2005 National Jazz Awards

[Michelle Buxton]

2005 WANGARATTA FESTIVAL OF JAZZ
MEDIA RELEASE April 2005


National Jazz Awards - SPOTLIGHT ON JAZZ SINGERS


Talented young jazz singers from around Australia will be competing for the chance to shine at this year’s TAC Wangaratta Festival Of Jazz. Australia’s most prestigious jazz instrumental competition, the National Jazz Awards, will feature vocalists for the first time since 1998.

Since 1990, the National Jazz Awards have been staged as part of Australia’s premier jazz festival, the TAC Wangaratta Festival Of Jazz (Friday 28 – Monday 31 October). The National Jazz Awards are a central feature of the festival, and provide a valuable forum in which rising young talents can be showcased and encouraged. (Entrants must be no older than 35, as at 1 November 2005).

The Awards have helped boost the careers of many outstanding talents in Australian jazz. Previous winners have included pianists Barney McAll, Mark Fitzgibbon and Matt McMahon, guitarists James Muller and Steve Magnusson, trumpeters Scott Tinkler and Phil Slater. The winner in 1998 was a young singer, Michelle Nicolle, who has gone on to develop a national profile as an exceptionally gifted and imaginative jazz singer.

The festival’s artistic director, Adrian Jackson, says, “We have seen in recent years that jazz is most accessible to the general public when it is presented by a singer, and the Jazz Awards in 1998 definitely attracted an extra level of interest for that reason. I am sure that will be the case again this year, and I know that there are plenty of very talented young jazz singers out there, right around Australia. I am looking forward to seeing who makes it through to the finals.”<br>
The National Jazz Awards have been proudly sponsored by Bruck Textiles, one of the major employers in Wangaratta’s local economy, since 1997. Bruck Textiles reconfirmed their commitment last year, and 2004 is the second year of a 5-year agreement. CEO, Mr Alan Williamson, said, "We are delighted that Bruck Textiles can demonstrate our commitment to the local community by ensuring that the National Jazz Awards continue to be staged as a unique feature of Wangaratta's internationally-renowned jazz festival."

Thanks to the support of Bruck Textiles, the following prizes are offered for the National Jazz Awards :
• The winner will receive $6000 ; plus a studio recording session for ABC Classic FM's 'Jazztrack with Mal Stanley'.
• The runner-up will receive $3000.
• There will be a third prize of $1500.

Initial entries will be via a recording, to be assessed by a judging panel comprising Mike Nock, Michelle Nicolle and Anita Wardell. Mike Nock is an internationally acclaimed pianist and composer. Michelle is recognised as one of Australia’s premier jazz singers, while Anita (who began her career in Adelaide) is now established as one of Britain’s finest jazz vocalists.

Ten entrants will then be invited to perform at Wangaratta on the weekend of 28 - 31 October, where they will perform with the outstanding trio of Mark Fitzgibbon (piano), Phil Stack (bass) and Craig Simon (drums).

The closing date for entries is 30 May.

Entry forms can be requested from 03-5722 1666 or 03-9898 6276 or can be downloaded from
www.wangaratta-jazz.org.au

[Kenny]

Hey Michelle - don't be such as damn stranger around here. We could do with your wit and charm and sexy bum.

[vickihb2]

I am SO JEALOUS - all those singers getting to play with Phil Stack. Lucky things. He is so brilliant. I wish he'd move to Melbourne.

[vickihb2]

2005 National JAZZ awards?

Just read the entry form. The contestants have to perform vocalese of someone else's solo.

Does the Wang comp make instrumentalists play other people's solos?

The form states that: [glow=red,2,300]"Scat singing is permitted but not compulsory".[/glow]

Suprising that singers who can not improvise over a blues, at the very, very least, would even be included in a jazz competition in 2005.

Is that normal for jazz vocal comps?

[aj]

Not quite sure what your objection is vicki.

The definition of 'vocalese' is pretty loose, the words can be added to the head of a song, or to a solo. ('someone else's solo' is your phrase, not used on the entry form)

'Do instrumentalists in other years have to play someone else's solo ?' No, but they are obliged to perform (& in many cases learn) something by a nominated jazz composer. This seems like the best way to do that for a vocalist.

