Jazz Composers Forum

Upcoming Events

Call that Jazz , UNCA Jazz Dept and Concert on the Quad bring you :

A Jazz Vocal Workshop will be given by Kendra Shank on Sat. & Sun. June 25 & 26 Cost is $200 Class is limited to 12 singers and will be held at Lipinsky Auditorium.

Kendra Shank combines jazz originals, standards, and open improvisation in a personal style that transcends musical genres and inspired Abbey Lincoln to call her "an original; a singer with a sound." Her longtime New York ensemble features pianist Frank Kimbrough, bassist Dean Johnson and drummer Tony Moreno, with whom she shares "...a practically telepathic integration...these four people appear to have emerged from the same womb" ( Jazz Now ). Shank's critically-acclaimed debut CD, Afterglow (Mapleshade, 1994), was co-produced by Shirley Horn and features pianist Larry Willis and saxophonist Gary Bartz. This was followed by two releases on Jazz Focus Records, Wish (1998) and Reflections (2000), which put Ms. Shank in the Down Beat International Critics Poll's list of "Talent Deserving Wider Recognition" and in the "Top Ten" lists of Jazziz, The Boston Globe, and Newsday . She has been featured on NPR's JazzSet and Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz and performs internationally in clubs, festivals, and concert halls. Shank was guest guitarist on Abbey Lincoln's CD Over The Years (Verve, 2000) and has been a vocal guest with Bob Dorough, Jay Clayton, and Peter Leitch. www.kendrashank.com

"This vocalist makes lyrics believable, invents like an instrumentalist, and has an ear second to none for little-known and unknown tunes." --Bob Blumenthal, THE BOSTON GLOBE

Thurs open rehearsal and welcome party

Saturday 10:00 arrive meet

11:00am – 1:00pm : we'll begin with vocal warm-up exercises and then do some vocal improvisation games and excercises together as an a cappella group (no other instruments--just voices). Singing without a rhythm section is very good for strengthening your foundation, time feel, intonation, musicianship and independance. Every vocalist should have the whole band inside them!

1:00pm – 2:15pm : lunch break

2:30pm - 5:30pm : we'll meet with our rhythm section (piano, bass, drums) and each vocalist will work on a song and receive individual feedback. Vocalists should bring up to 3 songs to work on (you will probably work on only one of them, but it's nice to have options!). Try to include one ballad, and one medium or bright tempo tune in your song options. These should be tunes you have already learned, but that you want to delve deeper into (e.g. hone your interpretation, work on improvisation, create an arrangement, etc). For those who wish to participate, there will be a Sunday night student concert, so choose songs that you'd like to prepare for the concert. Please bring 4 copies of the lead sheet, in your key, for each song (if you need help with this bring a chart of the song you want to do and we can help you transpose into your key.)

7:00pm- 9:30 Saturday evening Jazz Composers Forum Concert

Sunday, 12:00pm – 4;00pm

After a brief vocal warm-up, we will continue our work on individual songs. This process always brings up principles of singing, musicianship, and the creative process that are useful to the whole group, even when we're not working on your particular song--we all learn from listening to each other! The instrumentalists in our band will also be giving us their insights. The vocalist is one instrument in an ensemble of players, so we will be working on group communication and integration. 7:00pm Sunday evening Workshop Participants present a Vocal concert 6:30pm Monday Kendra Shank Concert on the Quad at UNCA. To Register send $200 to Call that Jazz, 20 Pinecroft Rd., Asheville, NC 28804 contact Sharon at 828-252-2257 for questions.

For past concerts, check our Archives.