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| An Impressive Jazz Singer And Songwriter From Serbia, Jelena Jovović Makes Her Recording Debut As A Leader With Heartbeat Jelena Jovović is a versatile jazz singer from Serbia who sings without an accent and is comfortable in a variety of styles. On Heartbeat, her debut as a leader, her warm and flexible voice is teamed with a core group comprised of pianist /keyboardist Vasil Hadzimanov, bassist Milan Nikolic, drummer Vladimir Kostadinovic, tenor-saxophonist Rastko Obradovic and, on three numbers, trumpeter Strahinja Banovic. Also featured are vibraphonist Milos Branisavljevic and guitarist Branko Trijic. The Eastern European jazz musicians, whose solos and accompaniment consistently uplift the music, are all world class players. Ms. Jovović wrote the music and lyrics to six of the ten selections on Heartbeat, also contributing the lyrics to the other four songs plus all of the arrangements. The set begins with Wayne Shorter's "Witch Hunt, " a performance with excellent electric piano, tenor and bass solos along with harmonized vocals from three background singers, and a message about the importance of being true to oneself. A traditional folk song ("Paladin") is transformed into modern jazz and features a beautiful vocal-piano duet. The singer's original "The Countless Stars" has the horns recalling Horace Silver's band a bit but joined by funky Balkan rhythms and highlighted by Jelena Jovović's spirited scat singing. Among the other selections are Ms. Jovović's love song to the universe and life in general ("Heartbeat"), an optimistic message from a parent to a child ("Bubu's Song"), a tribute to the importance of music in her life ("Sweet Music"), and a revival of Don Grolnick's "Pools." Whether it is the boppish and scat-filled "Bubu's Song, " the catchy boogaloo "Little Freddie Sings, " or the sophisticated love song "Time Is Here, " Jelena Jovović and her musicians excel in every setting and mood. Ever since she won a former Yugoslav children's song contest at the age of 11, Jelena Jovović has been devoted to music. She studied at the University of Belgrade and the University of Arts in Graz, Austria and became a vocal clinician and lecturer (including in South Africa) in addition to her work as a jazz singer. In her career so far, she has sung with such notables as Chuck Israels, Mark Murphy, Sheila Jordan, Dusko Gojkovic, Fritz Pauer, the SABC Big Band, the Big Band RTS, Brad Leali, Bob Mover (with whom she toured during 2013-14), Joe Cohn, the Claus Raible Quartet, and the Oliver Kent Trio among many others including at festivals and on tours with her own quintet. Heartbeat introduces the remarkable Jelena Jovović to a wider audience and is an important step in the career of this esteemed jazz singer. Available From: •Amazon •CDBaby •iTunes Jelena Jovovic "Heartbeat" (Self Produced) Street Date: June 7, 2019 Jelena Jovovic (Vocals), Vasil Hadzimanov (Piano, Rhodes), Milan Nikolic (Double bass, el.bass), Vladimir Kostadinovic (Drums) / track 1, 3, 4, 6, 9, 10/, Dusan Novakov (Drums) / track 5, 7/, Rastko Obradovic (Tenor sax) / track 1, 3, 4, 7, 9/, (Soprano sa)/ track 8/, Strahinja Banovic (Trumpet) /track 1, 7, 9/, Stjepko Gut (Trumpet) / track 6/, Milos Nikolic (Trumpet, trombone) /track 3/, Branko Trijic (Guitar) / track 4, 7, 10, Milos Branisavljevic (Vibraphone)/track 5, 10/, Tom Fedja Franklin, Bojan Ivkovic (Percussion) / track 1, 3, 4, 7, 10/, Srdjan Markovic, Ivana Vukmirovic, Ilija Mihailovic (Backing Vocals) / track 1, 3, 4, 7, 10/, Oleg Kireyev (Tatar throat singing) / track 3/ write your comments about the article :: © 2019 Jazz News :: home page |