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In 2017, Shah premiered the contemporary work "Folk Songs of Naboréa: a song-cycle for seven voices” at the [[Park Avenue Armory]]. The concert was named by critic Nate Chinen as one of the Top 10 Performances of the year.<ref name="Naborea">{{Cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/2017/12/21/572542318/the-year-in-gigs-nate-chinens-top-10-jazz-performances-of-2017|title=The Year in Gigs: Nate Chinen's Top 10 Jazz Performances Of 2017|last=Chinen|first=Nate|website=National Public Radio|language=en|access-date=2018-05-23|}}</ref> |
In 2017, Shah premiered the contemporary work "Folk Songs of Naboréa: a song-cycle for seven voices” at the [[Park Avenue Armory]]. The concert was named by critic Nate Chinen as one of the Top 10 Performances of the year.<ref name="Naborea">{{Cite web|url=https://www.npr.org/2017/12/21/572542318/the-year-in-gigs-nate-chinens-top-10-jazz-performances-of-2017|title=The Year in Gigs: Nate Chinen's Top 10 Jazz Performances Of 2017|last=Chinen|first=Nate|website=National Public Radio|language=en|access-date=2018-05-23|}}</ref> |
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In 2018, Shah released “Interplay,” a bass-and-voice duo project co-led by François Moutin. The album features standards and originals, with a heavy focus on improvisation; Moutin and Shah are joined on two tracks each by their respective mentors, pianist Martial Solal and vocalist Sheila Jordan.<ref name="Interplay">{{Cite |
In 2018, Shah released “Interplay,” a bass-and-voice duo project co-led by François Moutin. The album features standards and originals, with a heavy focus on improvisation; Moutin and Shah are joined on two tracks each by their respective mentors, pianist Martial Solal and vocalist Sheila Jordan.<ref name="Interplay">{{Cite web|url=https://news.allaboutjazz.com/dot-time-records-announce-interplay-an-exciting-new-album-from-the-francois-moutin-kavita-shah-duo.php|title=Dot Time Records Announce "Interplay," An Exciting New Album From The François Moutin/Kavita Shah Duo|last=Jazz|first=All About|website=All About Jazz|language=en|access-date=2018-05-23|}}</ref> |
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<ref name="Interplay">{{Cite web|url=https://news.allaboutjazz.com/dot-time-records-announce-interplay-an-exciting-new-album-from-the-francois-moutin-kavita-shah-duo.php|title=Dot Time Records Announce "Interplay," An Exciting New Album From The François Moutin/Kavita Shah Duo|last=Jazz|first=All About|website=All About Jazz|language=en|access-date=2018-05-23|}}</ref> |
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Revision as of 18:26, 23 May 2018
Kavita Shah | |
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File:Kavita Shah.jpg | |
Background information | |
Born | February 2, 1985 |
Origin | New York, New York |
Genres | Jazz, Brazilian, World Music, Contemporary Music |
Occupation(s) | Vocalist, Composer, Arranger |
Instrument(s) | Voice |
Labels | Naïve Records, Inner Circle Music |
Website | www |
Kavita Shah is a vocalist and composer from New York, NY.
Drawing upon her cosmopolitan heritage, multilingualism, and extensive research on diverse musical traditions, Shah works in deep engagement with the jazz idiom while also addressing and advancing its global sensibilities. She has been hailed by NPR for possessing an “amazing dexterity with musical languages”.[1]
Early years
Raised in Manhattan, Shah began her musical training in classical piano at age 5. She spent her formative years performing regularly at Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center as a member of the prestigious Young People’s Chorus of New York City, with whom she trained in styles ranging from opera to gospel to folk music in more than 20 languages.[2] She traces her commitment to jazz to the childhood influence of uptown saxophonist Patience Higgins, a former neighbor whose band she would later join at hallowed Harlem spots like Minton’s and the Lenox Lounge.
Her family is of Gujarati origin, and her parents are originally from Mumbai, India.[3]
Shah attended New York City public schools, and became fluent in Spanish at the age of 16 after living with a host family in Ecuador. She went on to major in Latin American Studies at Harvard College, where she also studied Yorùbá and became fluent in Portuguese and French. During her undergraduate years, Shah lived abroad in Perú, China, and Brazil, where she conducted fieldwork on Afro-Brazilian music and politics; her honors thesis "Experiments with Transnationalism: Constructing Diaspora in the bloco-afro Malê Debalê” was awarded the Kenneth D. Maxwell Thesis Prize in Brazilian Studies and the Cultural Agents Thesis Prize. While at Harvard, she also received the Cecília Meireles Prize and the David McCord Prize.[4]
After college, Shah briefly worked at The Nation magazine and Human Rights Watch, when a chance meeting on the subway with NEA Jazz Master Sheila Jordan would steer her towards a career in music. Shah earned a Master's in Jazz Voice from Manhattan School of Music, where she studied with Theo Bleckmann, Peter Eldridge, Steve Wilson, and Jim McNeely.[5]
Music
From her formal training, Shah draws a keen interest in complex arrangements and adventurous approaches to the voice as an instrument. Just as important to Shah, she grounds her own compositions in the art of the song as passed down through the tradition – not least by Jordan, who has been her artistic and professional mentor.
