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Kurt Elling
Elling may be the greatest male Jazz singer of all time. ~ Jazz Review
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November 2012: 1619 BROADWAY Goes to Europe
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Kurt's tenth album, 1619 Broadway - The Brill Building Project, features renditions of classic songs associated with the world-famous Brill Building. Since its release on September 25, 1619 Broadway has seen enthusiastic reviews from jazz writers and fans alike! "Elling has an extraordinary vocal technique, a profound love of jazz, and the ability to find feelings in his own experience to dramatise every song: a kind of method-singing. This is a very fine album indeed."
~ London Jazz
"...there are versions of Sam Cooke's 'You Send Me,' Carole King's 'So Far Away' and Paul Simon's 'An American Tune' that will go down as some of the finest ballad interpretations this awesomely equipped vocalist has ever recorded."
~ The Guardian (UK)
"...as is so often the case with Mr. Elling, the artistry lies in some intangible harmony of musical arrangement, interpretive detail and sheer vocal expression...what works best here works gorgeously: 'So Far Away,' and a stealthily creeping 'I Only Have Eyes for You,' and especially the stark reading of Paul Simon's 'American Tune' that now stands as one of Mr. Elling's purest and most restrained performances."
~ The New York Times
"Jazz vocalist Kurt Elling's 1619 Broadway: The Brill Building Project makes real the notion 'it's the singer, not the song,' with his tribute to the studios where some of the most popular American tunes were written."
~ Christian Science Monitor
"A smart and daring listening experience."
~Audiophile Audition Kurt's fans are sharing their delight in the Forum on Kurt's website and on his Facebook page. Please give us a shout and let us know what you think! And please add your voice to the customer comments on Amazon and iTunes, too. | |
1619 Broadway - The Brill Building Project is one of Amazon's 100 Albums for $5 Each during November!
This special deal extends throughout November, but don't delay even one more day. And please share this special offer with your friends. It's a great way to introduce them to Kurt's music! | |
1619 Broadway: Behind the Songs
Our good friends at Concord Jazz have put together a very cool Spotify playlist with Kurt's songs from 1619 Broadway - The Brill Building Project, alongside the early versions that inspired them.
Compare and contrast Kurt's versions with those from The Cookies, Frank Sinatra, Ella Fitzgerald, The Coasters, Carole King, Paul Simon, and more. As one writer said, "Kurt Elling puts the Brill in brilliant" in this repertory tribute to the golden-era songwriting teams from the Brill Building.
And to enhance to your listening pleasure, check out these brief stories about each of the original tunes.
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Kurt is DownBeat's Male Vocalist of the Year for 2012!
Once again, Kurt Elling has been named Male Vocalist of the Year in the DownBeat Readers Poll and in its Critics Poll. It's a clean sweep!
The 77th Annual Readers Poll results were just announced and are featured in the December 2012 issue of DownBeat.
The Critics Poll winners were announced earlier.
"This is the most comprehensive Readers Poll in our history," said Frank Alkyer, DownBeat publisher. "In an election year, everybody wants to get out the vote, including DownBeat. We had 17,242 jazz fans cast ballots, which is more than double the voters we had last year."
This is the seventh year Kurt has topped the DownBeat Readers Poll, winning in 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, and now 2012. He's won the top spot in the Critics Poll thirteen years in a row, ever since 2000.
As always, congratulations to all the winners -- and especially to Kurt!
Vote today in the JazzTimes Readers Poll
Choose your favorite artists and releases from 2012 in the annual JazzTimes Readers Poll. Voting closes Sunday night, November 11. The results will be announced in the January/February 2012 issue of JazzTimes. Kurt has been named JazzTimes Readers' Poll: Male Vocalist of the Year seven times, in 1998, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2008, 2010, and 2011. Let's make it eight!
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On November 2nd, Kurt celebrated his 45th birthday on stage,
performing at Lawrence University in Appleton, WI.
His many fans & friends worldwide wish him the jazziest of birthdays!
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1619 Broadway - The Brill Building Project
Kurt Elling with Laurence Hobgood, and featuring John McLean, Clark Sommers, Kendrick Scott, Christian McBride, Ernie Watts, Joel Frahm, Tom Luer, and Kye Palmer Watch Kurt's new video and share it with your friends!  | |
Kurt Elling | 1619 Broadway: The Brill Building Project
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 Short Takes
In recent 1619 Broadway shows, Kurt has read a fine passage from Langston Hughes' 1956 essay, " Jazz as Communication." Here's a small taste:
Life is as hard on Broadway as it is in Blues-originating-land. The Brill Building Blues is just as hungry as the Mississippi Levee Blues. One communicates to the other, brother!
