Dianne Reeves

Dianne Reeves Four-time Grammy winner Dianne Reeves has recorded and performed extensively with the Lincoln Center Jazz Orchestra and Wynton Marsalis, who said of the singer, “She has one of the most powerful, purposeful and accurate voices of this or any time.” She was the first Creative Chair for Jazz for the Los Angeles Philharmonic and the first singer to perform at the famed Walt Disney Concert Hall. Reeves appeared throughout George Clooney’s Good Night and Good Luck and performed every song on the Grammy-winning soundtrack.

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Sheila E. Anderson

Sheila E. Anderson

The host of Weekend Jazz After Hours on WBGO Jazz 88.3FM, Sheila E. Anderson is the author of three books, most recently The Little Red Book of Musician’s Wisdom. She is the curator of the Newark Museum’s Jazz in the Gardenseries and a Columbia University Scholar. In 1977, she was elected to the NAACP’s National Board of Directors, a position she held until 1981.

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Christian McBride

Christian McBride

NJPAC Jazz Advisor Christian McBride, the recently named Artistic Director of the Newport Jazz Festival, is a five-time Grammy Award-winning bassist-composer who, since the early ‘90s, has recorded over 300 dates as a sideman and released albums as a leader since ’95. Aside from various stints with Sting, Chick Corea, Pat Metheny, Roy Haynes, John McLaughlin and George Duke, among others, McBride tours consistently with his trio and his quintet, Inside Straight. He also fronts the Christian McBride Big Band, whose album The Good Feeling won a 2012 Grammy for Best Large Jazz Ensemble Album.

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Mark Ruffin

Mark Ruffin

A former musician and songwriter, Mark Ruffin worked for over 20 years as Jazz Editor for Chicago Magazine and has written more than 500 articles on jazz, broadcasting and African-American culture. He also spent years involved in television journalism, winning two Emmy Awards for his efforts in bringing stories about jazz on WTTW-TV/Chicago.

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Sheila Jordan

Sheila Jordan

Raised in poverty in Pennsylvania’s coal-mining country, Sheila Jordan began singing as a child and was working in Detroit clubs by her early teens. Her uncompromising style and unique musical trademarks include frequent and unexpected sweeping changes of pitch. She is recognized for her collaborations with bassist Cameron Brown in performance and the recording studio.

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Deelee Dubé

 

An accomplished singer-songwriter, born and raised in London, Deelee Dubé often performs on London’s live music circuit and is the resident singer at saxophonist Rentao D’Aiello’s “Acoustic Jazz Lounge” at Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club. She has been featured on several collaborative projects with renowned artistes and musicians, such as guitarist John Jallow, with whom she released the successful single, “Rainy Day Blues.” Dubé’s versatile and soulful voice has been heard by audiences throughout Europe and the U.S., and her sound has been compared to such greats as Sarah Vaughan and Billie Holiday. She is currently working on original material and projects with other musicians and producers.

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Sinne Eeg

 

Sinne Eeg has earned a loyal and rapidly growing fan base in her native Denmark and around the world for her distinctive vocals and original compositions. Born into a musical family, she studied at the prestigious Danish Music Conservatory and has received numerous awards, including the DR P2 Jazz Prize, four Danish Music Awards (Denmark’s GRAMMY®), the Ben Webster Prize (sole female recipient for the past 30 years), and the Prix du Jazz of the French Academie du Jazz. Eeg has made her mark in Japan, China and throughout Europe for her exquisite live performances and award-winning studio recordings. She cites Nancy Wilson, Betty Carter and Sarah Vaughan as her influences.

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Lauren Scales

 

Detroit native Lauren Scales, the daughter of acclaimed jazz artists Charles and Gwen Scales, has been performing most of her life. A graduate of the University of Michigan, where she studied with Geri Allen, Ellen Rowe and many other artists, she is currently a songwriting and composition student at New York University. Scales received national recognition for her compositions in the 2016 Betty Carter Jazz Ahead program at the Kennedy Center. Blending her jazz background with soul, R&B, pop and classic rock influences, she enjoys taking classic tunes and re-harmonizing them in her own eclectic style. In addition to performing, composing and writing lyrics, Scales is an avid student of poetry.

