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Jazz Voicings
Jazz Voicings
Date Posted: January 08 2009
Written By: bobby broom
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As a baby girl, my daughter Nicole would often sing her little heart out and being such the precocious one, I usually downplayed her frequent showcases. But one day as we drove around Chicago with Sade's "Kiss Of Life" playing in the background on the radio, I had to turn to look back into the car-seat at the bright shining little star, her eyes rolled back in her head as she lost herself in the music on the radio and in her own performance. In that moment I had to admit it to myself that not only was she talented, the girl could sing!
She joined the Chicago Children's Choir and spent years rehearsing, performing and dreaming about following her star. I played along––she was still quite young. When she was six years old she decided that she wanted to learn the song "September In The Rain" after she'd heard Chicago jazz chanteuse Kimberly Gordon perform it. I played and sang it into her cassette player and after a short time practicing it on her own, she was ready. I was floored by all that she’d absorbed as well as by her spot-on pitch and by all the feeling she could emote by using phrasing and her voice quality. We recorded a demo of the tune in my home studio––for posterity. When I asked what song she wanted to record next, she said "Killing Me Softly." I insisted that she hear the original recording by Roberta Flack as a supplement to her familiarity with Lauren Hill's version.
The following year I was performing at the Ravinia amphitheater with Dr. John, who was sharing the bill that evening with Roberta Flack. With my little seven-year-old in tow, I went through my concert preparation at the theater. Following our sound check, Nicole excitedly recounted her encounter with Ms. Flack and how she was asked to sing for her but was too shy and clammed up. With some disappointment, I tried to explain to her the importance of seizing extraordinary opportunities that come but once. But Nicole wasn’t worried––she was seven and not limited in her thinking about possibilities. She had plans for after dinner to go backstage, find Roberta and make things right. But first, there was the business of dessert.
After the Dr. John performance there was a buzz happening backstage. Roberta had asked Nicole to join her on stage later that night!
Nicole hadn't decided if she would accept the offer yet and the suspense was killing me. I recall being more nervous and excited than I'd ever been about any of my own extra-terrestrial musical experiences. I had to excuse myself from the backstage commotion and, fortunately, Ms. Flack's personal assistant assured me that Nicole was in good hands.
As I waited in the audience I could see the little girl in the light blue flowered dress standing in the wings. In between songs Roberta announced that she had a little friend who was welcomed to come and join her whenever she was ready. And after a dramatic balk at entering the stage, the girl was finally escorted by two adults and gently planted on the piano bench, legs dangling. The band eased into "Killing Me Softly" and two full verses passed without Nicole making a sound.
Nicole knew the song and must have realized that her fifteen minutes of fame was nearing its end, and so when offered the chance to sing the last verse she didn't hesitate or disappoint. Roberta, the star performer, gracious host and former schoolteacher, finished the performance with an impromptu call-and-response segment on a repeated vamp ending so that Nicole could show off her good ears and natural musicality. Like I said, the girl could sing. What a blast it was!
After burning out on the Children's Choir, Nicole decided to stop her formal vocal training a few years later and took to dance shortly thereafter. By her senior year of high school she was offered a spot in the professional training company of Chicago's Joel Hall Dance Company.
During her junior high and high school years it was customary for Nicole and me to share the radio (between hip-hop and jazz stations) during our drives. I recall a time when it was her turn and what we used to call a "booty song" was playing. We came up with this moniker as a nickname for the ubiquitous "songs" whose lyrics were about nothing more than the motion of that particular body part.
She was grooving along, reciting the lyrics, while I tried to make out words and phrases, secretly anticipating the last thud of bass so I could change the station. She turned to me with a knowing stare and said, "I know that this music is trash… but the beats are so good." I let out a proud smile and nodded in approval. She was right on all counts. That statement said as much about her cultural insight as it did about her musical awareness.
During her last year of high school, she asked if I'd accompany her for a song at her school's Jazz Night. I reluctantly agreed. I was a bit worried about her voice being out of shape, so I scheduled a rehearsal to prepare the material and my expectation level. "Someone to Watch Over Me" was the tune she picked.
At the rehearsal I felt much better. She hadn't lost her talent, just some confidence, which was being quickly regained as the music took precedence over the self. There were a couple of points that I suggested she work on, but all in all, the performance would be fine. My expectations were properly placed. In summation of her Jazz Night performance I'll just say that audience members' jaws were on the floor and I got goose bumps. She had done it again.
She's currently a straight-A sophomore at a California university with an interest in education, education reform, sociology and Latin American studies. Of course, I have high hopes and expectations for her, but mostly I just pray that her heart will always sing.-CJM
Bobby Broom is an internationally recognized jazz guitarist and a jazz educator. He has worked with some of the twentieth century’s leaders in the field of jazz, including Sonny Rollins, Miles Davis, Art Blakey, Stanley Turrentine, Kenny Garrett and fellow guitarist Kenny Burrell, among others. Broom recently received a master’s degree in jazz pedagogy from Northwestern University and currently teaches for DePaul University and the Ravinia Festival Organization’s Jazz In The Schools community outreach program.
Visit Bobby Broom's Website!
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