Home » Jazz Musicians » Deanna Reuben

Deanna Reuben

Deanna Reuben, concert vocalist and recording artist, has become one of the finest interpreters of the Great American Songbook working today. To date, she has recorded four albums, the latest being a lively jazz holiday recording entitled Christmas Is Here, released in 2013.

A member of The Recording Academy, Deanna was the sole producer of this album, which also features some of Philadelphia’s finest jazz musicians to compliment her impeccable vocals.

Her first recording, The Look Of Love, released in 2005, brought her high praise from critics and casual listeners alike. Her sophomore album, On Life And Love, released in 2009 features two of her original compositions. Teaming with R. Martin Mellinger, her haunting ballad “Here in the Night,” leaves her audiences mesmerized as she makes that soulful connection. In 2012, Deanna released her third album, The Very Thought Of You. Inspired by the artistry of Chris Botti, this album features some lush lines as her voice weaves gently with flugelhorn and tenor sax.

Deanna Reuben fell in love with music at the age of seven, when she began taking piano lessons. Reuben, who was named after vocalist and Judy Garland contemporary Deanna Durbin, found singing at the age of fourteen, and never had a second thought about what she wanted to do with her life. Her career as a singer has run the gamut from Broadway to madrigals to opera, but Reuben’s versatility has been a key to her success. Aside from her vocal talents, Reuben is an accomplished pianist, composer, arranger, voice teacher, and choral director.

Her young life, growing up in Berks County, Pennsylvania, was not always easy, as she was raised mostly by a single working mother and grandmother. They struggled to make ends meet, and pay for voice and piano lessons. She still has fond memories of her Wurlitzer spinet piano where she and her grandmother would spend lots of time playing and singing hymns together. Her music was what brought her joy, when everything else in life was turned upside down. Deanna was singing all throughout high school, winning competitions and garnering solo spots.

Marrying quite young, by today’s standards, Deanna was blessed with two beautiful daughters. When the girls were toddlers, she decided to finish her college degree, graduating from Alvernia College, now Alvernia University, with a Bachelor of Arts in Music. “I would study when the girls went to bed, and arrange classes around their nursery school schedule. Sometimes though, I had no choice but to take them to class with me.”

Read more

Tags

194
Album Review

Deanna Reuben: The Look of Love

Read "The Look of Love" reviewed by Jim Santella


Deanna Reuben captures the essence of romance through her heartfelt interpretation of our favorite songs. The Look of Love sends a message clearer than flowers or a box of candy or dinner and a movie. With this session, you get clarion vocals with a stellar jazz quintet that sparkles brightly through sensual ballads and upbeat rhythms. Tenor saxophonist Larry McKenna serves as Reuben's musical partner, adding rapturous melodies to her resonant vocal themes.

With a fluid delivery, she ...

Read more articles
from MIDWEST RECORD: DEANNA REUBEN/The Very Thought of You: A classically trained singer that found her feet under her in jazz, Reuben knows how to work a classic and deliver a solid performance. Straight ahead jazz takes on American chestnuts, this set has more bite than the typical set of this ilk that is just trying to fit the format. With a smoking crew of Philly jazzbos behind her, everyone is working like a unit and the results are always top shelf. A dandy find for straight up jazz vocal fans that love a singer that knows how to work in service to the song.
Primary Instrument

Vocals

Willing to teach

Beginner to advanced

Credentials/Background

Private Voice Teacher and a member of The National Association of Teachers of Singing for the past 30 years. Bachelor of Arts degree in Music, with graduate credits in vocal pedagogy and the science of the voice. I am a graduate of the CCM Vocal Pedagogy Institute at Shenandoah Conservatory. Currently I am doing research on the aging voice, and will begin teaching courses in the fall of 2013. In addition to teaching private voice, I am available for studio recording session coaching.

Photos

Music

Similar

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.