Home » Jazz Musicians » Rondi Charleston
Rondi Charleston
Rondi Charleston is a captivating communicator. Lithe, lovely and strikingly attractive, she embraces you with a warm, wide smile, looks you straight in the eye and you're hooked by her natural honesty, Midwest charm and true sophistication. Her interests are as broad as her careers have been, and she breathes them all to life on her new CD/DVD. IN MY LIFE, recorded at Bennett Studios, features an All-Star cast she considers her musical family; Bruce Barth - piano, Sean Smith - bass, Clarence Penn - drums, Joel Frahm - tenor and Adam Rogers - guitar. The bonus DVD captures the excitement of her sold out shows LIVE AT DIZZY'S CLUB COCA COLA, presented by JAZZ AT LINCOLN CENTER.
Her considerable poise, presence and sheer talent landed her in Juilliard's Drama Department at age 16 after an audition with the late John Houseman. By 18, she was accepted into Juilliard's Voice Department, graduating with a BM and MM in Music, instantly working internationally in lyric soprano roles. Says Rondi, "the interplay between actors is very much like the interplay between jazz musicians - spontaneous and immediate." Feeling hemmed in by repertoire, a youthful need to expand her horizons, and hungry for the breadth of a more liberal arts education, she sought to further discover the world around her and her place in it. She longed to be a cultural reporter for CBS Sunday Morning and work with the late Charles Kuralt. Her solution - a fellowship in the Master's program at the NYU School of Journalism, graduating two years later, after breaking a major cover up story of a Metro North train crash. It ran in the NY Times, prompting the Dean of NYU to call the head of ABC News to hire her. Virtually overnight, she became an investigative reporter for Prime Time Live, working with Diane Sawyer for the next 6 years, and garnering Emmy and Peabody Awards along the way for her medical investigations. "Don't ask me how I found the time, but I kept singing. One night in 1996 at a gig in the Village, Diane came to see me. After the show she said, 'Rondi, I came because I like you and like working with you, but you never told me you were really good. You could do this.'"
For Rondi, the search for the truth and the core of the story is paramount, whether delving into an investigative report or the lyric of a song. "I think of it as deep sea diving. My job is to dive down deep and bring back the shining pearl to share with everyone. What drives me is my passion to live and breathe my honesty, truth and integrity into every song and story. That's what I hope resonates through me to my audience."
Read moreTags
Rondi Charleston: In My Life
by Geoff Mirelowitz
This CD, In My Life, and the accompanying DVD, Lincoln Center Presents Rondi Charleston Live! , should help this talented vocalist achieve the recognition she deserves. Two fine earlier recordings on LML Music (2001's Love Letters and 2004's Love Is The Thing) did not receive wide notice or distribution. This release, accompanied by a Virgin Megastores national in-store performance tour, should change that.
Charleston and pianist/musical director Bruce Barth have chosen an eclectic collection of material. ...
read moreSuccessful Motema Music and Jazz Singer/Songwriter Rondi Charleston Video Release Results In $8,500 Donation To The Jazz Drama Program
Source:
GoMedia PR
Significant Contribution Generated as a Result of 8,500 YouTube Views—almost 500 views every day during the special promotion period—of Charleston’s Live Performance of her Original Song “DNA” Thinking creatively, Charleston and her label, Motema Music, agreed in mid- December to donate $1 to the Jazz Drama Program (JDP) for every view of “DNA,” a track from Charleston’s critically acclaimed 2013 release, Signs of Life; the YouTube video captured a live performance from August of last year at Yoshi’s in San ...
read more
Motema Music And Rondi Charleston Celebrate The Season Of Giving To Support The Jazz Drama Program
Source:
GoMedia PR
Clicks on YouTube to View New Video from 2013 Yoshi’s Performance Will Result in Contributions to Jazz Drama Program In August of 2013, vocalist Rondi Charleston, who was recently lauded as one of Entertainment Tonight’s “Artists to Watch” on ET.com, performed with her All Star Band at Yoshi’s in San Francisco. The performances have been captured in a series of three videos that will debut on YouTube on December 13, and that will launch a special holiday promotion to benefit ...