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Teira Lockhart Church

 

Teira Lockhart Church was a finalist in the 2013 Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition. A jazz and contemporary singer and songwriter based in Los Angeles, she has been honored by the Los Angeles Spotlight Awards (first place, 2007), the Reno Jazz Festival, the National Foundation for Advancement in the Arts’ YoungArts Competition, and UCLA’s Spring Sing Competition (grand prize, 2015). She has performed at some of the best known venues in L.A., like the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion and LACMA, and collaborated with Ted Case on the album Purple Crayon. Church is an arts educator and social activist with Young Angels of America, which fosters a culture of philanthropy in adolescents.

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Lauren Bush

 

Born and raised in Canada, Lauren Bush relocated to London to pursue music on a new level. She recently released her debut album with the help of award-winning vocalist Ian Shaw as producer. Daughter of an accomplished jazz trumpeter father and music teacher mother, it is no surprise that she grew up with an aptitude for singing. Some highlights of her extensive travels around North America include opening for Maynard Ferguson, sharing the stage with Bobby McFerrin, and performing with her quartet at the Corpus Christi Jazz Festival two years running. In London, she played in Royal Albert Hall’s Elgar Room, among other venues.

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Ann Hampton Callaway

Ann Hampton Callaway is one of the leading champions of the great American Songbook, having made her mark as a singer, pianist, composer, lyricist, arranger, actress, educator, TV host and producer. Her unique singing style blends jazz and traditional pop, making her a mainstay in concert halls, theaters, and jazz clubs as well as in the recording studio, on television, and in film. She is best known for her Tony-nominated performance in the hit Broadway musical Swing! and for writing and singing the theme song to the hit TV series The Nanny. Callaway is a Platinum award-winning songwriter whose songs are featured on seven of Barbra Streisand’s recent CDs. The only composer to have collaborated with Cole Porter, she has also written songs with Carole King, Rolf Lovland, and Barbara Carroll to name a few. Ann’s 2014 release was The Sarah Vaughan Project: Live at Dizzy’s

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Will Downing

Vocalist Will Downing has one of the smoothest, most sophisticated voices in contemporary rhythm-and-blues. This Grammy-nominated singer and songwriter is known for his emotive, honey-smooth baritone, as well as impeccable phrasing and vocal agility that blends R&B with jazz. “After 28 years in the music industry, he still knows how to mesmerize a crowd,” Soul Train wrote of a recent performance. Downing’s musical sensibility and mastery of romantic ballads has earned him the title of “Prince of Sophisticated Soul.”

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T.S. Monk

Bandleader, composer and drummer T. S. Monk is the son of iconic jazz pianist Thelonius Monk. As leader since 1992 of the T.S. Monk Sextet, he’s appeared in clubs around the world, at the JVC Jazz at the Bowl festival, and on ABC Television, in “A Celebration of America’s Music,” hosted by Bill Cosby. In 1997, he received the New York Jazz Awards First Annual “Recording of the Year” award and Downbeats’ 63rd annual Album of the Year Reader’s Choice Award for Monk on Monk, an 80th birthday tribute to his father that featured Herbie Hancock, Wayne Shorter and Arturo Sandoval, among others. To honor his father’s legacy, Thelonious formed the Thelonious Monk Institute of Jazz, which offers everything from scholarships for aspiring musicians to after-school programs.

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Vanessa Rubin

Vocalist Vanessa Rubin possesses a voice hailed for its crystalline clarity, warmth and playful lioness sass. The Cleveland native’s passion for rich musical stories is evidenced throughout her eight albums thus far. After gigging around Cleveland’s clubs in the 1980s, Rubin graduated to playing in New York City with the likes of Pharaoh Sanders, Frank Foster and Barry Harris. In 1992, Rubin signed to Novus/RCA Records, recording five albums, three of which reached #1 at radio. Her debut recording Soul Eyes (1992) was produced by the venerable Onaje Allen Gumbs. In addition to singing and recording, Rubin has for several years performed the play “Yesterdays: An Evening with Billie Holiday,” a one-woman show about the life and music of the legendary jazz singer. Rubin continues to be a favorite at clubs and festivals, and her work as an educator both in community settings as well as in institutions worldwide is ongoing.