Shah has performed her music at major concert halls, festivals, and clubs on six continents, including the Kennedy Center, Winter Jazz Fest, BRIC Jazz Fest, Rochester Jazz Festival, San Jose Jazz Festival, Melbourne Jazz Festival, Brisbane Jazz Festival, Perth Jazz Festival, Safaricom Jazz Lounge in Nairobi, Kenya, Art Basel: Miami, Park Avenue Armory, Blue Note, Jazz Standard, Joe's Pub, Iridium, Duc des Lombards, National Centre for the Performing Arts in Mumbai, India, Blue Whale, Vermont Jazz Center, Philadelphia Museum of Art, Rubin Museum, and National Jazz Museum in Harlem. She has worked with such artists as Lionel Loueke, Sheila Jordan, Martial Solal, François Moutin, Greg Osby, Steve Wilson, as well as tabla guru Samir Chatterjee (India), mridangam player Rajna Swaminathan (US/India), percussionist Rogério Boccato (Brazil), electric bassist Alune Wade (Senegal), acoustic guitarist Bau (Cape Verde), Ethio-jazz founder Mulatu Astatke (Ethiopia), and kora master Yacouba Sissoko (Mali).[6]
She was named “Best Graduate Jazz Vocalist” by Downbeat in 2012 and won the ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composers Award in 2013.[7]
Her 2014 debut album, Visions, was produced by Benin-born jazz guitarist Lionel Loueke, and released on saxophonist Greg Osby's record label Inner Circle Music. "Visions" integrates a jazz quintet with the West African kora and Indian tabla, and includes special guests Loueke (guitar, vocals), Steve Wilson (saxophone, flute), and Rogerio Boccato (percussion).[8]
In 2017, Shah premiered the contemporary work "Folk Songs of Naboréa: a song-cycle for seven voices” at the Park Avenue Armory. The concert was named by critic Nate Chinen as one of the Top 10 Performances of the year.[9]
In 2018, Shah released “Interplay,” a bass-and-voice duo project co-led by François Moutin. The album features standards and originals, with a heavy focus on improvisation; Moutin and Shah are joined on two tracks each by their respective mentors, pianist Martial Solal and vocalist Sheila Jordan.[10]
In addition to her work as a leader, Shah regularly collaborates with with contemporary composers and multimedia artists, and has premiered several works in ensembles ranging from chamber groups to big band to jazz philharmonic.[11]
Research
Shah's research interests in traditional music practices have taken her to Brazil, Cape Verde, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Tanzania, Turkey, and India. She has received funding for her work from the David Rockefeller Center for Latin American Studies, Jerome Foundation, and Asian Cultural Council. Shah credits tradition, as embodied in its elders, for grounding her own personal and artistic identity and her vision of music as not just pursuit of virtuosity, but cultural work. She maintains a blog, The Folkalist, to document her travels.[11]
Discography
As leader
- Kavita Shah, Visions (Inner Circle Music, 2014), co-produced by Lionel Loueke.
As co-leader
- François Moutin & Kavita Shah, Interplay (Dot Time Records, 2018), with special guests Sheila Jordan & Martial Solal.
As sideperson
- Steve Newcomb Orchestra, Mimesis (forthcoming, 2018).
- Steve Newcomb Orchestra, Caterpillar Chronicles (Listen/Hear Collective, 2012), produced by Laura Kahle.
References
- ^ Rath, Arun. "Global Village Presents New Collaborations in Latin Music". National Public Radio. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
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(help) - ^ "New York-based jazz singer gives a refreshing twist to classics". The Indian Express. June 16, 2014. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- ^ http://theindianeye.net/indian-americans-win-herb-alpert-jazz-award/
- ^ http://www.metro.us/newyork/events/kavita-shah-and-lionel-loueke/
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
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- ^ "Kavita Shah". www.ascap.com. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- ^ Jazz, All About. "Jazz news: Vocalist/Composer Kavita Shah To Celebrate Release Of Debut Album, "Visions" - Tuesday, May 27 At Joe's Pub". All About Jazz News. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- ^ Chinen, Nate. "The Year in Gigs: Nate Chinen's Top 10 Jazz Performances Of 2017". National Public Radio. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
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(help) - ^ Jazz, All About. "Dot Time Records Announce "Interplay," An Exciting New Album From The François Moutin/Kavita Shah Duo". All About Jazz. Retrieved May 23, 2018.
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