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Kurt Elling

GRAMMY winner Kurt Elling is among the world’s foremost jazz vocalists. He won the DownBeat Critics Poll for fourteen consecutive years and was named “Male Singer of the Year” by the Jazz Journalists Association on eight occasions. An international jazz award winner, he has also been GRAMMY nominated a dozen times.

Elling's rich baritone spans four octaves and features both astonishing technical mastery and emotional depth. His repertoire includes original compositions and modern interpretations of standards, all of which are springboards for inspired improvisation, scatting, spoken word and poetry.

The New York Times declared, "Elling is the standout male vocalist of our time." The Washington Post added, "Since the mid-1990s, no singer in jazz has been as daring, dynamic or interesting as Kurt Elling. With his soaring vocal flights, his edgy lyrics and sense of being on a musical mission, he has come to embody the creative spirit in jazz."

Elling was the Artist-in-Residence for the Singapore and Monterey Jazz Festivals. He has also written multi-disciplinary works for The Steppenwolf Theatre and the City of Chicago. The Obama Administration's first state dinner featured Elling in a command performance.

Elling is a renowned artist of vocalese — the writing and performing of words over recorded improvised jazz solos. The natural heir to jazz pioneers Eddie Jefferson, King Pleasure and Jon Hendricks, Elling has set his own lyrics to the improvised solos of Wayne Shorter, Keith Jarrett and Pat Metheny. He often incorporates images and references from writers such as Rilke, Rumi, Neruda and Proust into his work. The late poet and Bollingen Prize winner Robert Creeley wrote, "Kurt Elling takes us into a world of sacred particulars. His words are informed by a powerful poetic spirit." Said Robert Pinsky, former Poet Laureate of the United States, "In Kurt Elling's art, the voice of jazz gives a new spiritual presence to the ancient, sweet and powerful bond between poetry and music."

Kurt Elling has toured vigorously throughout his career, thrilling audiences throughout the world. In that time he has led his own ensemble and has collaborated with many of the world's finest orchestras.

Passion World, Kurt Elling’s 2015 recording, culminates nearly five years of collecting and honing songs – and in some cases writing new lyrics – that express love, romance and heartbreak around the world. Throughout his travels, Elling has observed how deeply felt passions are shaped in countless ways by each unique culture.

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4
Live Review

Kurt Elling and Charlie Hunter at the Boulder Theater

Read "Kurt Elling and Charlie Hunter at the Boulder Theater" reviewed by Geoff Anderson


Kurt Elling Charlie Hunter Superblue Boulder Theater Boulder, Colorado October 8, 2023 Both Kurt Elling and Charlie Hunter have been at the leading edge of jazz and jazz-adjacent music for about 30 years now. They've consistently shown unrelenting creativity, searching for new sounds and innovative concepts. They've collaborated off and on for over 20 years. An early notable joint effort appeared on two tracks on Hunter's Songs From the Analog Playground (Blue Note, 2001). But ...

20
Live Review

Kurt Elling & Charlie Hunter at Boulder Theater

Read "Kurt Elling & Charlie Hunter at Boulder Theater" reviewed by Steven Roby


Kurt Elling & Charlie Hunter Boulder Theater Boulder, CO October 8, 2023 Supporting their latest collaboration album, SuperBlue: The Iridescent Spree (Edition Records, 2023), jazz icon Kurt Elling and guitar maestro Charlie Hunter offered a high-energy performance on October 8th at the Boulder Theater. The incredible duo's band featured Julius Rodriguez on keyboards and Marcus Finnie on drums. Elling and company delivered a crowd-pleasing 90-minute set filled with funky originals, innovative covers, and a few ...

2
Profile

The Continuing Evolution of Kurt Elling

Read "The Continuing Evolution of Kurt Elling" reviewed by Mathew Bahl


"I feel like at this point in my career I don't have to prove that I can do fifteen different things to greater or lesser degrees of expertise." Kurt Elling is discussing the genesis of his latest record, Flirting With Twilight. “I've made these roller coaster rides every time," says the Chicago-based jazz singer referring to his four Grammy-nominated CDs on the Blue Note label. “Even on This Time, It's Love there were still these elements of the ...

