Roseanna Vitro
Roseanna Vitro | |
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 Vitro in 2011 | |
| Background information | |
| Birth name | Roseanna Elizabeth Vitro |
| Born | February 28, 1951 Hot Springs, Arkansas, U.S. |
| Genres | Jazz, vocal jazz |
| Occupation | Singer |
| Years active | 1985–present |
| Labels | Skyline, Chase Music Group, Concord Jazz, Telarc, Sea Breeze, A Records, Challenge, Half Note, Motéma, Random Act |
| Website | roseannavitrojazz |
Roseanna Elizabeth Vitro (born February 28, 1951) is a jazz singer and teacher from Arkansas.
Biography
Born Roseanna Elizabeth Vitro[1] in Hot Springs, Arkansas, on February 28, 1951, Vitro began singing at an early age, drawing inspiration from gospel, rock, rhythm and blues, musical theatre, and classical music.[2] During the 1950s, her father owned a night club in Hot Springs called The Flamingo. He loved Dean Martin's music and opera, and her mother's family sang gospel. By the 1960s, she was determined to be a rock singer.[3]
Vitro was exposed to jazz and it became her genre of choice after moving to Houston, Texas in the 1970s. Ray Sullenger discovered Vitro and presented her to the Houston jazz community where she sang frequently with
. Cobb, Peterson, and Sullenger encouraged her to dedicate herself to jazz.In 1978, she moved to New York City with guitarist Scott Hardy and began to study with
She has worked with
Vitro taught vocal jazz at the State University of New York at Purchase and retired in 2017 as Vocal Jazz Chair at New Jersey City University and New Jersey Performing Arts Center. She holds workshops, concerts, and master classes. She has studied classical voice, ear-training, classical Indian vocal technique, Portuguese, piano, and jazz technique and concept.[2]
Awards and honors
- 1998 – Inducted into Arkansas Jazz Hall of Fame with Bob Dorough and John Stubblefield.[6]
- 2004 – Selected U.S. Jazz Ambassador for The John F. Kennedy Center and The U.S. State Department,The Rhythm Road: American Music Abroad featured artist in 2009 with her band JazzIAm.[8]
- 2012 – Grammy nomination, Best Vocal Jazz Album for The Music of Randy Newman (Motéma, 2011)
Discography
- Listen Here (Texas Rose Music, 1984; CD reissue: Skyline, 2021)
- A Quiet Place (Skyline, 1987)
- Reaching for the Moon (CMG/Chase Music Group [Skyline Productions], 1991)
- Softly (Concord Jazz, 1993)
- Passion Dance (Telarc, 1996)
- Catchin' Some Rays: The Music of Ray Charles (Telarc, 1997)
- The Time of My Life: Roseanna Vitro Sings the Songs of Steve Allen (Sea Breeze, 1999) - rec. 1986[9][10]
- Conviction: Thoughts of Bill Evans (A Records, 2001)
- Tropical Postcards (A Records, 2004)
- Live at the Kennedy Center(Challenge, 2006)
- The Delirium Blues Project: Serve or Suffer (Half Note, 2008) - with Kenny Werner
- The Music of Randy Newman (Motéma, 2011)
- Clarity: Music of Clare Fischer (Random Act, 2014)[10]
- Tell Me the Truth (Skyline, 2018)[9][10]
- Sing a Song of Bird (Skyline, 2021) - with Bob Dorough, Sheila Jordan, Marion Cowings[10]
Except where indicated, all information is from The Encyclopedia of Popular Music at Oxford Music Online.[2]
References
- ^ Oxford Music Online. (accessed February 15, 2011).
- ^ Colin Larkin. Oxford Music Online. (accessed February 15, 2011).
- ^ Roseanna Vitro interprets Randy Newman's songbook
- ^ M. G. Nastos, "Riffs: Vitro Makes Major Label Debut," Downbeat, February 1994.
- ^ Andrew Gilbert. "Roseanna Vitro Interprets Randy Newman's Songbook." Berkeleyside. September 15, 2011.
- ^ 1998 Arkansas Jazz Hall of Fame Inductees. Arkansas Jazz Heritage Foundation. Retrieved February 15, 2011.
- The Hartford Courant. October 28, 2013. Retrieved February 7, 2014.
- ^ The Rhythm Road 2009 Bands. Jazz at Lincoln Center. Retrieved February 7, 2014.
- ^ a b Bailey, C. Michael (August 20, 2018). "Roseanna Vitro: Tell Me The Truth". All About Jazz. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
- ^ a b c d "Discography". Roseanna Vitro. Retrieved August 21, 2018.
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