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Jackie Allen (born February 19, 1959) is an American jazz vocalist, composer, and educator. She has released nine records as a leader for labels such as Blue Note Records, Naxos Records, A440 Music Group, and Avant Bass. Influenced by jazz, folk, and pop singers, Allen is perhaps best known for interpretations classic jazz ballads ("bringing out the beauty of the lyrics" -Scott Yannow, All Music Guide)〔(Never Let Me Go – Jackie Allen | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards | AllMusic )〕 and transformation of contemporary tunes ("her gift with more pop-oriented material is utterly distinctive and even innovative, since there isn't another singer out there who phrases like her" -Thom Jurek, All Music Guide).〔(Tangled – Jackie Allen | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards | AllMusic )〕 == Biography == Born in Brown Deer, Wisconsin, and raised in McFarland, Jackie Allen first became interested in music through her father, Louis (Gene) Allen, an accomplished tuba player.〔(Wisconsin Polka Hall of Fame – Inductees )〕 Growing up, Allen sang in choirs and played French Horn, but was not exposed to modern jazz until she attended the University of Wisconsin - Madison where she studied with Richard Davis, Joan Wildman, and Les Thimmig. Limited by the available majors offered at the time, Allen moved to Milwaukee where she performed five nights a week for four years in a duo with Mel Rhyne at the Wyndham Hotel. She moved to Chicago in 1990 where she began to compose and self-produced her first release, ''Never Let Me Go'', for the short lived Lake Shore Jazz label.〔(It's Chicago Jazz From The Lake Shore – Chicago Tribune )〕 The recording rose into the top twenty of the Gavin Jazz Charts where it remained for thirteen weeks. This drew the attention of Grammy-award winning producer Ralph Jungheim who was looking for new artists to produce for the Naxos Records label. Jungheim brought Allen out to Los Angeles to record ''Which'' with first-call musicians including Red Holloway, Gary Foster, and Bill Cunliffe, who served as the musical director for the recording. The project was successful and the label sent Jackie and her group on an Asian tour, including an appearance as the first jazz artists to perform at the Beijing Music Festival.〔(History – Beijing Music Festival Arts Foundation )〕 In the late 90's Allen again began enjoying the interactive possibilities in duo settings. She began a collaboration with pianist Judy Roberts performing weekly at the historic Carleton Hotel in Oak Park, Illinois. They started a series of successful holiday duet concerts that led to the release of ''Santa Baby'' in 2000, now in its 4th printing and listed as one of the top classical jazz holiday discs by Jazz History Online.〔(Music for a Cool Yule Classics )〕 The duo released "Autumn Leaves" the following year. In 1999 she began performing in a voice-bass duo with Hans Sturm. They performed at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival where Frank Proto heard the duo and invited them to record for his Red Mark label. Dave Nathan wrote of the recording for the All Music Guide "This album ups the ante for voice/bass combination. It demands serious and committed listening. ''Landscapes: Bass Meets Voice'' will leave most breathless." 〔(Landscapes: Bass Meets Voice – Hans Sturm | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards | AllMusic )〕 Since 2002 Jackie Allen has performed and recorded primarily with the same core ensemble including John Moulder (guitars), Dane Richeson (percussion), and Hans Sturm (bass) with the addition of either Ben Lewis, Laurence Hobgood, or Tom Larson (keyboards), Orbert Davis or Tito Carillo (trumpets), and Steve Eisen (woodwinds). She produced ''The Men in My Life'' with Eric Hochberg and it was picked up by the Chicago label A440 in 2003. The record was successful and the label signed her to do an additional recording, ''Love Is Blue'', produced by Rob Mathes and released the following year. The A440 label folded in early 2005. However the success of the second recording attracted the attention of Michael Cuscuna and Bruce Lundvall and Jackie was signed to Blue Note Records. ''Tangled'' was released in 2006.〔(Jackie Allen | Artists | Blue Note Records )〕 However she was dropped from the label after EMI/Blue Note was sold in 2007 to Terra Firma. In 2008 Allen was approached by the Muncie Symphony Orchestra to create a project for their 60th Anniversary Season. The result was the 2009 live release ''Starry Night'' that features Allen's band with the symphony in a program of star-themed tunes arranged by John Clayton, Frank Proto, Bill Cunliffe, Mark Buselli, and Matt Harris. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Jackie Allen (musician)」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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