Jazz and me and the LPO

I find life very funny. A couple of weeks ago, I posted a piece about where I am with Jazz and the fact that my musical journey as taken me down a different route recently. I felt very happy with my account of things and appreciative of what I have done and where I am going.

Then last week at short notice I was asked to sing some Jazz tunes at a fundraising Gala for the London Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO).A couple of things about this evening, I was contacted for the gig by an old mate, Gwilym Simcock. If you are unfamiliar with Gwilym’s work you must check it out and be prepared to be astounded. He is a stellar pianist.

Early on in my professional career I met Gwilym and was lucky enough to record an album with him. Life takes people down different paths and we lost touch, so I was delighted to get the call.

A side bar here is that although I seem to run my life in a rather haphazard fashion I have been incredibly lucky to connect with truly superlative musicians - for the best part of a decade I have done countless gigs with the incredible pianist John Crawford and latterly worked with guitarist Francesco Lo Castro. Of course there have been other pianists, guitarists, bassists and drummers, too many to name check, but let’s just say I have been very spoilt to be surrounded by such talent and musicianship.

Anyway back to the LPO event, we met for rehearsal and sound check and it was then I remembered the other thing I love about Jazz. To me, more than any genre it is about a musical conversation between the musicians. No two verses or choruses are the exactly the same ever and in a few bars the intention and intensity can change completely from what was “planned”, more so than in pop or classical music, where, for me, a performance is more exact.

If you caught me on Instagram or Twitter on the way home from the gig, you will have cottoned on to the fact that I had a ball and not only am chomping at the bit to perform more Jazz now, alongside my other projects, but I realized how much I have missed performing, so this will also hopefully be rectified after the summer.

I wanted to mention the LPO too (http://www.lpo.org.uk/). Throughout my school life I was lucky enough to be involved in a lot of classical music concerts, in various choirs. Highlights were singing at St Paul’s Cathedral, and at the Royal Festival Hall with the Bach Choir and the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra.

The LPO, are a magnificent example of a group of people who are passionate and invested in everything they do. Musicians and staff alike reminded me of the best memories of my classical music life. And this is probably obvious but they sound wonderful.

I suppose life has reminded me again that I really do adore all genres of music and it is all out there to take part in. Music for me, really is the food of love…how about you?

Jazz and me

 People often ask me these days whether I have made a conscious move away from Jazz. It’s not that I have closed the door at all, it’s just at the moment, my journey is taking me down a different route, and whilst Jazz was my first proper musical love, I do like to try new things and right now that means new genres with new friends and colleagues.

Last week, however, I was asked to do a corporate jazz gig in the summer– toe-tapping standards will be the order of the day. This will be the first in over a year so obviously I jump at the chance to perform as it feels kind of strange not to as a singer, especially for such a prolonged period.

In preparation for the gig, I started leafing through my files of charts; looking at what I used to sing on a regular basis and which songs I was still drawn to. It was like a trip down memory lane, discovering songs I haven’t sung for a while is a bit like getting a phone call from an old friend.

Very quickly I remembered why I love the songs I first learnt in my early teens and why I have spent the best part of the last decade singing them.

I know a lot of people think of jazz as intellectual music, clever and elitist even and I suppose there is an element of that. After all there are a plethora of incredibly well schooled, talented musicians out there and to watch them groove and improvise can be breathtaking.

But for me, jazz is often about stating a song, even if it not sung. It’s about simplicity, timing, space, phrasing and emotion.

Maybe predictably as a singer I am especially drawn to the songs that are melancholic; the lyrics that walk the line between honesty and escapism. And there are many Jazz standards that fill these criteria.

I think there is a reason many of us, not just angst ridden singers love a song about heart break, it’s something we can all identify with - and the poignancy of a sorrowful lyric with a sweet melody is something jazz does beautifully.

So I was thinking about an example to typify what I personally love about Jazz music.

First I thought of an old recording of Billie Holiday singing, “Until the Real Thing Comes Along” or something like King Pleasure’s “I’m in the mood for love”. But I wanted to share something that shows the restraint of Jazz, that I adore, performed by a true master, so this seemed an obvious choice. Here is Shirley Horn singing, “Here’s to Life”. I hope you enjoy x