Kaylé Brecher

Unique jazz vocalist, composer, and arranger, Kaylé Brecher (Kay-La BrecKer) is a singer who is at once completely distinctive and an amalgamation of her great musical influences. Showcase Magazine described her sound as "a supple voice that suggests the pairing of Sheila Jordan and Sarah Vaughan." One could accurately add Morgana King and Ella Fitzgerald to that description. Hers is a versatile and flexible instrument with wide range, which can move from silky, smooth and subtle to bold and bluesy; refined to brash and raw. Her instrumental and compositional approach to singing leads to explorations of the mood, texture and style in each individual tune, which results in exciting variety. Imaginative, versatile and eclectic, she has performed in settings ranging from traditional jazz through bop, free jazz and experimental music.

Kaylé is a native New Yorker who began her career as a very young teen, singing blues and standards in the clubs of Greenwich Village. She has opened for Maynard Ferguson, Freddie Hubbard, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, and Doc Severinsen, and has shared the stage with Mel Lewis, Lee Konitz, Red Rodney and others.

Her varied and active career has included concerts, festivals, live radio performances, a TV documentary soundtrack, clubs and other fine venues, studio production work and seven acclaimed recordings. 'Kayleidoscope', Kaylé's eighth CD was released in January 2020 and 'Bredux: collected edges' is her ninth recording, released in early June 2021.

After graduating Summa Cum Laude from Temple University with a double major in performance and composition/arranging, Kaylé was a long time member of the BMI Jazz Composers' Workshop in New York City, as well as pursuing private studies in composition and arranging with both Jim McNeely and Michael Abene. Three of her original compositions and two of her versions of Freddie Hubbard tunes have been published by Freddie Hubbard's publishing company Hubtones and two of her versions of Herbie Hancock tunes have been published by Hancock Music. Her compositional skills have also garnered several awards in the jazz category of the Billboard Song Contest, including one major prize.

Originally from New York City, Kaylé is now based in the Philadelphia area. Her regional work has included performances at many current and past well known area venues, such as Cornelia St Cafe, Chris' Jazz Cafe, The Painted Bride Art Center, World Café Live, The Rotunda at U. of PA, the old Zanzibar Blue, The Academy of Music, Rutgers University, Philadelphia University and Temple University, as well as festivals, clubs and a live radio broadcast on WRTI FM of one of her performances at the old Blue Moon Jazz Cafe.

Kaylé, also a master educator with more than thirty years experience, holds certification in three levels of LoVetri Somatic Voicework™, is a member of Bobby McFerrin’s Circlesong tribe and holds certification in Dr. Trineice Robinson's Soul Ingredients® : The Methodology - When Science Meets Soul, for which she has since been an occasional teaching assistant.

An eclectic, dynamic and creative performer, Penchant Four Records artist Kaylé Brecher's eighth CD release 'KAYLEIDOSCOPE' is a deliciously distinctive selection of music assembled much like a collection of short stories, each slightly related to each other in progression, with a deeply personal approach leading to engaging variety of mood, texture and style in each individual tune. It features some of New York’s and Philadelphia’s finest musicians, and once again proves that this is a singer whose vision transcends boundaries.

‘Bredux: collected edges’, Brecher’s ninth CD, is a unique curated set of eleven tunes, Brecher’s arrangements, instrumental and vocal choices render each piece into individual soundscapes that amply flesh out depth in each song’s musical narrative. Here, Kaylé is rooted in her authenticity, never losing the essence of each tune even while crossing boundaries and fusing genres.

Kaylé says her writing and singing are like a big heartfelt improvisational dance that tells complete stories. Here are a few of her statements to that effect:

“Each piece is like a movie or vignette in which one is totally immersed; story, emotion, mood and intention brought alive by settings carefully chosen to enhance the ambiance while encouraging improvisation in each performance." “In performance, I feel melodic content as an intricate dance of shapes and colors entwining and flowing with or rubbing against harmonic and rhythmic partners.”

“Honestly, to me, every piece of music we do is like a short film complete with its own soundscape, color scheme, mood, intent, improvised script and personality. When we dance within it, we, by necessity, must completely immerse ourselves in its individual identity.”

A skilled arranger and composer, Kaylé is more than a singer: she is a complete musical package. Combining an impressive command of her expressive instrument and wide range with artful writing and creative arranging, she enchants the listener with unique inventive settings, vivid subtlety, masterful phrasing and sophisticated lyrics. Show less