Melissa Kassel

Melissa Kassel

Musicians | Instrument: Vocals | Location: Boston

Melissa Kassel, glad to say, dares to be different and real imagination and passion to her close study of tone, intonation, and phrasing on Live at the Acton Jazz Café.

—Frank-John Hadley, Downbeat

Updated: January 9, 2023

Melissa Kassel is renown for her bold and expressive vocal style that has been praised by both music critics and jazz enthusiasts throughout the world. She is an evocative performer whose sensitivity to the nuances of words and phrasing, unique use of microtones, and raw passion, enable her to transcend to the “cutting edge” of jazz vocalization She is a challenging, risk-taking jazz vocalist whose interpretations of standards have inspired comparisons to Betty Carter and Sheila Jordan; at times, she also brings to mind the underrated Jeanne Lee.

Kassel, however, never sounds like she is emulating any of her influences; the singer is fairly original and has a recognizable style of post-bop. While Kassel brings sensitivity and vulnerability to her performances, she isn't the sort of singer who is willing to do anything-and-everything to be accessible. Kassel can be abstract and cerebral, and like Carter, Jordan, and Lee, she is someone who needs to be accepted on her own terms.

Kassel's first album came out in 2000, when the standards-oriented Live at the Acton Jazz Café was released on the small, New York-based Muse Eek label. Melissa Kassel has collaborated with many renown musicians including: Tim Ray (Lyle Lovitt, Gary Burton), John Lockwood (Joe Henderson, Freddie Hubbard), Bob Gullotti (George Garzone,Kenny Werner), Tom Zicarelli, Phil Grenadier (Kenny Barron, Chris Potter, Kurt Rosenwinkel, Bill Stewart, Ethan Iverson, John Scofield Band) Bruno Raberg (Stockholm Jazz Orchestra, Miroslav Vitous) amoung others. Influences Rahsaan Roland Kirk, Laura Nyro, Sly and the Family Stone, Billie Holliday, Betty Carter, Joni Mitchell, Sheila Jordan, Shirley Horn, Thelonious Monk, Flora Purim, Sarah Vaughan, Ella Fitzgerald, Ornette Coleman, Louis Armstrong, Carmen McRae, Miles Davis, Rosemary Clooney, Lena Horne and Cassandra Wilson.

Source: Alex Henderson

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Performance / Tour

Melissa Kassel & Tom Zicarelli Group at Lilypad in Cambridge on June 4

Melissa Kassel & Tom Zicarelli Group at Lilypad in Cambridge on June 4

Source: Melissa Kassel

Melissa Kassel & Tom Zicarelli Group : Melissa Kassel Vocalist, Tom Zicarelli Pianist, Bruce Arnold Guitarist, David Clark Bass & Gary Fieldman Drums. June 4 at 6:30 p.m. Lilypad 1353 Cambridge Street Cambridge, MA $12.00 cash at the door. Melissa Kassel & Tom Zicarelli invite you to an eclectic evening of original music and jazz standards. About Melissa Kassel & Tom Zicarelli Group Keven Lowenthal the Boston Globe writes that “This smart, sensitive, and quietly adventurous ...

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Performance / Tour

Sten Hostfalt, Melissa Kassel & Matt Renzi at Abc No Rio NYC March 16

Sten Hostfalt, Melissa Kassel & Matt Renzi at Abc No Rio NYC March 16

Source: All About Jazz

LIVE IN CONCERT sunday MARCH 16 2008 at 8 pm / $7 at ABC NO RIO, NEW YORK CITY STEN HOSTFALT - guitar MELISSA KASSEL - voice MATT RENZI - saxophones and clarinets “Melissa Kassel is among the best vocalists to appear in years" - Harvey Pekar, WBCN, NPR “Sten Hostfalt may be considered Groundbreaking"

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Performance / Tour

Sten Hostfalt, Bruno Raberg & Melissa Kassel at Abc No Rio NYC, June 10

Sten Hostfalt, Bruno Raberg & Melissa Kassel at Abc No Rio NYC, June 10

Source: All About Jazz


“As a contributing editor to DOWNBEAT and JAZZIZ among other publications, I’ve heard countless debut albums from women singers that are safe, pleasant, and, well, forgettable. Melissa Kassel, glad to say, dares to be different and real imagination and passion to her close study of tone, intonation, and phrasing on “Live at the Acton Jazz Café.” .. —FRANK-JOHN- HADLEY

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All About Jazz user Melissa Kassel

Concerts

  Sun, Apr 7
Cambridge, MA
Melissa Kassel & Tom Zicarelli Group
Lilypad
Sun, Apr 7. 6:30 pm