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Gary Walker

For the past 22 years, Gary Walker has hosted WBGO’s morning show every weekday from 6 to 10 pm — and his enthusiasm for the jazz he plays has never flagged. His love of this music flourished as grew up outside of Detroit in the mid 1960’s. While his peers were listening to rock, Gary sought out recordings by Miles Davis, Ramsey Lewis and other cutting-edge jazz artists. As a finance major at the University of Texas, he remembers passing the campus radio station, and noticing that everyone in there seemed to be having so much fun. He soon abandoned finance and graduated with a degree in Mass Media. After moving to New York City, within five weeks he landed an announcer’s position on Saturday mornings at WBGO.

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Tiffany Austin

Vocalist Tiffany Austin’s tradition-rooted yet modern style has established her as one of the fastest rising jazz stars in Northern California. Before earning a law degree at U.C. Berkeley, she performed on three continents; instead of taking the bar exam, she decided to devote her life to music. Austin’s artistry draws on such influences as Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone and Aretha Franklin; her nuanced delivery and fearless improvisation have caught the attention of eminent musicians she has joined onstage, like Roy Ayers and John Handy. Her debut recording, Nothing But Soul, received a four- star review from DownBeat magazine and a feature on NPR’s Fresh Air. Austin’s upcoming sophomore album was recorded with Cyrus Chestnut, Rodney Whitaker and Carl Allen.

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Christine Fawson

Both a vocalist and trumpet player, Christine Fawson has performed all over the world – at festivals, on educational recordings, and as a sideman on several artists’ recordings. From 2002-2012, she was a member of the vocal jazz group Syncopation, which released three CDs and appeared regularly in the Boston area with Phil Wilson’s Berklee Rainbow Band, the Capitol Center Jazz Orchestra and the Boston Pops. Fawson played trumpet with the DIVA Jazz Orchestra at such venues as Carnegie Hall, the Apollo Theater and Lincoln Center, and with artists John Pizzarelli, Maurice Hines and many others. A faculty member at Berklee College of Music for 14 years, she has three albums: Happy Talk (2003), My Side (2013) and Here Now (2016).

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Fabio Giacalone

Captivated by music since childhood, Fabio Giacalone studied violin, piano technique and music theory at an early age. After participating in the Berklee College of Music Clinics at the Umbria Jazz Festival, he won a full scholarship to Berklee and graduated with a degree in vocal jazz performance. Last year, Giacalone took third prize in the world-renowned Shure Montreux Jazz Voice Competition in Montreux, Switzerland. He recently participated in the Montreux Jazz Academy 2017, where he worked side-by- side with outstanding musicians like Marcus Miller, Yaron Herman, Ziv Ravitz, Kurt Rosenwinkel and Elina Duni. Giacalone lives in New York City, where he continues to gig, explore jazz, and collaborate on many projects as a vocal producer and background vocalist.

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Quiana Lynell

Singer and songwriter Quiana Lynell has performed as a soloist with jazz and symphony orchestras alike. Whether performing for a few or many, Lynell “takes the listener on a journey with the emotion of the blues, accompanied by the discipline of classical, topped off with the elegance of jazz,” noted a journalist in Europe. Studying vocal performance at Louisiana State University outfitted Lynell with the skills to store an impressive repertoire and to showcase her multi-octave instrument. She’s worked alongside masters of jazz and the American Songbook, such as Terence Blanchard, the Preservation Hall Band and Aaron Neville. “I see music as the soundtrack of life and I enjoy each opportunity to share memories and moments in the lives of those around me,” she says.

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Tatiana “LadyMay” Mayfield

A jazz vocalist, musician and educator from Fort Worth, Texas, Tatiana “LadyMay” Mayfield has been singing and playing jazz music since the age of 13. In 2010, she was one of 12 semi-finalists to compete in the prestigious Thelonious Monk International Jazz Vocals Competition, and has opened for well- known artists such as Randy Brecker, Dave Valentin, Will Downing, and The Main Ingredient. LadyMay has performed with the legendary Cincinnati Pops Orchestra and upcoming is an appearance with the Hilton Head Symphony Orchestra. She has recorded two albums – From All Directions and A Portrait of LadyMay – and is at work on a third. In addition to her vocal skills, she plays piano and trombone, composes, and teaches voice and music theory.

