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Fay Victor
At the beginning of the nineties, Ms. Victor began building a name as a jazz vocalist around NY performing primarily jazz standards and blues. After navigating the city clubs for a few years and having formed her first working trio, Victor needed a fresh start and more work and followed the call the Europe. Victor made Amsterdam, the Netherlands her home, living in that city for nearly 8 years. The experience was a fruitful one. Victor used this time to study and hone her distinctive sound, her ear and widen her musical horizons that made the transition from a singer of standards to the unique vocal artist she has become today, a vocalist coming from the jazz tradition as a basis for improvising in the sense of Ornette Coleman/late Coltrane and beyond contrasted by an earthy soulfulness expressed through originals that offer taut construction and witty lyrics. Ms Victor voice and approach is about embracing the gamut of musical expression in an effortless way and talking about the small details that mean so much to so many.
Victor returned home to New York City in 2003 and since then has been one of the most active vocalist on the scene, stretching her voice around the city, touting her groups into clubs, constantly developing new material and forging new collaborations that are taking her as far away as Moscow, Russia.
Victor has appeared at venues/festivals including BAMCafe Live, Het Bimhuis (Amsterdam), The Stone, Roulette/Location One, Zebulon, Poklad (Gdynia), Galapagos Art Space, Barbes, CBGB’s, The Vision Festival Series, Cornelia Street Café, Tonic, the 55 Bar, The HOWL Festival, River to River Festival and GRIM Winter Nights Festival (Marseille, FR). Victor has performed with such notables as Odetta, Gloria Lynne, The Duke Ellington Orchestra, Lawrence “Butch” Morris, Misha Mengelberg, Roswell Rudd, Gary Lucas, Tyshawn Sorey, Connie Crothers, Matana Roberts, Vijay Iyer, Michael Attias, Michael Moore, Duck Baker and Steve Coleman.
Awards
Praise for The FreeSong Suite *The Village Voice Jazz Critics Poll 2009**4th in the Best Jazz Vocals Category** *AllAboutJazz-NewYork’s Best of 2009**Best Vocal Releases** *The Jazz Session's Jason Crane’s Top 10 of 2009 �" The FreeSong Suite was Jason’s TOP Pick for the Year *NPR Jazz: Ten Great Moments from Jazz Recordings in 2009 *PopMatters.com: The Best Jazz of 2009 *Laurence Donohue-Greene’s Top 10+ of 2009 *Elzy Kolb: A Few Of My Favorite Things in 2009 *CKUT Jazz Director’s Top 20 list *Délire Actuel 2009 Demanding Music Top 30
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Miles Okazaki: Miniature America
by Alberto Bazzurro
Ventidue miniature svarianti da uno a sei minuti, con impegnati sottoinsiemi (o microgruppi, se preferite) estrapolati dal totale dei dieci elementi, sette strumentisti e tre cantanti, coinvolti nell'operazione, è quanto ci offre questo nuovo lavoro discografico (il dodicesimo, ci viene detto) a nome del cinquantenne chitarrista Miles Okazaki, con la partecipazione di svariati musicisti di punta dell'attuale scena newyorchese (e non). Ogni episodio possiede--fisiologicamente, verrebbe da dire--un aplomb cameristico di sicuro fascino, anche se è inevitabile che il ...
Continue ReadingFay Victor / Herbie Nichols SUNG: Life Is Funny That Way
by Jerome Wilson
The jazz world overlooked pianist and composer Herbie Nichols in his lifetime, but musicians such as Roswell Rudd, Misha Mengelberg, and Ted Nash have tried to keep his music in circulation over the years in various projects. Vocalist Fay Victor has been entranced by his music for a long time, and in 2013, she put together a group, Herbie Nichols SUNG, to perform his tunes. This is that group's first recording together and it is excellent. In most ...
Continue ReadingThe Choir Invisible with Charlotte Greve, Vinnie Sperrazza and Chris Tordini: Town of Two Faces
by Glenn Astarita
Infused with an inventive and organic zest, Town of Two Faces swings into the spotlight under the deft ensemble of Charlotte Greve on alto saxophone or voice, Vinnie Sperrazza on drums, Chris Tordini on acoustic bass. It is graced by a cameo from Fay Victor, a voice which paints jazz in bold uncharted colors, with her knack for reimagining the vocal weave in the jazz tapestry with her deep dive into a memorably melodic blues-and gospel-shaded piece, entitled “In Heaven." ...
