SAMARA JOY

With her upcoming Verve Records debut, Linger Awhile, 22-year-old Samara Joy makes her case to join the likes of Sarah, Ella, and Billie as the next mononymous jazz singing sensation recorded by the venerable label. Her voice, rich and velvety yet precociously refined, has already earned her fans like Anita Baker and Regina King, appearances on the TODAY Show and millions of likes on TikTok — cementing her status as perhaps the first Gen Z jazz singing star. On Linger Awhile, Samara will introduce that massive audience to a slew of classic standards several times older than she is through her timeless, irresistible sound.

Samara is still relatively new to jazz. Growing up in the Bronx, it was music of the past — the music of her parent’s childhoods, as she put it — that she listened to most. She treasures her musical lineage, which stretches back to her grandparents Elder Goldwire and Ruth McLendon, both of whom performed with Philadelphia gospel group the Savettes, and runs through her father, who is a singer, songwriter and producer who toured with gospel artist Andraé Crouch. “Sometimes I catch myself when I’m singing — I’m like, ‘Whoa, that was a dad moment’,” Samara quips. Eventually, she did follow in the family tradition, singing in church and then with the jazz band at Fordham High School for the Arts, with whom she won Best Vocalist at JALC’s Essentially Ellington competition. That led to her enrolling in SUNY Purchase’s jazz studies program, where she fell deeply in love with the music.

Though she’s young, she relishes the process of digging through the music’s history and learning new standards. “I think maybe people connect with the fact that I’m not faking it, that I already feel embedded in it,” Samara says. “Maybe I’m able to reach people in person and on social media because it’s real.” The gatekeepers of the jazz world tend to agree: in 2019, she won the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition, and she’s since performed with legends like Christian McBride and Bill Charlap. Legendary late pianist Barry Harris was a particularly important influence and mentor. “You inspired me as well as many others with this fire for teaching and playing that couldn’t be dimmed by anything or anyone,” Samara writes in Linger Awhile’s liner notes, dedicating the project in part to Harris’ memory.

Samara is accompanied by esteemed veterans on Linger Awhile as well: her former professors, guitarist Pasquale Grasso and drummer Kenny Washington, form the core of the band, which also includes bassist David Wong and pianist Ben Paterson. With ease and a preternatural assurance, Samara swings right alongside them through understated yet powerful renditions of this creative collection of standards.

The 8:00pm shows both evenings are SOLD OUT!!!

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CÉCILE MCLORIN SALVANT

Grammy Award winner returns with her fifth appearance in The House of Swing, premiering a new collection of music that showcases her unique voice and sensibility. In 2020, Cécile McLorin Salvant was one of 20 individuals to receive an honor, colloquially known as the “Genius Grant,” from the MacArthur Foundation. Recent JALC performances by the abundantly gifted singer-songwriter, one of the leading jazz artists of her generation, showcased her orchestral suite Ogresse and repertoire from her Nonesuch album Ghost Song.

Friday & Saturday 5/19-20 @ 8:00pm | $40.50~$170.50

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ROSA PASSOS

It’s the return of Brazilian vocalist and guitarist in The Appel Room since her sold-out performance in 2016.

Rosa Passos with Kenny Barron and Ron Carter brings the iconic Brazilian vocalist and guitarist to the Appel Room for the first time since her sold-out 2016 appearance with NEA Jazz Master pianist Kenny Barron. Their spellbinding simpatico will be enhanced by Passos’ reunion with Ron Carter—also an NEA Jazz Master who bass virtuoso Stanley Clarke once described “as the most important bass player of the last fifty years.”—after their lauded 2003 “Entre Amigos” album. While Passos has been called the “female João Gilberto” she is a prolific and distinct vocalist and guitarist with a playful yet sophisticated style, marked by perfect pitch and spacious elegance. Enhancing this first-ever meeting of these three masters is first-call Brazilian drummer, Rafael Barata.

You can purchase the 9:30 performances on March 24 and 25 as part of the 9:30 in The Appel Room series – three 9:30 Appel Room shows for $99 (including fees) for any seat in the house while seats are available. Your Appel Room ticket stub can be used for a free cover to that evening’s Dizzy’s Late Night Session

Friday 3/24 @ 7:00pm | $115.50~$135.50 / @ 9:30pm – $70.50~90.50

Saturday @ 7:00pm | $115.50~$135.50 / @ 9:30pm – $75.50~95.50

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DIANNE REEVES: LOVE IS IN THE AIR

One of the world’s top jazz vocalists returns to mesmerize audiences with her beloved Valentine’s Day shows in Rose Theater. An intimate, powerful performance by a master vocalist and hypnotizing storyteller.

Another JALC perennial is a Valentine’s Day tradition, on which Dianne Reeves sings on the subject of love, fulfilled and unrequited, carnal and spiritual, illuminating the complexities attendant to matters of the heart with a warm, dazzling contralto, spanning registers with no apparent strain, conveying emotional nuance through exquisitely calibrated tonal color and phrasing. “I just want to tell the story,” Reeves says. “My instrument is an extension of my soul.”

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RAY & BJ HOWARD VALENTINE’S

Join us for the Ultimate date night as we wind down Valentine’s Week with our premier Tuesday show. Ray Howard and his wife BJ provide a top-notch singing partnership that will make you laugh, cry and experience the exhilaration of love. Romantic menu items and drinks abound. Get your seats early!

Showtimes: 6:30pm & 8:30pm

 

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