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Oleg Akkuratov

Pianist and vocalist Oleg Akkuratov, who was born blind, showed outstanding musical ability in pitch, musical memory and sense of rhythm from a very early age. A graduate of the Rostov State Conservatory in Russia, where he currently teaches, he studied at the Moscow State College of Pop and Jazz Music and the Institute of Music at the Moscow University of Culture and Arts. He has toured internationally as a member of the Igor Butman Quartet and the Moscow Jazz Orchestra. Akkuratov was the subject of Lyudmila Gurchenko’s film Colorful Twilight.

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Gabrielle Cavassa

A young singer with a distinctive sound, Gabrielle Cavassa began her career in San Francisco, performing in jazz clubs like Club Deluxe, Black Cat, Small Wonder, and Yoshi’s. She graduated with a degree in jazz history from San Francisco State University, where she studied with saxophonist Andrew Speight, to whom she credits her love of bebop. Last year, she moved to New Orleans to further her lifelong study of music and performs weekly with both straight-ahead jazz and hip hop groups.

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Olivia Chindamo

Australian vocalist Olivia Chindamo is a New York based musician who is best known for her natural and effortless ability to improvise, or scat. As the 2016 Bell Award winner for “Young Australian Jazz Artist of the Year,” she became one of Australia’s most sought-after jazz vocalists and is now being recognized internationally. Chindamo studied with some of America’s finest jazz musicians at the Banff International Workshop in Jazz & Creative Music 2016, and has performed on stages of all sizes, such as Melbourne’s iconic Hamer Hall and The Basement in Sydney.

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Toscha Comeaux

Toscha Comeaux, a native of Hartford, Conn., began her musical journey in church. Genres of music – classical, R&B, soul, rock’n’roll, pop – have always been a part of her vocal makeup, but jazz would have a more profound effect on her spirit. There was something about the lyrics and melodies that were so simple, yet complex. Sarah Vaughan was one of the first vocalists Comeaux bent her ear to, and then many greats followed.

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Laurin Talese

Laurin Talese has been captivating audiences with her voice since the age of 10. A native of Cleveland, she earned a bachelor’s degree in jazz vocal performance at the University of the Arts in Philadelphia. She has worked with such recording artists as Bilal and Robert Glasper and has shared the stage with the Cleveland Orchestra, The Moses Hogan Chorale and the Mozarteum Orchestra of Salzburg. A passionate songwriter, she released her debut album, Gorgeous Chaos, in partnership with producers Ulysses Owens Jr. and Adam Blackstone.

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Nnenna Freelon

Six-time GRAMMY® Award nominee Nnenna Freelon has earned a well-deserved reputation as a compelling and captivating live performer. Recently, Nnenna starred in the critically acclaimed show “Georgia on My Mind: Celebrating the Music of Ray Charles” at the Venetian Hotel in Las Vegas. Nnenna is no stranger to the music of the master singer – she toured with Ray Charles, as well as many other greatest jazz artists including Ellis Marsalis, Al Jarreau, George Benson, and others.

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Mary Ann Topper

Mary Ann Topper

A former classical vocalist and educator, Mary Ann Topper holds Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in Music from Bucknell University and The University of Michigan, respectively; and in addition, pursued supplementary post-graduate coursework at The New England Conservatory in Boston and The University of Southern California in Los Angeles. While in Boston, Ms. Topper taught music in the Boston Public School System, and helped to pioneer a racially-integrated jazz program during the city’s heated desegregation movement of the mid-70’s. During a sabbatical studying jazz improvisation and history at USC, Ms. Topper began to seriously consider entering the music business, and with the help and encouragement of the legendary bassist, Ray Brown, she made her new goal a reality — founding The Jazz Tree Agency in 1980.

After she created her booking and management agency, Ms. Topper’s passion for the music, as well as her ability to launch young, unknown artists into renowned jazz stars, secured her status as a major force in the industry. Don Heckman of the LA Times has described her as “one of the jazz Pygmalions of the 21st century music scene,” and David Hajdu of the New York Times Magazine called her “the Colonel Parker of Jazz”! “A fiercely articulate woman with an iron will” (Jazz Times) – this high-energy music manager has become an “almost legendary figure in the jazz biz” (Andrew Gilbert, Mercury News). She has also been listed in the Top 20 of Jazz Times Magazine’s “Power Index” every year since its debut in 2001.