11
Album Review

Kurt Elling & Charlie Hunter: SuperBlue: The Iridescent Spree

Read "SuperBlue: The Iridescent Spree" reviewed by Chris May


As Shakespeare said, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. Kurt Elling and Charlie Hunter follow up their Grammy-nominated 2021 album, SuperBlue (Edition), with another sublime blend of jazz and groove. As on the first disc, jazz is represented by Elling, groove by Butcher Brown keyboardist DJ Harrison and drummer Corey Fonville. Hunter, who has had a foot in both camps for over two decades, acts as marriage broker. Some jazz fans have an aversion to singers, ...

6
Album Review

Laila Biali: Your Requests

Read "Your Requests" reviewed by Dan Bilawsky


While the jazz pipeline produces plenty of artists who pay no mind to an audience's interests, those types--figures with tunnel vision, in many if not most ways--rarely reach their full potential. Instead, it's the musicians who make it a point to communicate who tend to forge the strongest bonds with those on the receiving end. Laila Biali is one such figure. This JUNO-winning gem of a vocalist, pianist, arranger and songwriter always manages to connect. Biali has a keen awareness ...

Album Review

Steven Feifke: The Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra

Read "The Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra" reviewed by Angelo Leonardi


Metti assieme un talentoso giovane orchestratore come Steven Feifke, un trombettista di prima grandezza come Bijon Watson e una big band con grandi nomi e prestigiosi ospiti e il risultato è scontato. Il debutto della Generation Gap Jazz Orchestra è stato propiziato dalla collaborazione col Jazz Education Network ed ha assunto le vesti di un album includendo in organico ospiti di rilievo come Kurt Elling, Sean Jones e Chad Lefkowitz Brown. Il principale riferimento è la tradizione ...

1
In Pictures

Kurt Elling featuring Charlie Hunter SuperBlue at Bluenote In Milan

Read "Kurt Elling featuring Charlie Hunter SuperBlue at Bluenote In Milan" reviewed by Roberto Cifarelli


A collection of photos from the Kurt Elling concert at Bluenote in Milan on November 04, 2022 featuring Kurt Elling on vocals, Charlie Hunter on guitar, Kenny Banks on keyboards and Marcus Finnie on drums. ...

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Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Kurt Elling's birthday today!

GRAMMY winner Kurt Elling is among the world’s foremost jazz vocalists. He won the DownBeat Critics Poll for fourteen consecutive years and was named “Male Singer of the Year” by the Jazz Journalists Association on eight occasions. An international jazz award winner, he has also been GRAMMY nominated a dozen times. Elling's rich baritone spans four octaves and features both astonishing technical mastery and emotional depth. His repertoire includes original compositions ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Kurt Elling's birthday today!

GRAMMY winner Kurt Elling is among the world’s foremost jazz vocalists. He won the DownBeat Critics Poll for fourteen consecutive years and was named “Male Singer of the Year” by the Jazz Journalists Association on eight occasions. An international jazz award winner, he has also been GRAMMY nominated a dozen times. Elling's rich baritone spans four octaves and features both astonishing technical mastery and emotional depth. His repertoire includes original compositions ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Kurt Elling's birthday today!

GRAMMY winner Kurt Elling is among the world’s foremost jazz vocalists. He won the DownBeat Critics Poll for fourteen consecutive years and was named “Male Singer of the Year” by the Jazz Journalists Association on eight occasions. An international jazz award winner, he has also been GRAMMY nominated a dozen times. Elling's rich baritone spans four octaves and features both astonishing technical mastery and emotional depth. His repertoire includes original compositions ...

1

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Kurt Elling's birthday today!

GRAMMY winner Kurt Elling is among the world’s foremost jazz vocalists. He won the DownBeat Critics Poll for fourteen consecutive years and was named “Male Singer of the Year” by the Jazz Journalists Association on eight occasions. An international jazz award winner, he has also been GRAMMY nominated a dozen times. Elling\'s rich baritone spans four octaves and features both astonishing technical mastery and emotional depth... Read more.

