Dr. Robert Eason (2020)

    • Dr. Nathan Nabb (2019)

    • PFLAG Lubbock, advisor/website design (Sept. 2026–Present)

    • St. John’s United Methodist Church Choral Scholars (Lubbock, TX), bass (Aug. 2026–Present)

    • American Association of University Professors (AAUP/AFT), Texas Tech University Chapter member (Apr. 2026–Present)

    • Texas Music Educators Association (TMEA), collegiate member, (Oct. 2026–Present)

    • PFLAG Lubbock, Board of Directors, Officer at Large (Oct. 2025–26)

    • Llano Estacado Theatre Lab, saxophone soloist (June 2025–Present)

    • St. John’s United Methodist Church Chancel Choir (Lubbock, TX), bass chorister and saxophone soloist (May 2025–Aug. 2026)

    • North American Saxophone Alliance (NASA), member (Jan. 2025–Present)

    • Lubbock Symphony Orchestra (LSO), contract musician (Aug. 2024–Present)

    • Lubbock-Cooper High School, fine arts clinician (Aug. 2024–Nov. 2024)

    • National Band Association, collegiate member (Spring 2020–Spring 2022)

    • Indiana Music Education Association (IMEA), collegiate member (Fall 2018–Spring 2022)

    • National Association for Music Education (NAfME), collegiate member (Fall 2018–Spring 2022)

    • Fantaisie — Denis Bedard

    • L’Arlésienne, Suite No. 1 — Georges Bizet ✶

    • Aria — Eugène Bozza

    • Improvisation et Caprice — Eugène Bozza

    • Concerto, Op. 26 — Paul Creston ✶

    • Sonata, Op. 19 — Paul Creston

    • Saxophone Concerto — Ingolf Dahl

    • Prélude, Cadence et Finale — Alfred Desenclos ✶

    • Sonate en Ut# — Fernande Decruck ✶

    • Concerto en Mi♭, Op. 109 — Alexander Glazunov ✶

    • Duo for Alto Saxophone and Piano — Walter Hartley ✶

    • Petite Suite — Walter Hartley ✶

    • Sonata for Alto Sax and Piano — Jennifer Higdon ✶

    • Sonata — Bernard Heiden

    • Fantaisie Impromptu — Andre Jolivet ✶

    • Tableaux de Provence — Paule Maurice ✶

    • Scaramouche — Darius Milhaud ✶

    • Improvisation I — Ryo Noda ✶

    • Quattro Liriche Brevi — Juan Orrego-Salas ✶

    • Sonata for Oboe and Piano — Francis Poulenc (arr. Jennifer Blackwell) ✶

    • Légende, Op. 66 — Florent Schmitt ✶

    • Sonatine — Maurice Ravel (arr. David Walter) ✶

    • Picnic on the Marne — Ned Rorem ✶

    • Suite, Op. 55 — Fazil Say

    • Hot-Sonate — Erwin Schulhoff ✶

    • Ballade — Henri Tomasi

    • Concerto — Henri Tomasi

    • In Transit — Mischa Zupko

    • Children’s Songs — Chick Corea (arr. Rob Buckland) ✶

    • Tango Virtuoso — Thierry Escaich  ✶

    • Psilocybin — Zach Franklin — (World Premiere) ✶

    • Saxophone Quartet — Philip Glass ✶

    • Hot Feet! — JaRod Hall ✶

    • Danzón For My Father — Oscar Hernández  ✶

    • “Addis Ababa” from Ciudades — Guillermo Lago ✶

    • “Sarajevo” from Ciudades — Guillermo Lago

    • Six Bagatelles — György Ligeti ✶

    • Strange Humors — John Mackey  ✶

    • Quartet No. 1 — Austin Perry — (World Premiere) ✶

    • Introduction et Variations sur une Ronde Populaire — Gabriel Pierné 

    • The Dromer — Danish traditional, arr. Will Pyle  ✶

    • Miniatura #1: Hormigas — Nelson Ramírez — (U.S. Premiere)  ✶

    • Grave et Presto — Jean Rivier  ✶

    • Saxophone Quartet — Aldemaro Romero ✶

    • Ambivert — Karalyn Schubring ✶

    • Allegro de Concert — J.B. Singelée  ✶

    • “Memory” from Nepomuk’s Dances — Marcelo Zarvos (arr. Darius Mackie)  ✶

    • Komm, süßer Tod — J.S. Bach, (arr. Jay Pettit) — for SATB saxophone quartet and organ ✶

    • Konzertstück für Zwei Altsaxophone — Paul Hindemith — for two alto saxophones ✶

    • Pequeña Czarda — Pedro Iturralde (arr. Fernanda Chaves) — for two alto saxophones and piano ✶

    • I Loved the Fragrance, IV. “Hasu (Lotus) no Kou” — Nobuhito Sato — for alto saxophone, bass trombone, and piano ✶

    • Powerhouse — Karalyn Schubring — for soprano saxophone, alto saxophone, and piano ✶

    • BIG Talk — Shelley Washington — for two baritone saxophones ✶

[stars indicate public performances]