Home » Jazz Articles » New York Beat » Gretchen Parlato at The Jazz Standard

3

Gretchen Parlato at The Jazz Standard

By

Sign in to view read count
The New Year was dramatically ushered in at the Jazz Standard on January 2nd when Gretchen Parlato and her band wowed an SRO audience with some of the most prescient music of the season. No vocalist of recent vintage has garnered more acclaim than the brilliant chanteuse, transplanted from L.A. to Gotham awhile back. Grammy nominations, critical commendation from writers and musicians ("A singer with a deep, almost magical connection to the music." —Herbie Hancock, "There's no one out there like Gretchen" —Wayne Shorter) keep rolling in and deservedly so.

Appearing with her recording/ touring group (Marcel Camargo—guitar/ musical director, Artyom Manukyan: cellist, Leo Costa: percussion), Parlato unveiled her Brazilian/jazz/classical repertoire with revolutionary insight and unmitigated command. In "Magnus" she revealed her melodic geomancy, and in "Wonderful" she uncovered playful instrumental musicality.... The best was yet to come. In "Bach Minuet" she counterpointed Camargo's guitar lines and Manukyan's bowings with innovative timbre and a pitch control equal to the vibrational accuracy in a physics lab -the latter spectacle scatted in the unending trademark Bach allegretto passages.

Superb jazz vocalists are rare. But rarer still are artists that transform the music itself. The great transformers—Holiday, Fitzgerald, Vaughan, Carter and others left the stage long ago. When you see and hear Gretchen Parlato you will recall the magic of those jazz mistresses of yore and instantly realize, as have jazz cognoscenti everywhere, that that level of magic is with us once again.

Comments

Tags

Concerts


For the Love of Jazz
Get the Jazz Near You newsletter All About Jazz has been a pillar of jazz since 1995, championing it as an art form and, more importantly, supporting the musicians who create it. Our enduring commitment has made "AAJ" one of the most culturally important websites of its kind, read by hundreds of thousands of fans, musicians and industry figures every month.

You Can Help
To expand our coverage even further and develop new means to foster jazz discovery and connectivity we need your help. You can become a sustaining member for a modest $20 and in return, we'll immediately hide those pesky ads plus provide access to future articles for a full year. This winning combination will vastly improve your AAJ experience and allow us to vigorously build on the pioneering work we first started in 1995. So enjoy an ad-free AAJ experience and help us remain a positive beacon for jazz by making a donation today.
View events near New York City
Jazz Near New York City
Events Guide | Venue Guide | Local Businesses | More...

More

Jazz article: Eric Reed Quartet at Smoke
Jazz article: Voices of Mississippi at Jazz at Lincoln Center
Jazz article: The Mingus Big Band at The Django

Popular

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.