Over the years, Ms. Topper has developed the emerging careers of many young stars of the future; including Joshua Redman, Christian McBride, Diana Krall, Benny Green, Russell Malone, Wallace Roney, Geoffrey Keezer, Jane Monheit, and Peter Cincotti, to name but a few.

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Jon Faddis

Jon Faddis

One of the most innovative and inspiring jazz trumpeters of our time, Jon Faddis is a GRAMMY-nominated conductor, composer and educator; his distinctive trumpet appears on hundreds of records and numerous soundtracks for film and television. A protégé and longtime friend of Dizzy Gillespie, Faddis directed the Dizzy Gillespie Alumni All-Stars, the United Nation Orchestra, and the Carnegie Hall Jazz Band, and now, its successor, the Jazz Orchestra of New York. Faddis is a full-time faculty member at the Conservatory of Music, Purchase College- SUNY; he holds the first honorary doctorate in jazz from Manhattan School of Music, where he also teaches.

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Stefon Harris

Stefon Harris is a composer, vibraphonist, marimbist, and educator who serves as NJPAC’s Artistic Advisor of Jazz Education. Heralded as “one of the most important artists in jazz” (Los Angeles Times), he is a four-time GRAMMY nominee and recipient of the prestigious 2018 Doris Duke Artist Award and the Martin E. Segal Award from Lincoln Center. Harris was named Best Mallet player eight times by the Jazz Journalists Association and chosen Best Vibes in the 2017 and 2018 DownBeat Critics Poll. NPR’s All Things Considered praised his CD Urbanus, which earned a GRAMMY nomination for Best Contemporary Jazz Album.

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Christian McBride

Christian McBride is a bassist, composer and educator who has performed with Sonny Rollins, McCoy Tyner,
Pat Metheny and Milt Jackson, among many others, in the worlds of R&B, pop-rock, classical music and hip-
hop. He is a six-time GRAMMY® winner, Artistic Director of the Newport Jazz Festival, and Jazz Advisor for
NJPAC. McBride has arranged or worked with James Brown, Paul McCartney, Sting, Carly Simon, Queen
Latifah, Kathleen Battle and the Shanghai Quartet. He is the host and producer of The Lowdown:
Conversations with Christian on SiriusXM and NPR’s Jazz Night in America.

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Dee Dee Bridgewater

Dee Dee Bridgewater

Over the course of a four-decade career, GRAMMY- and Tony Award-winning jazz giant Dee Dee Bridgewater
has ascended to the upper echelon of vocalists, putting her unique spin on standards and taking intrepid leaps
of faith in re-envisioning jazz classics. The three-time GRAMMY winner most recently accepted Best Jazz
Vocal Album for Eleanora Fagan (1915-1959): To Billie With Love From Dee Dee. Her first professional
experience was as a member of the legendary Thad Jones/Mel Louis Big Band, and throughout the ‘70s she
performed with such jazz notables as Max Roach, Sonny Rollins, Dexter Gordon and Dizzy Gillespie. All but
one of her critically acclaimed CDs have received GRAMMY nominations. Also a musical theater artist,
Bridgewater earned a Tony Award for her role as Glinda in The Wiz in 1975.

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Gary Walker

Gary Walker

For the past 35 years, Gary Walker has hosted WBGO’s morning show every weekday from 6 to 10pm – and
his enthusiasm for the jazz he plays has never flagged. His love of this music flourished as grew up outside of
Detroit in the mid-1960s. While his peers were listening to rock, Walker sought out recordings by Miles Davis,
Ramsey Lewis and other cutting-edge jazz artists. As a finance major at the University of Texas, he
remembers passing the campus radio station, and noticing that everyone in there seemed to be having so
much fun. He soon abandoned finance and graduated with a degree in mass media. After moving to New York
City 37 years ago, Walker landed an announcer’s position on Saturday mornings at WBGO within five weeks.