Place our Musician ...

1

Festival

Giants Of Jazz To Headline 2019 Guinness Cork Jazz Festival

Giants Of Jazz To Headline 2019 Guinness Cork Jazz Festival

Source: Niamh Murphy

Exciting headline acts have been announced for the 42nd Guinness Cork Jazz Festival in Ireland, which takes place over the October Bank Holiday Weekend from Thursday, 24th to Monday, 28th October. Headliners Giants of Jazz will join globally renowned artists pushing the boundaries of the musical genre today. The line-up features legendary artists including Grammy Hall of Famer Martha Reeves and the Vandellas, listed among Rolling Stone magazine’s “100 Immortal Artists”; Kurt Elling with ‘Kurt Elling sings A Century of ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Kurt Elling's birthday today!

GRAMMY winner Kurt Elling is among the world’s foremost jazz vocalists. He won the DownBeat Critics Poll for fourteen consecutive years and was named “Male Singer of the Year” by the Jazz Journalists Association on eight occasions. An international jazz award winner, he has also been GRAMMY nominated a dozen times. Elling\'s rich baritone spans four octaves and features both astonishing technical mastery and emotional depth... Read more.

Place our Musician ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Kurt Elling's birthday today!

GRAMMY winner Kurt Elling is among the world’s foremost jazz vocalists. He won the DownBeat Critics Poll for fourteen consecutive years and was named “Male Singer of the Year” by the Jazz Journalists Association on eight occasions. An international jazz award winner, he has also been GRAMMY nominated a dozen times. Elling\'s rich baritone spans four octaves and features both astonishing technical mastery and emotional depth... Read more.

Place our Musician ...

1

Performance / Tour

Jazz this week: Branford Marsalis & Kurt Elling, Denise Thimes, and more

Jazz this week: Branford Marsalis & Kurt Elling, Denise Thimes, and more

Source: St. Louis Jazz Notes by Dean Minderman

This week's calendar of jazz and creative music in St. Louis includes a early-week visit from two well-known jazz performers touring together for the first time, plus a couple of new jam sessions providing musical workout opportunities for local players, and more. Let's go to the highlights... Tuesday, January 24 Tonight, saxophonist Branford Marsalis, his quartet, and singer Kurt Elling will perform for the first of two nights at Jazz at the Bistro. Marsalis and Elling are touring together in ...

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Kurt Elling's birthday today!

GRAMMY winner Kurt Elling is among the world’s foremost jazz vocalists. He won the DownBeat Critics Poll for fourteen consecutive years and was named “Male Singer of the Year” by the Jazz Journalists Association on eight occasions. An international jazz award winner, he has also been GRAMMY nominated a dozen times. Elling\'s rich baritone spans four octaves and features both astonishing technical mastery and emotional depth... Read more.

Place our Musician ...

1

Birthday

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Jazz Musician of the Day: Kurt Elling

Source: Michael Ricci

All About Jazz is celebrating Kurt Elling's birthday today! GRAMMY winner Kurt Elling is among the world\'s foremost jazz vocalists. He won the DownBeat Critics Poll for fourteen consecutive years and was been named “Male Singer of the Year" by the Jazz Journalists Association eight times in that same span. Every one of Elling\'s ten albums has been nominated for a GRAMMY. Elling\'s rich baritone spans four octaves and features both astonishing technical mastery and emotional depth... Read more. Place ...

Primary Instrument

Vocals

Location

New York City

Photos

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

SuperBlue: The...

Edition Records
2023

buy

Your Requests

Empress Music Group (North America) / ACT Music (Europe) / CORE PORT (Japan)
2023

buy

Missa Iubileum...

Origin Records
2022

buy

The Generation Gap...

Cellar Records
2022

buy

Pink Elephant Magic

Arkadia Records
2022

buy

The New Young Lions...

Arkadia Records
2022

buy

Bye Bye Blackbird

From: Your Requests
By Kurt Elling

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