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Browsing: Vocal Jazz

Kerry-Anne Kutz, Julie Leblanc, Monique Fauteux and Catherine Léveillé of Quatuor Musaïque

Festival de la Voix: Montreal’s Celebration of the Voice

By Kaitlyn Chan on 2 February 2026 Baroque and Early, Canadian Music, Classical, Contemporary, Interviews, Montreal, Vocal, Vocal Jazz

Vox Aeterna was founded in 2008 to foster the vocal arts scene in and around Montreal, encouraging the growth of vocal concerts and educational opportunities. Four years later, the charitable organization created Festival de la Voix with these same principles in mind. The multi-week festival introduces audiences to professional vocalists from various backgrounds, cultures and musical styles. Discovering Beautiful Voices Artistic Director Kerry-Anne Kutz’s well-trained ear makes her an excellent judge of talent. “The first thing that I think about—no matter what the genre—is the beauty of the voice,” she says about programming. From established artists such as soprano Myriam…

Byron Stripling with the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra. Photo: Madeline Boldt

Review | Vancouver Symphony Orchestra and the Rhythms of Harlem

By Madeline Boldt on 17 March 2025 Concert Reviews, Dance, Jazz, Orchestral, Vancouver, Vocal Jazz, West

With Uptown Nights (seen March 8), the Vancouver Symphony Orchestra paid tribute to the world of jazz as it was founded on the talents of Harlem era musicians. The rise of jazz coincided with the emergence of incredible musicians like Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, and Ella Fitzgerald. As it became increasingly popular throughout the Roaring Twenties, jazz served as an outlet for expression and freedom, with its unpredictability and syncopation resonating with audiences for generations to come. Beyond all else, jazz is a living, breathing thing, and trumpeter Byron Stripling embodies this. Stripling has a presence like no other, with…

CD Review | Gabs Sings Babs (Self-produced, October 2022)

By Andrea Rush on 18 February 2023 CD and Book Reviews, Scena Jazz, Vocal Jazz

Gabs Sings Babs Gabi Epstein, singer Self-produced (October 2022) Jazz cabaret star Gabi Epstein is enjoying well-deserved praise for the beauty and intelligence she radiates on stage and in the studio. Growing up in a supportive musical family that breathes in unison, Gabi rocketed through the McGill University Bachelor of Music program in record time, to the delight of her fans across Canada. Her latest release, Gabs Sings Babs, is a musical treasure. Gabi captures the universal markers: ambition, longing, hope, coping with loss. She covers with enhancements the songs of Barbra Streisand. Kudos to her group of fantastic musicians:…

Interview | Ranee Lee @ Centaur Theatre – Viva la Diva!

By Marc Chénard on 1 December 2022 Interviews, La Scena Online, Vocal Jazz

Any town with a decent jazz scene has at least one good diva of popular song. In Montreal few, if any, would dispute Ranee Lee’s claim to that title. For this ’vocal musician” (her term), the year now ending marks two milestones in her life—the first being her 80th birthday this past Oct. 26, the other marking her arrival in the city half a century ago for her local debut at Hotel Bonaventure. In the years since she took up residence in Montreal, the American jazz singer and musician built a career that also included acting, teaching and being a…

Backstage at Carnegie Hall: Opera by Tim Brady

By Justin Bernard on 2 September 2022 Classical Music, Contemporary, Opera, Vocal Jazz

Tim Brady is very single-minded. For six years, he has nurtured his opera about the history of the electric guitar, as personified by its pioneer, Charlie Christian (1916-1942). As a guitarist and composer himself, Brady knew quite well that this story would open the door to those who transcend individuals and borders. The life of Charlie Christian effectively aligns not only with the history of the electric guitar, but with that of jazz, Black musicians, and the Black community as a whole in its struggles against segregation and racism. Instead of limiting himself to one time period or place, Brady…

The Record Roundup

By Marc Chénard on 5 December 2017 Experimental Jazz, Mainstream Jazz, Scena Jazz, Vocal Jazz

Orchestre national de jazz de Montréal — Under the Influence Suite Justin Time JTR 8597-2 Two years after its debut release on the ATMA label, Montreal’s premiere jazz orchestra, the ONJ, has finally released its second effort, this one on Justin Time. Its move from a classical label to a jazz one certainly makes sense. The presence of saxophonist and composer Christine Jensen may explain this, because Justin Time has already produced two albums of her own big band. The title of this latest disc pretty well tells the story, as it is a programmatic work that pays tribute to five…

Jazz: At a venue near you

By Marc Chénard on 1 September 2017 Experimental Jazz, La Scena Spotlight, Mainstream Jazz, Scena Jazz, Vocal Jazz

Based on previous experience, the live jazz scene really shifts into overdrive early in October. Not so this year. In fact, it’s off and running just after Labour Day. On September 6, Upstairs Jazz Bar presents a season-opening concert and record launch pairing Israeli saxophonist Tevet Sela and John Roney (see opposite page for album details). At the same venue, French native and pianist Jean-Michel Pilc, now firmly ensconced in town since his move here two years ago, holds his monthly trio gig, with dates on Sept. 18, Oct. 27 and Nov. 18. Now in its fifth season, the Orchestre…

Mtl en Arts

Canadian Arts Festivals 2017: Our Picks

By La Scena Musicale Team on 1 June 2017 Circus, Dance, Film, Literature, Mainstream Jazz, Multimedia, Musical Theatre, Scena Arts, Theatre, Visual Arts, Vocal Jazz, World Music

Montreal St-Ambroise Fringe Festival Montreal, until June 18 The most convivial and bilingual event of the season, the Montreal St-Ambroise Fringe Festival takes place in the heart of the city on the Main. What makes it different? A program determined by lottery! Theatre, comedy, dance, music, and drag…no less than 153 talented companies from all over the world will be battling for your attention. The best way to pick is by reading the audience reviews posted in Parc des Amériques – an exercise that’s sure to make you a real fringier. My bets are on inVitro, by Pretium Doloris, the…

Lawrence Brownlee in Charlie Parker's Yardbird, Photo: Dominic M. Mercier

Tenor at the Table! Opera Philadelphia Welcomes Lawrence Brownlee as Artistic Advisor

By Charles Geyer on 18 April 2017 Interviews, Opera, Vocal Jazz

INTERVIEW: with Lawrence Brownlee (and Opera Philadelphia general director David Devan). The busy life of one world-class tenor just got that much busier, and the American opera scene stands to benefit mightily by it. On March 30, Opera Philadelphia announced that renowned tenor Lawrence Brownlee will be its newest “artistic advisor” – a role in which the artist will carry an impressive brief of prerogatives for advancing the programming, outreach, and project development of a company already regarded as among the most progressive, energetic and innovative in the country. Brownlee is, of course, an international performance star, appearing regularly on…

Félix Mailloux et Cordâme

Rentrée Jazz: Fall Preview

By Marc Chénard on 1 September 2016 Experimental Jazz, Mainstream Jazz, Scena Jazz, Vocal Jazz

On Stage By the looks of it, there is plenty of live jazz at the Maisons de la Culture this season, and the following listings merely scratch the surface. In what might be one of his final appearances, Oliver Jones will play on November 18 at Maisonneuve. Bassist Michel Donato, for his part, hasn’t called it a day yet; on December 2, he’ll perform on a double bill at the Chapelle historique du Bon-Pasteur, first by improvising in and around the Bach Cello Suites, backed by drummer Pierre Tanguay, then join forces with two other veterans, pianist Pierre Leduc and…