Roberta Gambarini is a

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 major ...

singer from Italy.

Early life

Gambarini was born in

Turin Turin ( , Piedmontese language, Piedmontese: ; it, Torino ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in Northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital ...

, Italy, where she attended jazz concerts, clubs, and festivals with her parents. Her father played the saxophone, and she grew up hearing jazz in the house, and learning by listening to records. Her first instrument was clarinet when she was 12, then piano. When she was 18, she moved to

Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...

to pursue a career as a vocalist. In Milan she worked in radio and television without making progress on her ambition.

Musical career

Gambarini moved to the U.S. in 1998 and won a scholarship to the

New England Conservatory of Music The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a Private college, private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the oldest independent music Music school, conservatory in the United States and among the most prestigious in the world. The ...

in Boston. A few weeks after her arrival in America, she entered the Thelonious Monk International Jazz Vocals Competition and came in third behind

Teri Thornton Teri Thornton, born Shirley Enid Avery (September 1, 1934 – May 2, 2000) was an American jazz singer. Thornton first performed in local Detroit clubs in the 1950s. She moved to New York City in the 1960s, where she found work singing for telev ...

and

Jane Monheit Jane Monheit (born November 3, 1977"Jane Monheit." ''Contemporary Musicians''. Vol. 33. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2001. Retrieved via ''Biography in Context'' database, 2017-05-07.) is an American jazz and pop singer. Early life Monheit was b ...

. She was invited to sing in New York City, where she met

Benny Carter Bennett Lester Carter (August 8, 1907 – July 12, 2003) was an American jazz saxophonist, clarinetist, trumpeter, composer, arranger, and bandleader. With Johnny Hodges, he was a pioneer on the alto saxophone. From the beginning of his career ...

and James Moody. Moody became her teacher, mentor, and friend. Her album ''So in Love'' was nominated for the

Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album The Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality works (songs or albums) in the vocal jazz ...

. In 2004, she started touring with the Dizzy Gillespie All Star Big Band, performing with James Moody,

Frank Wess Frank Wellington Wess (January 4, 1922 – October 30, 2013) was an American jazz saxophonist and flutist. In addition to his extensive solo work, Wess is remembered for his time in Count Basie's band from the early 1950s into the 1960s. Critic ...

Jimmy Heath James Edward Heath (October 25, 1926 – January 19, 2020), nicknamed Little Bird, was an American jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually co ...

, Paquito d'Rivera, and

Roy Hargrove Roy Anthony Hargrove (October 16, 1969 – November 2, 2018) was an American jazz musician and composer whose principal instruments were the trumpet and flugelhorn. He achieved worldwide acclaim after winning two Grammy Awards for differing styles ...

. From 2006 to 2007 she toured with her own trio, as well as the

Hank Jones Henry Jones Jr. (July 31, 1918 – May 16, 2010) was an American jazz pianist, bandleader, arranger, and composer. Critics and musicians described Jones as eloquent, lyrical, and impeccable. In 1989, The National Endowment for the Arts honored ...

trio. She sang at the premiere of "Cannery Row Suite", a piece by

Dave Brubeck David Warren Brubeck (; December 6, 1920 – December 5, 2012) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Often regarded as a foremost exponent of cool jazz, Brubeck's work is characterized by unusual time signatures and superimposing contrasti ...

commissioned for the

Monterey Jazz Festival The Monterey Jazz Festival is an annual music festival that takes place in Monterey, California, United States. It debuted on October 3, 1958, championed by Dave Brubeck and co-founded by jazz and popular music critic Ralph J. Gleason and jaz ...

. Her debut album, ''Easy to Love'' (Groovin' High, 2006) was nominated for a Grammy Award. ''You Are There'' was a collaboration with Hank Jones.

Awards

* 2007: ''Easy to Love'', nominated for

* 2010: ''So in Love'', nominated for Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album

Discography

* ''Apreslude'' with Antonio Scarano (Splasch, 1991) * ''Easy to Love'' (Groovin' High, 2006) * '' You Are There'' with Hank Jones (

EmArcy EmArcy Records is a jazz record label founded in 1954 by the American Mercury Records. The name is a phonetic spelling of "MRC", the initials for Mercury Record Company. During the 1950s and 1960s, musicians such as Max Roach, Clifford Brown ...

, 2007) – recorded in 2005 * ''So in Love'' with James Moody, Roy Hargrove (EmArcy, 2009) * ''The Shadow of Your Smile: Homage to Japan'' (Groovin' High, 2013) * ''Connecting Spirits: Roberta Gambarini Sings the Jimmy Heath Songbook'' (Groovin' High, 2015) * ''Dedications: Roberta Gambarini Honors Ella, Sarah & Carmen'' (Groovin' High, 2019)

As guest

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy Eldridge but addi ...

All-Star Band, ''Dizzy's Business'', (

MCG Jazz Manchester Craftsmen's Guild (MCG) is a nonprofit art, education, and music organization established in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, in 1968. Courses include ceramics, photography, digital arts, and painting to over 500 young people each year and 3 ...

, 2006) * Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Band, ''I'm Be Boppin' Too'' (

Half Note ''Half Note'' is a live album by saxophonist Clifford Jordan which was recorded in 1974 and first released on the SteepleChase label in 1985.Paul Kuhn Paul Kuhn may refer to: * Paul Kuhn (tenor) (1874–1966), German operatic tenor * Paul Kuhn (band leader) Paul Kuhn (12 March 1928 – 23 September 2013) was a German jazz musician, band leader, singer and pianist. He was the band leader of t ...

, ''Swing 85'' (In+Out, 2013) * James Moody &

, ''Our Delight'' (IPO, 2008) * New Stories, ''Hope Is in the Air: The Music of Elmo Hope'' (Origin, 2004)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gambarini, Roberta Italian jazz singers Women jazz singers Musicians from Turin Living people Italian emigrants to the United States 1972 births 21st-century Italian singers 21st-century Italian women singers