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Roberta Gambarini and Convergence
Roberta Gambarini and Convergence Dazzle Nightclub Denver, CO Februay 6, 2010 (First Set)
Roberta Gambarini played Denver last year with a piano trio. She returned in early February this year for a three night stand with double the support, backed this time by the six piece Convergence. Gambarini can carry a show with minimal backing, but the high powered Convergence added considerable texture, variety and plain old fun.
Gambarini had just left ...
read moreRoberta Gambarini: Learning to Love Jazz
Not long ago a veteran Chicago jazz disc jockey played a track from a female vocalist's new CD only after complaining on the air about the seemingly unending stream of new recordings by female singers sent to his notice each week. The exception to his policy not to play them was due, he explained, to the sender's being a close friend and loyal listener of the show.
From the evidence, the radio announcer's observations about the number of ...
read moreRoberta Gambarini: Making Listeners Fall 'So In Love'
It's been an out-of-the-ordinary career trip for Roberta Gambarini--a trip that's seen her go from a young girl in Italy, scatting along with records by American singers Louis Armstrong and Ella Fitzgerald, to struggling to get singing gigs in her native land, to grabbing an opportunity to come to the United States, to gaining recognition by respected elders like Benny Carter, James Moody, Clark Terry and nonagenarian pianist Hank Jones, who has proclaimed her “the best jazz singer to emerge ...
read moreRoberta Gambarini: So In Love
In his book The Jazz Singers: The Ultimate Guide, music writer Scott Yanow presents a list of the 30 most important jazz singers. One name most likely to join that group, Yanow believes, is that of Roberta Gambarini. Very quickly, this talented Italian singer has established herself as an artist to be considered seriously in the same manner that Anthony Benedetto, better known as Tony Bennett, is considered.
Born in Torino, Italy, Gambarini came to the United States in 1998 ...
read moreRoberta Gambarini at Dazzle's, Denver
Roberta Gambarini Dazzle Nightclub Denver, Colorado June 19, 2009
The really great ones make it sound easy: like walking down the street, nothing to it. That applies to instrumentalists as well as singers. Vocalist Roberta Gambarini unequivocally falls into that category. Friday night at Dazzle, Gambarini showed why she's garnering increased attention in the jazz world and why many people are placing her in the very top rankings of female jazz vocalists. ...
read moreRoberta Gambarini: You Are There & Easy to Love
An Italian vocalist with an elegant and insightful command of the Great American Songbook, Roberta Gambarini's You Are There (Emarcy, 2008) and Easy To Love (Kindred Rhythm, 2006) are treasures waiting for those who've learnt how to listen. Roberta Gambarini You Are ThereEmarcy 2008
Start with a phenomenally gifted, rapidly ascending vocalist of the same heritage as Enrico Caruso and Frank Sinatra, add as the sole pianist the musician who ...
read moreRoberta Gambarini: You Are There
Grammy-nominated vocalist Roberta Gambarini has been working with pianist Hank Jones since 2001, when the pair first met and performed together at the Lionel Hampton Jazz Festival at the University of Idaho. Since then she's toured the world with Jones and his sidemen, George Mraz on bass and Willie Jones III on drums.
Live performance on the road and in concert was the only preparation Gambarini and Jones used in recording their first album together as a duo, ...
read moreRoberta Gambarini: Easy To Love
This debut outing from Roberta Gambarini sees the Italian-born jazz vocalist pair up with two star-studded rhythm sections and legendary tenor saxophonist James Moody, to present what has to be one of the best vocal jazz albums of the decade.
Opening with Cole Porter's classic title track Gambarini's exquisite tone and masterful rhythmic phrasing are immediately on display in the first a capella section. The gradual addition of bass and brushes does little to prepare you for what happens next, ...
read moreRoberta Gambarini Dazzles, Jordan Family Inspires in Saratoga Springs, NY
Roberta Gambarini, The Jordan Family Saratoga Springs Arts Center, Spa Little Theater Saratoga Springs, New York May 31 (Gambarini), May 29 (Jordan Family)
One would think it would be difficult to do anything much less than give a vocal concert if it involved flying from Russia to New York City on one day, then soon after (jet lag be damned!) making a five- hour car trip (which should be three hours, except for the ...
read moreRoberta Gambarini: Very Easy to Love
Although Italian-born vocalist Roberta Gambarini moved to the U.S. eight years ago, up to now she's been best-known and respected among her fellow musicians. With the release of her North American debut CD Easy to Love (Groovin' High, 2006), the general public is finally being introduced to the exceptional beauty, talent and professionalism that's been impressing top jazz artists for nearly a decade. All About Jazz caught up with this thirty-something “overnight sensation" as she was about to embark on ...
read moreRoberta Gambarini: Easy To Love
If Roberta Gambarini had chosen to pursue opera we might be seeing her at the Met instead of in the world's top jazz clubs, so exquisite is the natural lyricism of her voice and her technical mastery of its use. Absent from her performance are the blatant shifts in registration, dicey intonation, and questionable diction that are often stereotypically associated -- rightly or wrongly -- with jazz singing. But a jazz singer Gambarini is, and a fantastic one at that.
read moreRoberta Gambarini: Easy To Love
Roberta Gambarini Easy To Love Kindred Rhythm 2006
I first heard vocalist Roberta Gambarini perform a few years ago at the Jazz Standard in New York, soon after she arrived in America from Italy. It was clear even then that she had star potential and, as expected, she has now begun to take her place among the jazz greats, with nowhere to go but over the top. This debut CD is long overdue.
Gambarini ...
read morePoll Results
All About Jazz would like to thank the 4,000 members who participated in our poll to help us identify the world's top jazz venues. For a recap, click here.
Jazz Story
By Kenne Thomas
Member since: 2017
I was first exposed to jazz through my parents and their friends. My father, James S. Whitehead played alto saxophone in Chicago in the late 1940s and early 50s. His record collection exposed me to the great sounds of Gene Ammons, Sonny Stitt and others
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