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Jane Monheit

Jane Monheit

Blessed with “a voice of phenomenal beauty” (Stephen Holden, The New York Times), Jane Monheit has
established herself as one of today’s best and most important vocalist-musicians. At 20 years old, she was the
first runner-up in the 1998 Thelonious Monk Institute’s vocal competition and counts Kenny Barron, Ron
Carter, Lewis Nash, Nicholas Payton, Sergio Mendes and Toots Thielemans among her many collaborators
over the years. Just a sampling of Monheit’s recordings includes Never Never Land, Live at the Rainbow
Room, Surrender, and Home. She also has appeared on the albums of many other artists, such as Terence
Blanchard, Freddy Cole and Mark O’Connor. Her latest album is The Songbook Sessions: Ella Fitzgerald.

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Matt Pierson

Matt Pierson

Award-winning producer Matt Pierson’s discography reads as an overview of the best in contemporary jazz
and includes Brad Mehldau, Joshua Redman, Pat Metheny, Bob James, Kirk Whalum, Jane Monheit, and
others. He led Blue Note’s marketing and A&R departments before being called by industry legend Mo Ostin to
run Jazz A&R for Warner Bros. Records. He signed and in most cases produced a roster of heavyweights
before being elevated to Executive VP/GM while making Warner an industry leader, garnering over 40
GRAMMY nominations and countless No. 1 singles and albums. In 2003, Pierson left Warner Bros. to produce
and consult independently. Clients have included Apple, PledgeMusic, Rhino, and Mosaic Records; he is
currently A&R Consultant for Sony Masterworks.

 

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Monifa Brown

Monifa Brown is a publicity veteran with over two decades of experience. She has served as VP of Publicity for
the independent record label Shanachie Entertainment since 2001 and has led campaigns for such eclectic
artists as George Clinton, Soweto Gospel Choir, Michael Franks and Will Downing, among others. She also led
publicity campaigns for Blue Note Records, Columbia Jazz, Warner Bros. Jazz and Verve Records,
spearheading campaigns for notables such as Geri Allen, Terence Blanchard, Joe Lovano and Dianne
Reeves. Brown has been the host of WBGO’s Saturday Afternoon Jazz since 1996 and spent two years as a
host on SiriusXM’s Pure Jazz Channel. At Festival Productions, she was both assistant and associate
producer for NPR’s JazzSet with Branford Marsalis.

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Samara McLendon

Born and raised in the Castle Hill section of the Bronx, Samara McLendon is a rising star destined for greatness. New to the scene, she has managed to perform in many great jazz rooms such as Dizzy’s Club Coca Cola, Mezzrow, and the infamous Blue Note in New York City with seasoned professionals such as Pasquale Grasso, Jon Faddis, and NEA Jazz Master Dr. Barry Harris. She has also held a position as a vocal teaching assistant for the Jazz House Kids summer program, run by Christian McBride. She is currently a junior in the prestigious Jazz Studies program within SUNY Purchase. Still staying true to her roots, Samara remains a volunteer in the music department at her home church of World Changers Church New York on the Grand Concourse.  Having a passionate love for jazz music, she hopes to use its uniting force as a catalyst for change in the years to come.

 

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Daniela Spalletta

Singer, composer, arranger and lyricist, born in Sicily, considered one of the main female italian singers by JAZZIT Magazine, Daniela Spalletta  studied Jazz, Lyric, Baroque Singing and Piano and  recorded and collaborated with many important musicians in Europe, such us: Giovanni Mazzarino, Urban Fabula, Enrico Intra, Max Ionata, Fabrizio Bosso, Seamus Blake, Riccardo Fioravanti, Monica Mancini, Gregg Field, Israel Varela, Chiara Civello, Francesco Cafiso, Dino Rubino, Alessandro Paternesi, Gabriele Evangelista, Alessandro Marzi, Salvatore Bonafede, Rosalba Bentivoglio, Giuseppe Bassi, Nicola Angelucci and many others. Her debut album, “D/Birth”, with her own compositions and arrangements, garnered excellent reviews and awards in Italy (100 Greatest Album 2015 by JAZZIT Magazine; SoundCheck Airplay Music Awards 2016 by Gegè Telesforo “SoundCheck” Radio Program as  Best Italian Jazz 2015/2016, etc.). She has won many international jazz awards, among which the Multiculturita Europe Contest, Premio Claudio Abbado,  Premio Nazionale delle Arti, Lucca Jazz Donna Award, etc. In 2015 she won the Full Tuition Scholarship for the Master in Contemporary Performing Arts at the Berklee College of Music in Valencia. She performed in many festivals and Italian Cultural Institutes in Europe, such as Atelier Musicale, Jazz al Piccolo, Umbria Jazz, Italian Cultural Institute in Nice, Rendez Vous De L’Erdre, Crema Jazz Art Festival, Casa del Jazz, Iseo Jazz, Piazza Jazz, Django World Music Festival, Vittoria Jazz Festival, BeatOnto Jazz Festival. She teaches Vocal Jazz at several Conservatories of Music in Italy.

