Jazz Articles about Claudia Villela

About Claudia Villela

Album Review

Ami Molinelli, Duo Violão Plus One: Raízes do Choro e Samba (Roots of Choro and Samba)

Read "Raízes do Choro e Samba (Roots of Choro and Samba)" reviewed by Katchie Cartwright

by Katchie Cartwright
September 30, 2026

For the better part of two decades, Ami Molinelli has been a stalwart of the San Francisco Bay Area's Brazilian music scene. Her undergraduate work in Conservation and Resource Studies at University of California at Berkeley led her to spend nine months in Salvador da Bahia, learning about Afro-Brazilian culture and performing with a group of women drummers. “Seeing music used as a community-building tool and social justice mechanism resonated with my conservation studies," she explained. “I began to see ...

Album Review

Claudia Villela: Cartas ao Vento

Read "Cartas ao Vento" reviewed by Katchie Cartwright

by Katchie Cartwright
August 21, 2023

Cartas ao Vento marks a return and a departure for Claudia Villela. Born in Rio, she moved to Santa Cruz in 1984, where she has remained. Years later, this is her first album made in Brazil. Villela has gained recognition in California and beyond as an intrepid improviser with a beautiful voice who creates captivating live shows. With Cartas ao Vento, she changes direction, focusing on composing. “I wanted everything to be part of the song," she explains, “to get ...

Bailey's Bundles

Ten Artists: May 2019

by C. Michael Bailey
May 1, 2019

Paul JostSimple LifePaul Jost Music2019 I believe there are precious few exceptional male jazz vocalists. There. I said it. Female vocalists? They are legion. But once one has pruned away the vanity projects, the Sinatra wannabes, and the most recent unforgivable cover of “My Funny Valentine," there remain few. Paul Jost is one of those few. The singer's Breaking Through (Dot Time, 2014) revealed a fearless, scat-singing spirit unafraid of not only shaking up the ...