The rules also require them to perform a blues ; whether they improvise or not, and whether they do so scatting or with words, is up to them.

ok ?

[happy]

VickiHB said:

[glow=red,2,300]"Scat singing is permitted but not compulsory".[/glow]

i think that is one of the wisest pronouncements I've ever heard on this board!

[singer]

true meaning of 'vocalese' is to put words (not sounds) to a solo or instrumental arrangement like Jon Hendricks did with his work with Lambert, Hendricks and Ross. Vocalese is a definition often used to describe scat especially Ive noted in Australia, but its wrong. Vickis right about that aj.

If you can't do your own improvisation over even just blues changes you should stick to R & B. Then you weed out the crap scat singers that Happy and the rest of us want to avoid becoz most of them wouldnt make it to the finals. studied jazz music & voice in the States for more than a couple of years so im qualified to answer that one. Pity Im too old to enter. Hate the age bias shit.

[vickihb2]

Not quite sure what your objection is vicki.

I wasn't objecting aj, just asking for clarification.

According to Mark Murphy, Singer is correct about the definition of vocalese. Murphy says in his work he uses some vocalese, which is: "words put to music" but "I also do a lot of free scat...wordless improvisation."

I had heard that some jazz singers found the entry form criteria ambiguous, so I read it to find out what was so confusing. That's why I asked!

Personally, speaking, I don't understand how music that doesn't include improvisation can ever be defined as jazz.

It is OK to ask questions isn't it?

[aj]

hey vicki, questions are always fine (even if it did read more like an objection).

Singer, you are also (as you already know) right re the definition of vocalese ; it's just the point is to try to set a relatively uniform challenge for the singers entering, and I didn't want to be too restrictive in saying what they can or can't do.

As for the age criteria, well the competition was intended to encourage young musicians, that's why there was an age limit set ; whether 35 defines 'young' is another question, but that's what it was in 1990, so we've left it there ever since.

[vickihb2]

Hey aj, after all these years dealing with sensitive artists you ought to know that the punters are harder to handle by now! ;D

You, Sir, are always a gentlemen and diplomat. I salute you.

[me]

It should read: "Scat singing will not be allowed..avoidance is compulsory..anyone caught scatting shall be force fed Wangaratta pizza for the duration of the festival."

[vickihb2]

Yes, you are so right! I think we should get all the recordings of Kurt Elling, George Benson, Bobbi McFerrin, Dianne Reeves, Mark Murphy, Ella Fitzgerald, Jon Hendricks, Allison Wedding, Sarah Vaughan, Mel Torme, Betty Carter, Ian Shaw, Louis Armstrong, New York Voices, Take 6 and Michelle Nicolle and take them to the town square and [glow=red,2,300]set FIRE to them![/glow]

They are all such terrible musicians the lot of them.

Jesus Christ what IS wrong with you guys?

[Sigmund JungKlein]

Its a super ego matter. I believe tis true. A deep longing from the opposers of fine jazz voice improvisation to JustDoIt themselves but sadly they dont have the chops. the resentment presents as knocking down of them that doth have em and even deeper resentment of them that fail trying. how many boring tenor players there are who never get this much mud slung in their direction or maybe its a gender thing there ben so many gal singers? who knows? what lies in the deep recesses of the jazz freaks brains? aint common sense thats fer sure

[Another old singer]

I would also like to enter but am unable because of age restrictions, aj can you see a time when that might change? As for scat singing, I'm don't dig it that much myself, and some of the greatest jazz singers in the history of the music didn't 'scat': Billie Holiday, Chet Baker, Frank Sinatra... but that's not to say they didn't 'improvise'. Any version of a song by Billie Holiday is a beautiful improvisation rendered in her manner of melodic and rhythmic placement. And therein lies the problem of definition... singers who scat think by definition they are improvising and that's rubbish; improvising is being able to interact with the band and take the music somewhere unexpected and very few scat singers achieve this.

[aj]

spot on AOS ; that's why scatting is not forbidden, but not compulsory either.

re the age limit : sorry, but after 16 years I doubt the format will change now. If you haven't already done so, send a recording to PO Box 860 Wangaratta 3676, try for a gig that way.