Saturday, November 12, 2011


The quintet takes to the Ellington stage again for an exciting show featuring a perfect blend of regular favourites as well as some brand new repertoire.
Penny has long been established as one of Perth’s premier jazz vocalists, performing with her band since 1996. She is well known in the jazz scene for her fine crafted stage presence, and her diverse arrangements of standards and contemporary tunes.  The groups repertoire ranges from modern takes on standards through to blues, ballads and contemporary tunes, and reflects  the wide array of vocalists that she takes influence from, such as Carmen McRae, Dee Dee Bridgewater and Joni Mitchell, singer-songwriters James Taylor and Ben Folds, and contemporaries Kurt Elling, Holly Cole and Beady Belle.  With her impeccable phrasing and intonation,  Penny truly makes any song she performs a unique performance experience.
As well as her regular appearances at the Ellington, Penny has held residencies at some of Perth’s finest venues, and makes regular appearances at a variety of corporate events.   Penny has been a featured vocalist with the West Australian Youth Jazz Orchestra, and has made numerous appearances at the Perth Jazz Society, both with her own quartet, as well as being a featured performer at the annual ‘Ladies of Jazz’ concerts. She has appeared at the Rottnest Festival, the York Jazz Festival, and the Fremantle International Jazz Festival.
A graduate of the prestigious WAAPA jazz programme, Penny had an original track featured on the Jazzaziz II CD, released in 2005 by JazzWA.  She also featured on the West Australian Youth Jazz Orchestra’s 1996 CD release ‘Night and Day’. She is currently a  vocal tutor in the jazz department at WAAPA.
This performance will feature an eclectic mix of compositions from Duke Ellington, Beady Belle, Crowded House, Miles Davis and many more. Penny will be joined by the stellar line up of Carl Mackey on tenor saxophone, Graham Wood on piano, Pete Jeavons on bass and Mike Perkins on drums.

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