(Jazz singer René Marie. Photo by Antonio Porcar.)
By Jerome Langston
In what has been a spectacular year for high level jazz concerts here in Hampton Roads, on both the Southside and the Peninsula — the 5th annual Vocal Jazz Summit returns next month to the Z in Virginia Beach. With 4 days of programming this year, this unique and typically well attended music summit, as co-directed by Liz Brydge and Alexis Cole, who are both well-regarded jazz vocalists themselves, is targeting its most successful year thus far.
“Well five definitely does feel like a milestone,” says Liz, during a recent, late evening phone chat, after she’d secured dinner for her and the hubby. “When you first start a thing, you go and ‘where do we want to be in one year, and two years, and five years, and ten years…’ and how do we want it to grow? And we have hit most of those milestones, for ourselves,” adds Liz. This year she is especially excited about the partnerships that have developed. “We’ve been planting seeds for five years, and I feel like we are seeing the garden flourish for the first time.”
For instance, there is a music school in DC that put together a fundraiser, so that their students can come down here, and perform at one of the summit’s jam sessions. High level jazz artists, who are not formally a part of the programming this year —so not leading a workshop or headlining one of the evening concerts, have still signaled they are attending this year, to support the growing community of artists that the summit is inspiring.
“It’s always so life-giving. And I’m really glad to have René back as well,” says Liz. A few years back, when the great René Marie was a participating artist at the summit, she did a very generous thing for Liz. “And I actually got to sing at a jam session, and she took this moment to pull me aside… and she was like ‘Liz, I had no idea. And I just want to encourage you. I see you running around and doing all of this administrative stuff… but you are a jazz singer…” Liz recalls. It was just so encouraging. Liz started crying. Moments like that, where a more established artist supports a talented, emerging talent, is part of the magic of this multiple day event.
Besides multiple jam sessions, vocal workshops and masterclasses, there is a dinner meet up this year, to kick off the summit, and also a farewell party to end it. Virginia’s own jazz legend, René Marie is back this year. A two-time Grammy nominee, who is also a highly talented, multi-disciplined artist, Rene is co-headlining the summit’s Ella Celebration concert, with fellow excellent vocalist, Christie Dashiell. Other performing and/or presenting jazz artists this year include Theo Bleckmann, Kate McGarry, and Paul Jost. And due to a partnership with the Virginia Arts Festival, the big Samara Joy concert at Norfolk’s Chrysler Hall, is also a spotlighted event for the summit. As some may know, Alexis Cole taught Samara Joy, at the SUNY Purchase College Conservatory, and they remain close. Samara has now participated in the summit, multiple times. And the list of past performers and presenters already makes for an impressive list of jazz greats, including Sheila Jordan, Jane Monheit, Kurt Elling, Roberta Gambarini, and many others. One of my favorite moments from a couple years back, was watching award-winning jazz pianist, Justin Kauflin, whom I’ve since interviewed, engaging in funny banter with jazz legend Sheila Jordan, during her concert where he supported her on piano. She was 94 at the time…and still sounded impeccable.
A day or so prior to catching up with Liz, I had a wonderful phone chat with the aforementioned singer/songwriter René Marie, who now calls Denver, Colorado home. We talked about her remarkable music career, her life prior to her full-time music career, when she was married to her first husband, who became abusive, back during her time in Roanoke, with her two sons. It was her son Michael who first encouraged her to sing professionally — and she ended up starting a career as a jazz vocalist, well into her mid-forties. I first became a fan of René, during her time living and performing in Richmond, as I would later start writing for RVA’s Style Weekly. Signed to the Maxxjazz record label, René released numerous lauded albums for the label, and their support, and her talents attracted international acclaim. She even credits the Richmond Jazz Society, and B. J. Brown, for helping her then take the next step in her career.
“The Richmond Jazz Society was so instrumental with me, getting my feet planted, in confidence,” she says. “I love them so much. I owe so much to them.” Of course she has since, played at major jazz festivals around the world, and performed with esteemed jazz orchestras, including the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra and the Count Basie Orchestra. And her upcoming tribute album to the late great, Harry Belafonte, is due out late this year, and will feature the great Etienne Charles.
I ask her what makes the Vocal Jazz Summit worthy of her time and support. “Well first of all, the fact that it’s a vocal jazz summit. Vocalists have long been overlooked in the jazz field, I think. My opinion…,” she says. “So to be in a vocal jazz summit, where all day, every day, all we talk about is the voice, and singing… I just absolutely love that.”
WANT TO GO?
Vocal Jazz Summit
June 5-8
Zeiders American Dream Theater