Continue ReadingFay Victor, Tyshawn Sorey, Matthew Shipp & Jaimie Branch
by Maurice Hogue
Vocalist Fay Victor's new solo album, Blackity Black Black Is Beautiful, is one of the featured new recordings in this episode of One Man's Jazz. She plays everything on the album. The much-respected drummer Tyshawn Sorey continues to explore the traditional piano trio with the release of Continuing, while Matthew Shipp takes the solo route for his latest, something the master pianist is very familiar with. The late and treasured trumpeter Jaimie Branch died last year before the completion of ...
Continue ReadingSingers: Fay Victor, Anita O'Day, Kurt Elling and More
by Jerome Wilson
This show features vocalists as both band leaders and featured performers with other musicians. In the first category, there are Fay Victor and Anita O'Day among others. In the second, we have Kurt Elling with the Charlie Hunter Quartet and Becca Stevens with Ambrose Akinmusire plus several more. Playlist Henry Threadgill Sextett “I Can't Wait Till I Get Home" from The Complete Novus & Columbia Recordings of Henry Threadgill & Air (Mosaic) 00:00 Tina May “It Ain't Necessarily ...
Continue ReadingWilliam Parker: Migration of Silence Into and Out of the Tone World
by Karl Ackermann
If multi-instrumentalist/composer William Parker's ten-CD Migration Of Silence Into And Out Of The Tone World suggests a cohesive, high concept plan, it is something more. The beautifully packaged clamshell box set is comprised of mutually exclusive projects—one dating back ten years—with some common themes. There is an overall dedication of the music to “all people of the world who are searching for freedom...." Pandemic downtime resulted in Parker's accumulating enough material for many of these albums. Viewed as a whole, ...
Continue ReadingWilliam Parker: Migration of Silence Into and Out of the Tone World
by Giuseppe Segala
L'attività musicale di William Parker è stata copiosamente documentata da circa centocinquanta dischi, che spaziano in un caleidocopio di gruppi fondati dallo stesso contrabbassista, formazioni cooperative, omaggi, collaborazioni. Ma nessun singolo lavoro, fino a questo momento, aveva focalizzato l'attenzione su un ventaglio di ispirazioni così ampio e completo come si fa ora nei dieci CD del cofanetto The Music of William Parker—Migration of Silence Into and Out of The Tone World. In questo lavoro monumentale, che viene ...
Continue ReadingNew England Conservatory’s Pioneering Jazz Studies And Contemporary Musical Arts Programs Announce Winter-Spring Season
Source:
Braithwaite & Katz Communications
New England Conservatory (NEC) announces a wide-ranging spring season of jazz and contemporary musical arts events featuring a diverse roster of ensembles and programming. Concerts are free and open to the public. For more information on all concerts, and a complete event calendar, visit necmusic.edu/concerts. Jazz Studies welcomes Jason Moran, Dave Holland and Michael Formanek for residencies. NEC alum Omar Thomas joins the NEC Jazz Orchestra for Jazz and the Struggle for Freedom and Equality. The orchestra also features special ...
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Vision Festival 16 Monday Night Vocals and Much More
Source:
Chris Rich
Monday night at this years Vision Festival is like a miniature of the festival overall. We have a panel event, a special vocal project, and participation from gifted people of many cultures. And there will be a panel to lead off. Most Vision Festivals include an ad hoc vocal ensemble and this year is no exception. Ms Kitamura, Ms Rodea and Ms Victor weave voice sounds with their lore to evoke the original muses who gave this human activity its ...
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The Exposed Blues Duo Will Celebrate Bare (Greene Avenue Music) at Barbes September 15th
Source:
Improvised Communications
On Wednesday, September 15th, The ExPosed Blues Duo, featuring vocalist Fay Victor and guitarist Anders Nilsson, will celebrate their August 31st debut, BARE (Greene Avenue Music), with a special hometown performance at Barbès in Brooklyn. Best known for their work together in Ms. Victor's acclaimed quartet, the Fay Victor Ensemble, these frequent collaborators have used this increasingly vital side project to showcase their distinctive, stripped-down approach to spirituals, jazz standards and early 20th century blues music. “It's a nice cross-section ...
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The Jazz Session #95: Fay Victor
Source:
Michael Ricci
The Fay Victor Ensemble's The FreeSong Suite (Greene Avenue, 2009) is a tour de force of writing, improvisation and performance. Victor and her band paint one fluid word picture after another, linking these composed sections with free playing that is smart, muscular and emotional. In this interview, Victor talks about why she needed a steady band to realize her musical vision; how she arrived at the mix of freedom and pre-determination that characterizes the album; and what the breakdown of ...