read more
Rondi Charleston And Her All Star Band Perform On June 12th At Catalina Jazz Club - Only Los Angeles Area Performance
Source:
GoMedia PR
* * * PRINT THIS PAGE & PRESENT AT SHOW TO REDEEM FOR A FREE COCKTAIL WITH TICKET PURCHASE * * * Critically lauded vocalist, songwriter and lyricist Rondi Charleston brings her All Star Band to Catalina Jazz Club in Los Angeles for one show only, on Wednesday, June 12, 2013. Charleston is performing in support of her March release on Motema Music, Signs of Life. The CD, some two months on the Jazz Week Radio Chart, has ...
read more
Motema Artist Rondi Charleston Celebrates "Who Knows Where The Time Goes" at Joe's Pub-May 26
Source:
Jason Byrne, Red Cat Publicity
Motéma Artist, Singer/Songwriter RONDI CHARLESTON Celebrates The Release of Who Knows Where The Time Goes Joe's Pub, Thursday, May 26 @ 7:00 PM Joe's Pub is located at 425 Lafayette Street, NYC, Tkts are $20, for Tkts call (212) 967-7555, for Tkts & dinner reservations call (212) 539-8778 Rondi will be joined by Dave Stryker (guitar), Lynne Arriale (piano), James Genus (bass), Clarence Penn (drums), Brandon McCune (piano) and Mayra Casales (percussion) The dozen breathtaking performances ...
read more
Motéma Artist Rondi Charleston Celebrates The Release of "Who Knows Where The Time Goes" @ Joe's Pub
Source:
Jason Byrne, Red Cat Publicity
Motéma Artist Rondi Charleston Celebrates The Release of Who Knows Where The Time Goes Joe's Pub, Thursday, April 21 @ 7:00 PM Praise for Rondi Charleston + Who Knows Where The Time Goes Rondi Charleston is one of those rare artists for whom a song's meaning is as important as its melody. Her personal, thought-provoking, original songs slow the heartbeat and raise the mental senses with a documentarian's acuity." Ken Micallef, DownBeat Singer/songwriter Rondi Charleston makes music that's close to ...
read more
Motema Music Set To Release the New Recording From Singer/Songwriter Rondi Charleston
Source:
Jason Byrne, Red Cat Publicity
Motéma Music Set To Release Who Knows Where The Time Goes the New Recording From Singer/Songwriter Rondi Charleston AVAILABLE FEBRUARY 8, 2011 MOTÉMA DEBUT CD BY ACCLAIMED VOCALIST INCLUDES STUNNING VERSION OF THE CLASSIC SANDY DENNY/JUDY COLLINS TITLE SONG Featuring Dave Stryker, James Genus, Clarence Penn, Lynne Arriale, Brandon McCune and Mayra Casales Rondi Charleston is an outstanding contemporary jazz singer and an even better songwriter...she has created one of the better jazz vocal albums you're ...
read more
Les Paul (Mon) Rondi Charleston (Tues) Michael Wolff (Wed) Javon Jackson/Benny Green (Thu-Sun) at the Iridium Jazz Club
Source:
Jim Eigo, Jazz Promo Services
IRIDIUM JAZZ CLUB 1650 BROADWAY (Corner of 51st) NEW YORK, NY 10023 RESERVATIONS: 212-582-2121 Sets At 8:00 & 10:00PM Effective immediately, minimums are $10/person/set for all show except Les Paul - $15 mins. EVERY MONDAY LES PAUL AND HIS TRIO JOHN COLIANNI - PIANO - LOU PALLO - GUITAR, NICKI PARROTT - BASS EVERY TUESDAY MINGUS LEGACY Sets at 8:00 & 10:00PM ...
read more
Photos
Music
Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson