Dominique Eade with the John Toomey Trio at the Attucks Jazz Club

Dominique Eade has been teaching at The New England Conservatory for over 30 years. Her students have included Roberta Gambarini, Michael Mayo and Aoife O'Donovan. Well known in jazz circles for her scatting, improvising, delivery, Eade is neither showy nor pretentious. She is more concerned with the music and the story than with the small vocal rough spots that may pop up occasionally. No vibrato, no stretching out a simple word into six syllables, she presents the composition in a most compelling way. Many in the audience at the Attucks Jazz Club were unfamiliar with Eade's work. Since the Attucks series began under the auspices of the Virginia Arts Festival, pianist John Toomey and bassist Jimmy Masters have curated a fine program introducing area patrons to an impressive list of artists including Veronica Swift, Carla Cook, Allan Harris, Charenee Wade, Denise Donatelli, Clairdee and Kenny Washington to name just a few. Backed by Toomey, Masters and drummer Frank Russo, Eade presented an evening of intimate music to—judging by their response—many new fans. The following are photographs from the evening.