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Fay Victor Performs @ Sweet Rhythm - May 22, 2007
Source:
All About Jazz
The Fay Victor Ensemble performs at Sweet Rhythm on Tuesday, May 22nd, 2007 as part of Tessa Souter's Vocal Series at this fantastic West-Village venue. THE FAY VICTOR ENSEMBLE Fay Victor/voice Anders Nilsson/guitar Ken Filiano/bass Michael TA Thompson/drums TUESDAY, MAY 22. 2007 2 sets, 8:00PM & 9:30PM 88 Seventh Avenue South (at Bleecker Street) 212 255 3626 Full bar and menu available ...
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Fay Victor Performs at Avant Jazz: Still Moving Festival April 28
Source:
All About Jazz
The Fay Victor Ensemble will appear at Location/One Roulette as part of the Avant Jazz: Still Moving Festival on Saturday, April 28, 2007.
Fay Victor - voice Anders Nilsson - electric guitar Ken Filiano - acoustic bass, effects Michael 'TA' Thompson - drums, percussion
The Fay Victor Ensemble is a voice-guitar-bass-drum unit performing original material that mostly provides structure for free improvisational flight; each member contributing equally to proceedings. The band's first recording, Cartwheels ...
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New Fay Victor CD Coming on ArtistShare in January
Source:
Improvised Communications
On January 2nd, 2007, New York-based vocalist/composer Fay Victor will release her fifth recording as a leader, Cartwheels Through The Cosmos (ArtistShare AS 0061). Recorded without overdubs, the all-original program documents the vibrant and inclusive sound of her working quartet, the Fay Victor Ensemble, featuring guitarist Anders Nilsson, bassist Ken Filiano and drummer Michael “TA" Thompson.
“As boldly inventive as she is bewitching, vocalist Fay Victor is a compelling presence on any bandstand," writes jazz critic and author Bill Milkowski ...
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Fay Victor at Freddy's Backroom - Monday, October 10th
Source:
All About Jazz
October 10, 2005 To: Listings/Critics/Features From: JAZZ PROMO SERVICES Press Contact: JIM EIGO, [email protected] Just a reminder... The moodswing series @ Freddy's Backroom 485 Dean Street Brooklyn, NY (cor of Dean Street and 6th Avenue) Monday, October 10, 2005 9:00-11:00 PM The Fay Victor Ensemble Anders Nilsson-guitar Ken Filiano-bass Fay Victor-voice Special guest: Wolter Wierbos-trombone (his only appearance in NYC) $10 suggested donation The moodswing series is a monthly jazz-experimental concert featuring vocalist Fay Victor and her ensemble. Come down ...
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Fay Victor performance at Kavehaz & Freddy's Backroom Tuesday, October 4th one set only – 7:00PM
Source:
All About Jazz
September 29, 2005 To: Listings/Critics/Features From: JAZZ PROMO SERVICES Press Contact: JIM EIGO, [email protected] The Fay Victor Trio Anders Nilsson-guitar Hilliard “Hill” Greene – bass Fay Victor-voice Appearing at Kavehaz Tuesday, October 4th, 2005 For one set only – 7:00PM No cover 37 W. 26th Street New York, NY 10010 212 343-0612 The Fay Victor trio is a new vehicle that features Anders Nilsson, guitar and Hilliard “Hill" Greene, double bass. The group will perform a mixture of standards, originals ...
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“Victor’s soulful, emotive delivery combines with avant-tinged invention, placing her alongside great vocal innovators like Betty Carter, Jeanne Lee, Sheila Jordan…a truly creative singer with the chops to accomplish whatever she wants, but the good taste to ensure that substance always trumps style…The Freesong Suite is a vocal album that stands well above the pack; a welcome respite from the unwieldy preponderance of unimaginative vocal jazz albums hitting the market.” -John Kelman, allaboutjazz.com
Primary Instrument
Vocals
Location
New York City
Willing to teach
Beginner to advanced
Photos
Music
The Cocktail Party
From: Miniature AmericaBy Fay Victor
People Are Strange
From: Lazy Old SunBy Fay Victor
Videos
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Fay Victor
Location: New York City
Instrument: Vocals
Born: July 26
Publicist: Improvised Communications
