Carline Ray (1925–2013) was a jazz instrumentalist and vocalist. She was a member of the

International Sweethearts of Rhythm The International Sweethearts of Rhythm was the first integrated all-women's band in the United States. During the 1940s the band featured some of the best female musicians of the day. They played swing and jazz on a national circuit that incl ...

Biography

Carline Ray was born in

Manhattan Manhattan (), known regionally as the City, is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the five boroughs of New York City. The borough is also coextensive with New York County, one of the original counties of the U.S. state ...

on April 21, 1925. Her father was Elisha Ray, a horn player. She entered

Juilliard The Juilliard School ( ) is a private performing arts conservatory in New York City. Established in 1905, the school trains about 850 undergraduate and graduate students in dance, drama, and music. It is widely regarded as one of the most elit ...

at age 16, graduating in 1946 after studying piano and composition. She earned a Master's degree in voice from the

Manhattan School of Music The Manhattan School of Music (MSM) is a private music conservatory in New York City. The school offers bachelor's, master's, and doctoral degrees in the areas of classical and jazz performance and composition, as well as a bachelor's in mu ...

in 1956. After graduation from Juilliard, Ray joined the

as a rhythm guitar player and vocalist. After the Sweethearts disbanded, Ray played guitar and sang for

Erskine Hawkins Erskine Ramsay Hawkins (July 26, 1914 – November 11, 1993) was an American trumpeter and big band leader from Birmingham, Alabama, dubbed "The 20th Century Gabriel". He is best remembered for composing the jazz standard "Tuxedo Junction" (1 ...

and later performed in a trio with fellow former Sweetheart Pauline Braddy. She sang back up for

Patti Page Clara Ann Fowler (November 8, 1927 – January 1, 2013), known professionally as Patti Page, was an American singer and actress. Primarily known for pop and country music, she was the top-charting female vocalist and best-selling female ar ...

and Bobby Darrin, and she performed in choruses conducted by

Leonard Bernstein Leonard Bernstein ( ; August 25, 1918 – October 14, 1990) was an American conductor, composer, pianist, music educator, author, and humanitarian. Considered to be one of the most important conductors of his time, he was the first America ...

. She recorded with

Mary Lou Williams Mary Lou Williams (born Mary Elfrieda Scruggs; May 8, 1910 – May 28, 1981) was an American jazz pianist, arranger, and composer. She wrote hundreds of compositions and arrangements and recorded more than one hundred records (in 78, 45, and ...

and also worked with

Skitch Henderson Lyle Russel "Skitch" Henderson (January 27, 1918 – November 1, 2005) was a pianist, conductor, and composer. His nickname "Skitch" came from his ability to "re-sketch" a song in a different key. Bing Crosby suggested that he should use the ...

Marian McPartland Margaret Marian McPartland OBE ( Turner;Hasson, Claire"Marian McPartland: Jazz Pianist: An Overview of a Career" PhD Thesis. Retrieved 12 August 2008. 20 March 1918 – 20 August 2013), was an English–American jazz pianist, composer, and wri ...

, and

Sy Oliver Melvin James "Sy" Oliver (December 17, 1910 – May 28, 1988) was an American jazz arranger, trumpeter, composer, singer and bandleader. Life Sy Oliver was born in Battle Creek, Michigan, United States. His mother was a piano teacher, and his ...

. In 1997, Ray formed the group Jazzberry Jam with pianist

Bertha Hope Bertha Hope-Booker ( Rosemond; born November 8, 1936, Los Angeles, California) is an American jazz pianist and jazz educator. She is the widow of fellow pianist Elmo Hope, with whom she collaborated. She has toured Europe and Japan and played wi ...

and percussionist Paula Hampton. Ray married

Luis Russell Luis Russell (August 5, 1902 – December 11, 1963) was a pioneering Panamanian jazz pianist, orchestra leader, composer, and arranger. Career Luis Carl Russell was born on Careening Cay, near Bocas del Toro, Panama, in a family of African-Car ...

in 1956. Their daughter Catherine Russell is a jazz singer. She appears in the 2011 documentary film ''The Girls in the Band''. She released ''Vocal Sides'', her first album as a lead singer, the year of her death. The album was produced by her daughter Catherine. Ray died on July 18, 2013 in Manhattan, following complications from a stroke. A

Catholic The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, she was buried in November 2013 after a funeral service at St Peter's Catholic Church in Manhattan.

Awards

* Co-recipient of the first International Women In Jazz Lifetime Achievement Award, "A Living Legend" (1996) * Kennedy Center's Mary Lou Williams Women in Jazz Festival Award (2005) * International Women In Jazz Award (2008)

References

External links

Jazzberry Jam biography
* *
Video of Ray performing at Women In Jazz Festival
in New York City in 2008
International Sweethearts of Rhythm Collection Spotlight, Because of Her Story, Smithsonian Institution
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ray, Carline Women jazz guitarists 20th-century African-American women singers American women jazz singers American jazz singers 1925 births 2013 deaths International Sweethearts of Rhythm members 20th-century American women singers 21st-century American women singers 20th-century American women guitarists 20th-century American guitarists 20th-century American singers 21st-century American singers African-American guitarists 21st-century African-American women singers African-American Catholics Juilliard School alumni Manhattan School of Music alumni African American female guitarists