Aga Zaryan (born Agnieszka Skrzypek on 17 January 1976) is a Polish

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a m ...

vocalist and the first Polish musician to sign with Blue Note Records. Her albums have earned gold, platinum, and multi-platinum status. In 2008 and 2012 she was honored with the

Fryderyk The Fryderyk is the annual award in Polish music. Its name refers to the original Polish spelling variant of Polish composer Frédéric Chopin's first name. Its status in the Polish public can be compared to the American Grammy and the UK's BR ...

award, the Polish recording industry's most prestigious prize. She was nominated for Woman of the Year in 2008 by ''

Gazeta Wyborcza ''Gazeta Wyborcza'' (; ''The Electoral Gazette'' in English) is a Polish daily newspaper based in Warsaw, Poland. It is the first Polish daily newspaper after the era of " real socialism" and one of Poland's newspapers of record, covering the ...

'', one of Poland's most widely circulated newspapers. From 2007 to 2018, she was named Jazz Vocalist of the Year in the annual readers' poll at ''

Jazz Forum ''Jazz Forum'' is a European jazz magazine based in Warsaw. It was established as a quarterly in 1964 by jazz bassist Jan A. Byrczek, who served as its editor-in-chief. It was the first jazz magazine published behind the Iron Curtain and allo ...

'' magazine.

Early life

Zaryan was born in

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

, Poland. At an early age, she traveled throughout Europe with her parents. Her father was a classical pianist, and her mother was an English language educator and author. Her parents shared a love for Stevie Wonder,

Weather Report Weather Report was an American jazz fusion band active from 1970 to 1986. The band was founded in 1970 by Austrian virtuoso keyboardist Joe Zawinul, American saxophonist Wayne Shorter, Czech bassist Miroslav Vitouš, American drummer and voca ...

, Jimi Hendrix,

Led Zeppelin Led Zeppelin were an English rock band formed in London in 1968. The group comprised vocalist Robert Plant, guitarist Jimmy Page, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham. With a heavy, guitar-driven sound, they are ci ...

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981; baptised in 1980 as Berhane Selassie) was a Jamaican singer, musician, and songwriter. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements o ...

, and

the Beatles The Beatles were an English rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the most influential band of all time and were integral to the developmen ...

. Zaryan spent part of her childhood and primary school education in Manchester, England. After returning to Poland, she won the Warsaw Tennis Championship when she was fourteen. After hearing

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April 25, 1917June 15, 1996) was an American jazz singer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phrasing, timing, in ...

and

Miles Davis Miles Dewey Davis III (May 26, 1926September 28, 1991) was an American trumpeter, bandleader, and composer. He is among the most influential and acclaimed figures in the history of jazz and 20th-century music. Davis adopted a variety of musi ...

, she decided to become a jazz vocalist. She studied voice at Fryderyk Chopin University of Music and attended the Jazz Studies program, graduating with honors. She was awarded scholarships to attend the

Stanford Jazz Workshop Stanford Jazz Workshop (SJW) is a nonprofit organization dedicated to jazz education and the annual concert series known as the Stanford Jazz Festival. SJW was founded in 1972 by saxophonist and educator Jim Nadel. Though many of its activities a ...

and Jazz Camp West, both in the United States.

Career

In 2006, she performed at the JVC Jazz Festival in Warsaw, opening for Branford Marsalis. Since that time, she has appeared in clubs and at festivals in Poland, England, the United States, Germany, Israel, the Czech Republic, Sweden,

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, Bulgaria, Turkey, Portugal, Russia, and Iceland. In early 2007, she was in the United States for a series of concerts with her American line-up, appearing in jazz venues such as

Joe's Pub Joe's Pub, one of the six performance spaces within The Public Theater, is a music venue and restaurant that hosts live performances across genres and arts, ranging from cabaret to modern dance to world music. It is located at 425 Lafayette St ...

in New York City and

Blues Alley Blues Alley, founded in 1965, is a jazz nightclub in the Georgetown neighborhood of Washington, D.C. Musicians who have performed at Blues Alley include John Abercrombie, Monty Alexander, Mose Allison, Tony Bennett, Rory Block, Ruby Braff, G ...

in Washington D.C. The concerts were enthusiastically received. Zaryan recorded ''Picking Up the Pieces'' (2006) in Los Angeles with Larry Koonse (guitar), Munyungo Jackson (percussion),

Nolan Shaheed Nolan Shaheed (born Nolan Andrew Smith, Jr.; July 18, 1949 in Pasadena, California) is an American jazz musician, specializing in the cornet and trumpet, and a world record holding masters athlete. Masters athletics Shaheed has been in the mas ...

(cornet), and Dariusz Oleszkiewicz (double bass). The album was composed of eleven songs that explored the emotional and spiritual experiences of women and was well-received critically and commercially, achieving double-platinum status. ''Beauty Is Dying'' (2007) was the first album she sang in Polish. She recorded it with a seventeen-piece string orchestra. The album contained nine works by Polish poets that depicted the

Warsaw Uprising The Warsaw Uprising ( pl, powstanie warszawskie; german: Warschauer Aufstand) was a major World War II operation by the Polish underground resistance to liberate Warsaw from German occupation. It occurred in the summer of 1944, and it was led ...

of 1944. Zaryan chose the works and sang compositions written and arranged by Michał Tokaj. She performed material from the album at the Warsaw Uprising Museum, and the concert was broadcast live on public Polish TV and

Polish Radio Polskie Radio Spółka Akcyjna (PR S.A.; English: Polish Radio) is Poland's national public-service radio broadcasting organization owned by the State Treasury of Poland. History Polskie Radio was founded on 18 August 1925 and began making ...

. In 2008, she was given the

Award, the Polish recording industry's highest honor.

Awards and nominations

Awards

*Best Polish Female Jazz Vocalist, ''

'' Readers' Poll, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, and 2013 *Best Poetic Album,

Award for ''Księga Olśnień'', 2011 *Best Poetic Album, Fryderyk Award for ''Beauty is Dying'', 2008 * 50 Most Important Ladies of the Capital 2008,

Życie Warszawy ''Życie Warszawy'' (meaning ''Life of Warsaw'' in English) is a Polish language newspaper published in Warsaw. History and profile ''Życie Warszawy'' was founded in 1944 as an initiative of Polish Workers' Party. The paper is published by Grem ...

(Warsaw press) * Best New Artist, Mateusz Award,

Polskie Radio Program III Polskie Radio Program III (Polish Radio Three), known also as Radiowa Trójka or shortly Trójka is a radio channel broadcast by the Polish public broadcaster, Polskie Radio. It is a music station playing a wide variety of music from rock, alter ...

award for ''Picking up the Pieces'' 2007 *Second Prize, 1998 International Jazz Vocalists' Competition, Zamość, PL

Nominations

* Woman of the Year 2008, ''Gazeta Wyborcza'' magazine (Wysokie Obcasy) * Wdechy, 2007, ''Co Jest Grane'' (''What's Going On'') magazine's Warsaw cultural awards * Best Polish Jazz Vocalist, ''

'' Readers' Poll, 2004 and 2005 * Best Jazz Album, ''My Lullaby'', (as Agnieszka Skrzypek), Fryderyk, 2002

Discography

Studio albums

Live albums

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Zaryan, Aga 1976 births Living people Polish jazz singers English-language singers from Poland 21st-century Polish singers 21st-century Polish women singers