Alexis Cole

Called "one of the great voices of today," by Jonathan Schwartz, Alexis Cole has been compared to classic jazz singers such as Sarah Vaughan and Anita O'Day. She's performed with the Boston Pops and New York Philharmonic on stage at venues from Avery Fisher Hall to the Kennedy Center. She records for Motéma Music, NY, Chesky Records, NY and Venus Records, Japan. Her nine recordings, which feature musical luminaries such as Fred Hersch, Eric Alexander, Matt Wilson, Harry Pickens, Don Braden and Pat LaBarbara, have received high praise in the jazz press and are spun on radio world-wide. In addition to her many performances on great stages, Alexis can be seen at top jazz venues like Dizzy's Club at Jazz at Lincoln Center, Birdland, The Jazz Standard, Blues Alley, and Billboard Live, Tokyo. Cole is the recipient of a Swing Journal Gold Disk award, and was a winner of the NY Jazzmobile and Montreux Jazz Festival vocal competitions, and a finalist of the Sarah Vaughan Competition. Alexis studied voice and piano at the University of Miami and William Paterson University, and holds a Masters of Music from Queens College. She has also trained in Indian Classical singing at the Jazz India Vocal Institute in Mumbai. She heads the Jazz Voice Program at SUNY Purchase. She performs and conducts master classes around the world.

Awards

Awards & Grants 2007 New York City Jazzmobile Vocal Competition 1st Place Winner 2004 Montreux Jazz Festival Shure Vocal Competition, 3rd Prize Winner 2003& 2005 Montreux Jazz Festival Shure Vocal Competition finalist 2004 Council for Arts and Humanities on Staten Island Emerging Artist Grant 1998National Endowment for the Arts Charles Cinnamon Grant 1994 National Endowment for the Arts A.R.T.S. Scholarship

Tags

Album Review

Zingaro by Ernest Barteldes
The Greatest Gift by Bridget A. Arnwine

Here’s what critics are saying about Alexis and her latest release:  You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To

Here is the supreme stylist at the height of her powers….The search for the next great jazz singer is over. This album is the proof. —Kevin Jones - Fine Music (AUS) May 2018

“ …a beguiling voice and charming, unassuming stage manner”  —Ralph Miriello, Notes on Jazz Blog, March 2018

“Cole…displays an exuberant personality, outstanding diction, flawless pitch and inspired scat technique, all qualities that should place her in the highest echelon of contemporary jazz singers… (She can)…communicate an intimate mood with great passion.” —Thomas Cunniffe - Jazz History Online March 2018

Here’s what critics are saying about Alexis and her latest release:  You’d Be So Nice to Come Home To

Here is the supreme stylist at the height of her powers….The search for the next great jazz singer is over. This album is the proof. —Kevin Jones - Fine Music (AUS) May 2018

“ …a beguiling voice and charming, unassuming stage manner”  —Ralph Miriello, Notes on Jazz Blog, March 2018

a positively talented artist without doubt…There is so much to enjoy and admire on this disc, recommended to all who love great songs sung by an outstanding individual singer. Despite the editor’s pleas not to overdo the star ratings I could not give less than five to such a perfect marriage of vocal and instrumental jazz. Buy it and be immersed in the warm musical ambience. —Brian Robinson, Jazz Journal Int’l (UK) April 2018

I cannot praise the vocal effors of Ms. Cole highly enough. She is Fearless!  — Saul Levine PD, KJZZ- FM

I think Alexis is one of the most underrated singers in jazz. Fantastic voice with great tone and pitch, a strong swing beat, interpretation skills, range and pacing. The total package singer. Definitely don't sleep on this one. —Jae Sinnett PD, WHRV - FM

I've enjoyed following her career, and seeing her mature into a very fine singer indeed…great tone and proper pitch. The light is still on, in the jazz lobby. —Brad Stone PD, KSJS- FM

A fine singer with a distinctive voice and a sure sense of pitch... A daring singer. -Bill Donaldson, Jazz Improv Aug '08

Alexis Cole is the real thing- a creative interpreter of quality songs with undoubted jazz sensibility and taste...Alexis has a fine sense of harmonic and rhythmic ingenuity without ever sacrificing the songs' lyrical qualities...superior jazz singing - Bob Weir, Jazz Journal Int'l Dec'07

blessed with a deep contralto as smooth and dark as the richest espresso - Christopher Loudon, Jazz Times Nov '07

A rising star in the Jazz World - George Kanzler, Hot House NY

A jazz singer well worth discovering -All Media Guide

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Primary Instrument

Voice / vocals

Location

New York City

Willing to teach

Beginner to advanced

Credentials/Background

Focus on vocal technique and tone, jazz phrasing and feel, developing an authentic interpretation. As head of the jazz vocal program at SUNY Purchase College, vocalist Alexis Cole is always finding new ways to help students find their voice. With her unrelenting focus on tone and technique, and a driving passion for honesty and communication, Alexis is a demanding and compelling teacher for the singer who truly wishes to connect with their audience. She comes to the task with over ten years of technical training in western classical and also Indian classical vocal techniques, and a full understanding of jazz style and swing interpretation as well as theater training and years of performing. "Professor Cole is tough, in the best way," is a comment that encapsulates her work ethic. She is an in demand performer, clinician and recording artist. The New York Times called her voice "exquisite." For Alexis, teaching is part of the creative process. "Just like I would write a song or sing a line, working with my students to create their own authentic interpretations, is making art."