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Vanessa Racci
Growing up with her Southern Italian grandfather in New York, Vanessa learned Italian American classics and jazz at an early age, hearing Dean Martin, Connie Francis, Frank Sinatra and the like played throughout the house. She developed as a singer in musical theater (starring in professional theater at age 12), discovered her love for jazz in her 20’s and started touring with a trio.
After her grandfather passed, Vanessa was inspired to reinvent the Italian classics that he taught her with modern jazz arrangements to keep the music alive for future generations. She teamed up with Gianni Valenti of Birdland Jazz Club NYC, producer, David Finck, and Manhattan Transfer arranger, Yaron Gershovsky, to realize her vision. The result was a sold-out album release show at Birdland in 2017 and a unique album entitled, Italiana Fresca, that reached #65 on the jazz charts. Since then, she has performed at over 70 festivals, events and jazz clubs across the country and has been played on over 20 Italian radio stations across the US and Italy.
Frank Sinatra: A Son of Immigrants Sings America's Heart
by Christine Passarella
Roots Sitting in my dining room, going through my childhood photos and mementos was like viewing a dream. I opened an envelope and pulled out a yellowed note in my father's sort of wild handwriting. The envelope said, written in my mother's exquisitely perfect handwriting, Dad saved this, it's Frank Sinatra's dentist." On the card was ...