arrange • compose • conduct
Posts about vocal jazz.
I made a list today of reliable jazz singers for my students. By reliable, I mean that when they interpret a song, their interpretation is going to be helpful in understanding the bulls-eye of the song. Consistently. I omitted singers who are inconsistent in their output or whose recorded output […]
Jazz singing is an oral tradition. You need to listen to multiple recordings as you begin to prepare a song, for one big reason. It’s this: the interpretation of the song has evolved away from the original sheet music and into something living. Only by listening to multiple recordings can […]
Wishing you a day filled with music. Including this, which for me exemplifies Christmasy music. Gene’s writing is complex, original, beautiful, and always compelling. But more than that, in this case, is the heartfelt delivery of this piece. You feel it when they sing it. Right down to the spoken […]
What is the best Christmas album and why is it Ella Wishes You A Swinging Christmas? It has the perfect selection of classic American Christmas songs. Ella sings flawlessly. (It’s my favorite period of her recording – around the same time she was recording the Songbook series, her classic Ella […]
My family is wishing you peace and connection this holiday season. We made this little music video together just for you! Wishing you all a Happy Holidays! We’ve built a lot of skills this year in our house – singing, juggling, audio & video engineering. And we decided to put […]
When I was selecting songs for GRCC Shades of Blue for Fall 2020, “Singin’ in the Rain” was the first arrangement I chose. For many reasons, including: It’s a killer a cappella jazz chart – swinging, great harmony, fun to sing. April Tini had a major influence in introducing me […]
Yesterday, I finally got to share one of the projects that has been occupying my work daily for the last couple of months. This arrangement, a lullaby version of the Beatles’ “Golden Slumbers,” was written in a flurry the week after we lost a former student, Katherine, at 22. She […]
I was flattered when my former student, Harrison Witt, asked me to write an arrangement for his Senior Recital in his Jazz Voice degree at Western Michigan University. When he settled on an “Out Of This World” theme, we came to “Lost In The Stars” as a song to write […]
I’m transcribing a standard from Ella and Louis right now – phrasing and all. It’s…hard. Because Ella’s phrasing is so complex and hip. The back phrasing floats across beats in a way that swings and is completely ineffable. So the question becomes, how do you balance accuracy and readability? On […]
This is my fourth year directing Shades of Blue Vocal Jazz Ensemble at Grand Rapids Community College. It goes without saying that normalcy isn’t going to be found in choral ensembles anywhere in the world this year. Here’s my plan for Shades of Blue. The ensemble will be focusing on […]