 

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Viktorija Gečytė

Vik premiered in public at age five in her native Lithuania and was regularly featured on TV as a singer. Later, she schooled herself in global jazz by hitchhiking to music festivals around the country.

At nineteen, thanks to a scholarship from Lafayette College, PA, Vik moved to the US and delved into the New York area jazz scene, while earning her BA in Mathematics-Economics. After graduation, she settled down in Paris and started performing internationally.

Since 2008, Vik has been touring and recording with veteran American bassist Gene Perla, formerly with Elvin Jones, Sonny Rollins, Nina Simone and Sarah Vaughan. Their second album together, featuring Edsel Gomez on piano and Adam Nussbaum on drums, will be coming out in early 2020 on P.M. Records.

In 2013, Vik co-lead an ambitious big band project with French pianist Julien Coriatt and his Orchestra. She contributed as lyricist and composer to Julien’s exploratory journey through jazz, classical and folk music, with songs in her native tongue. Their album “Blue Lake” was released in 2015.

In the last two summers, Vik was featured as guest vocalist with the Frankfurt Radio Big Band at two open-air concerts in Germany.

Vik is powered by connection. For her, singing is a musical conversation, a human endeavor, a never-ending journey.

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Christine Fawson

Born in Northern California, Christine Fawson is a vocalist and trumpet player, specializing in jazz, commercial entertainment and education.

A Bach trumpet artist, Christine was on the Brass faculty at Berklee College of Music for 14 years. Her duties during her tenure at Berklee included the Audition and Interview program and Ear Training, Harmony, Vocal, Performance Studies and Ensemble departments.

“A distinctive performer with compelling dynamism” (Downbeat Magazine) Christine placed third in the 2017 International Sarah Vaughan Jazz Vocal Competition. She was a member of the vocal jazz group, Syncopation from 2002-2012. The group recorded three CDs; A New Dance, Of Blue and Wonderful You. Syncopation was featured at festivals throughout the United States and Japan. The group also appeared regularly in the Boston area with Phil Wilson’s Berklee Rainbow Band, The Capitol Center Jazz Orchestra and the Boston Pops Orchestra.

Christine played trumpet with the DIVA Jazz Orchestra from 2004-2009. She performed with the band at such venues as Carnegie Hall, the Apollo Theater, and Lincoln Center, and worked with artists such as Johnny Mandel, Tommy Newsom and the New York Pops. She performed with DIVA in concerts and festivals in Europe and throughout the United States. Christine has also performed with the band as a vocal soloist, and most recently at Dizzy’s at Lincoln Center in the 2016 Ella Wishes You a Swinging Christmas tribute concert.

Christine has released four albums as a leader. Happy Talk, (2003) features the arrangements of trombone legend, Phil Wilson. My Side (2013) features original pop and jazz music. On her album, Here Now (2016) she quiets down with a jazz quartet. Her newest album, Sings Jazz (2018) features more contemporary arrangements of some of her favorite songs from the American.

As a freelance trumpet player Christine worked with several agencies in Boston and New York, most notably with Wilson Stevens. She has worked with various artists, including The Disney Corporation, Bose, the Rat Pack and Adele. She has given lectures, performances and master classes at conferences and events around the world and continues to participate in JEN and NMEA festivals throughout the States.

Currently, she tours and produces music events in New Mexico.

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Vivian Sessoms

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