Kurt and Jon Hendricks performed "What a Wonderful World" together at the 2012 What a Wonderful World Awards ceremony in New York. Hendricks was honored as one of four distinguished recipients of the 2012 Award given annually by the Louis Armstrong Center for Music & Medicine and the Beth Israel Medical Center. Kudos to Jon!  For Kurt's latest from the road and snaps of the quirky, intriguing stuff that catches his eye, follow kurtelling on Instagram! Not on Instagram? Try one of these web viewers: http://web.stagram.com/n/kurtelling http://statigr.am/kurtelling Statigram lets you comment with your Facebook account, even if you're not an IG user.
Note: Kurt may not be posting Instagram photos while he's in Europe this month, but they'll be all ready to upload when he gets home. Stay tuned!
 
Celebrate autumn in New York from noon to 4:00 pm this Saturday, November 10 at the free public festival, Jazz & Colors, in Central Park. This festival features 30 bands in 30 locations around the Park all playing 1 setlist. Kurt and the band will be in Europe, but many other great ensembles are scheduled.
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| NOVEMBER-DECEMBER Gigs |
November 9, 2012Kurt Elling Quintet Cine-Teatro de Estarreja Rua Visconde Valdemouro Estarreja, PORTUGALNovember 10, 2012Kurt Elling Quintet Grande Auditório Centro Cultural de Belém Praça do Império Lisbon, PORTUGALNovember 12, 2012Kurt Elling Quintet Jazzatlantica Centro Agora Rúa Ágora s/n 15010 A Coruña, SPAINNovember 14, 2012Free pre-concert talk Kurt Elling & Sheila Jordan London Jazz Festival Queen Elizabeth Hall South Bank Centre Belvedere Road London, ENGLANDNovember 14, 2012SOLD OUT! Kurt Elling & Sheila Jordan London Jazz Festival Queen Elizabeth Hall South Bank Centre Belvedere Road London, ENGLAND November 15, 2012 Kurt Elling Quintet Cultuurcentrum Brugge Stadsschouwburg Vlamingstraat 29 Brugge, BELGIUMNovember 16-17, 2012SOLD OUT!Kurt Elling Quintet Bimhuis Piet Heinkade 3 Amsterdam, THE NETHERLANDS November 18, 2012 Kurt Elling Quintet Le festival Place au Jazz Auditorium Paul Arma 140, avenue de la Division-Leclerc Antony, FRANCEDecember 5, 2012Kurt Elling with the WDR Big Band Alfried Krupp Saal Philharmonie EssenHuyssenallee 53 Essen, GERMANY December 7, 2012Kurt Elling with the WDR Big Band Broadcast live on Radio WDR 3PhilharmonieBischofsgartenstraße 1 Köln, GERMANY December 9, 2012Kurt Elling with the Latvian Radio Big Band Concert CentreK.Valdemāra 5 Rīga, LATVIA December 12, 2012Kurt Elling with Estonian Dream Big Band Jõulujazz 2012Nokia Concert Hall Estonia pst. 9 Tallinn, ESTONIA December 21-22, 2012Kurt Elling Quintet Green Mill 4802 N. Broadway Chicago, IL December 29, 2012 - January 1, 2013Kurt Elling Quintet Umbria Jazz Winter #20 Orvieto, ITALY Note: The program for Umbria Jazz Winter #20 will be posted on their website on November 8.
Coming up in 2013
All new notes in the New Year!
In January the Kurt Elling Quintet is in residence at New York's Birdland, playing ten shows over five nights, followed by The Jazz Cruise in the Caribbean from January 27-February 3, 2013.
All of Kurt's upcoming gigs in 2012 and 2013 are on the Touring page on his website. That's where you'll always find the most current information. Check there often, as new dates are always being added.
To bring the KEQ to a stage near you Kurt and Laurence are on the road about 200 nights a year. They only perform where they've been invited (by people who write checks!) and they don't get to set their own itinerary. To hear Kurt and the band play in your city, region, or country, please ask your favorite jazz clubs or festivals to book them through Kurt's booking agency, IMN (International Music Network). Thank you! |
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Have you visited Kurt's new website?
We've added some great new features, including kPod, Kurt's online Radio, for your listening pleasure, a V-D-O section for delightful hours of viewing, favorite fan photos of Kurt (please submit yours, too!), and now you can also follow Kurt on Instagram. And of course, we've got all the things you loved about the old site, including the Touring page with Kurt's confirmed gigs from now until June 2013, the active fan Forum, Kurt's Store, Kurt's Music and Projects, and more.
And please tell your friends so they can and discover the many dimensions of Kurt's artistry.
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Your Moment of Elling . . .
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Kurt Elling & Metropole Orchestra: American Tune
(arr. Christian Elsässer)
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On 1619 Broadway and in encores on his tour, Kurt performs American Tune with Laurence Hobgood's beautiful, hymn-like piano accompaniment. |
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