In Dianne Reeves’ shoes at the Atlanta Jazz Festival

Dianne Reeves is performing at this year s Atlanta Jazz Festival Photo by Jerris Madison When Dianne Reeves was a teenager she subbed in for Ella Fitzgerald at the last minute a claim to fame that not several high schoolers can boast Reeves was working at a jazz club in Denver and Fitzgerald was playing the club s upstairs room reserved for the larger acts that came through the city Reeves was able to see Fitzgerald perform and was absolutely blown away by her talent But according to Reeves Fitzgerald didn t take too well to the altitude change in Colorado When the jazz legend couldn t perform the next day Reeves took the stage in her stead quite literally stepping into Ella Fitzgerald s shoes Her wardrobe was still up in the club in the dressing room Reeves reported I just remember seeing these little shoes that she had with a short heel I invariably remember because they were periwinkle blue So I put the shoes on laughs Reeves has come a long way from that teenager wearing Ella Fitzgerald s shoes to become a jazz legend in her own right She has won five Grammy Awards received honorary doctorates from Berklee College of Music and the Juilliard School and even appeared in George Clooney s film Good Night and Good Luck From May - she ll appear at the Atlanta Jazz Festival joining the likes of Derrick Hodge Ravi Coltrane Joe Gransden and more Reeves was born into a multi-generational musical family in Detroit a family which includes her uncle the classical and jazz bassist Charles Burrell who will celebrate his th birthday in October Even the members of her family who weren t musicians had impeccable musical taste so Reeves was inevitably listening and learning I had great aunts and all of that around all celebrating the music that they loved she noted I got the history of how the music that I liked came to be just from listening to their music While attending George Washington High School in Denver she sang in a choir where the conductor would allow the students to sing contemporary songs which further amplified Reeves love for jazz and melodizing For a while she studied classical voice at the University of Chicago but eventually she moved to Los Angeles in to pursue a career in music While most of of her career has been spent on the stage Reeves has periodically gotten the chance to work in other artistic mediums like film In she appeared as a jazz singer in the film Good Night and Good Luck directed and co-written by George Clooney He required the music to be performed live in the film which was really exciting to me she revealed He revealed This music is best served live so just like the actors will be delivering their lines you will be delivering the songs It was incredible Reeves was excited to take the job but curious about how she came across Clooney s radar in the first place The answer Clooney s aunt Rosemary Clooney Years before Reeves had shared a dressing room with the s singer and actress at a show at the Dorothy Chandler Pavillion in Los Angeles Reeves made quite the impression We sat up and laughed and talked the whole time Reeves remembered They had to come and get us to do our parts onstage It was this short very powerful wonderful experience that stayed with me but I didn t ever think that it would stay with her Reeves describes herself as learning in the living schools of jazz meaning that she learned by being on the stage There was of program Burrell who was extremely influential in introducing her to jazz in the first place One of her other favorite mentors was the trumpeter Clark Terry He invited all kinds of young people to be a part of his band and surrounded them in the the greater part fertile soil they could ever be in by using masterful jazz musicians in his band she noted about Terry That part was really wonderful Now that she s so established Reeves has started taking on the mentor role herself In recent weeks she took part in Rolex s mentoring initiative working for two years with the South Korean jazz composer and singer Song Yi Jeon She disclosed she enjoys being a sounding board for young singers just starting in their careers The biggest question she gets she noted is how to make a song uniquely your own Everybody can have an incredible instrument Reeves noted But it s your voice that part of you that interprets the song that sees the world in a certain way that is the the greater part central The post In Dianne Reeves shoes at the Atlanta Jazz Festival appeared first on Rough Draft Atlanta