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Amanda Ekery

Vocalist and composer Amanda Ekery conjures a rich creative world: one in which creative improvised and popular music traditions weave together seamlessly, while intersecting with research and unusual collaborations. Her exceptional musical versatility has made Ekery a sought-after performer, presenter, and composer for a wide range of artistic endeavors. Downbeat, reporting on Ekery’s imaginative personal style states “within her impressive compositions, [Ekery] displays her natural inclination for inventive compositional moves and popular genres.” Ekery composes music filled with imagery and strong narratives. Her compositions have earned support from New Music USA, Chamber Music America, and the Jerome Foundation, and have been featured at the Portland Jazz Festival, Panama Jazz Festival, and the Kennedy Center. Ekery’s 2018 album “Keys With No Purpose,” was written as a reaction to the sexist culture women continue to face in jazz and informed by her research on females in jazz education. The album received praise in Downbeat Magazine, features an 11-piece large ensemble, and earned her the St. Botolph Club Foundation Emerging Artist Award. Árabe is Amanda’s ongoing genealogy composition/research project that focuses on Syrian immigration to El Paso/Mexico, her family’s history, and the influence these mixed cultures had on film, food, economy, and music. She works with the Syrian Ladies Club of El Paso, Dr. Mark Eggerman a Yale S.W.A.N.A. scholar, food anthropologists, and her family to write lyrics, gather artifacts, and work towards creating an interactive exhibit for the El Paso community. “Some Short Songs,” Ekery’s debut release, is a collection of original music exploring George Russell’s Lydian Chromatic Concept of Tonal Organization. “Some (more) Short Songs” is the sequel to Ekery’s debut releasing December 3, 2021 and was funded by the inaugural Performance Plus Award from Chamber Music America in 2019. The album is produced by Sylvie Courvoisier and alongside Ekery features Andrew Boudreau on piano, David Leon on alto sax, Wendy Eisenberg on guitar, and Jeong Lim Yang on bass. Ekery worked with Boudreau and Yang on developing “Some (more) Short Songs” for two years before inviting Leon and Eisenberg to join the drummerless quintet. Together with Courvoisier, they constructed a sound that interplays flawlessly between tracks. Ekery is a dedicated teaching artist, committed to education equity and teaching composition as a tool for self-expression, confidence, and collaboration. She is the founder of El Paso Jazz Girls, a non-profit organization for young female musicians to learn about jazz from professional female musicians and combat gender demographics in her hometown’s jazz community.

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Ekery’s ethereal scatting floats above piano tremelo within her impressive compositions, as on “Skeleton Key,” where the interplay between Ekery and her ensemble segues...The bandleader’s melodious earworm “I Don’t Know,” displays her natural inclination for inventive compositional moves and popular genres. Kerilie McDowall, Downbeat

Ekery opens doors for the listener being both a teacher and leader on these songs and she proves to be wonderful at both. Highly recommend. Ekery shows off her vocals that are sharp as a tack. They become an instrument in and of themselves...and really lets the listeners know that they are in the hands of a highly trained master. Jamie Robash, Divide and Conquer Music El Paso native Amanda

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Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

Some (more) Short...

Self Produced
2021

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Keys With No Purpose

Self Produced
2018

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LCC #15 (Maybe I Should Drive)

From: Some (more) Short Songs
By Amanda Ekery

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