21st Annual Vocal Jazz Festival

21st Annual Vocal Jazz Festival
Featuring the New York Voices quartet
November 11, 2019 at the Cuesta College Performing Arts Center

The show opened with the student vocal group, “Cuesta Voce.”  It was a fine thing to see (and hear) these talented, hard-working young people tackling jazz tunes.  The students were polished, on-the-money, and were obviously having a great time.  Their opening number “I’ve Got You Under My Skin,”  got the evening off to a great start. Jazz is alive and well; just ask the young folks. Clearly, there is hope for the world.

Because this festival is heavily weighted towards vocal music education, a large fraction — perhaps half — of the audience were students.  They were totally “into” the music.  That seemed remarkable, given that many of the pieces were from their great-grandparents’ time!

Top-drawer backing musicians (piano, bass, and drums) some from New York and Seattle, others from the Cuesta Music Faculty, supported both student and headline acts. I wish the backing group had been listed in the program; they were truly excellent and deserve to be acknowledged by name.

The headliners of the evening, the New York Voices quartet (aka “NYV”) are recognized masters of their craft.  In addition to their evening performance, they participated in voice workshops with students during the day. The NYV enchanted the audience with a wide selection of tunes.  They touched on R&B, Brazilian, and pop as well as more straight ahead jazz numbers.  

Some traditional songs, such as Ellington’s “In a Mellow Tone,” gave more than a nod to such vocal greats as Lambert, Hendricks, and Ross, but the NYV presented some surprises as well.  They performed a spirited version of Brubeck’s “Blue Rondo à la Turk” with lyrics by Al Jarreau.  The blues sections of the piece gave their excellent backup group (piano, bass, & drums) plenty of room to swing. Their rendition of Cole Porter’s “It’s All Right With Me” rocked — or perhaps I should say “swung” — the house.

Another highlight of the evening was NYV’s a cappella performance of the Beatles’ “In My Life.”  This was a hauntingly beautiful take on a classic pop tune, and it really grabbed hold of the audience.

For more information, including artist bios and touring schedules, please visit the NYV’s website: http://newyorkvoices.com