Carolyn Leonhart Loves All That Jazz

If you didn't know better, you would mistake Carolyn Leonhart for a movie star whose name you aren't sure of, but you know you've seen here somewhere. Or maybe it was on one of those NCIS TV shows? No. None of those.

Leonhart is a singer whose evocative and sensual vocals have been praised by critics and fans alike.

Classically trained as a singer by jazz performer parents (her Dad is bassist Jay Leonhart who has played with the likes of Frank Sinatra) and winning the Downbeat Magazine Best Jazz Vocalist Award while still in college, Carolyn has always made jazz her number one priority as a singer.

But don't pigeonhole her as a "jazz singer." You see, Carolyn Leonhart can lay down some strong rock and pop vocals and has been doing so with legends like Steely Dan, Boz Scaggs, and Michael McDonald on tours and albums for the last 15 years.

During the promotional blitz for her newest and critically acclaimed new CD, "The Tides of Yesterday," which she collaborated with her husband, tenor saxophonist extraordinaire Wayne Escoffery, Carolyn visited Palm Desert and "fell in love with its beauty, its purity, and the fact it's the exact opposite of my native New York city. I love it there and can't wait to come back!" Leonhart said.

Leonhart will be back soon, as she has planned a stint at the hip Torme's jazz club for next Spring.

"I played the Palm Springs area on several Steely Dan tours and always loved the feeling of being in the desert. A totally foreign concept to a big city girl, but one I could spend a lot more time at ... especially that El Paseo area ... I love Trina Turk's shops in ... Palm Springs,"  she said.

Carolyn Leonhart has a fan in Trina Turk also, and the reknown designer invited Carolyn and her group to perform an in-store concert in her newly opened New York boutique in 2010.

"I love Trina's fashions so much. They're vibrant, creative, and look great all year long!" Leonhart exclaims. "I take my Trina Turk sunglasses with me everywhere too!"

Carolyn Leonhart is a singer who works intuitively, with a voice that projects both strength and vulnerability. She tells her stories with instincts that come from a life steeped in music.

"My only goal now is to make music that I love, whether singing or writing," Carolyn said. "I have gotten a lot of help along the way, and I am grateful to everyone who keeps inspiring me."

One of Carolyn's local supporters is jazz aficianado "Fitz" Fitzgerald, who is the morning man and program director at KJAZZ FM. Fitz was playing Carolyn's CD from the get-go and hopes to include Carolyn in one of his shows at the nearby Riviera Resort next year as well.

"As a singer, her voice is so expressive. Carolyn's the real deal" said Fitz, who spins her "Tides of Yesterday" CD regularly. Leonhart also sat as a guest on The Bulldog Bill Feingold radio show last year, promising to return to the desert soon to do "her own show." (Leonhart has performed with Steely Dan at venues like Casino Morongo and Mohegan Sun in recent years.)

As a singer, the bar has been set high for Carolyn, who also teaches vocal classes at the prestigous Berklee School of Music in Boston.  

"I have always written songs, but I'm not a trained musician," she said. "I've learned everything by doing, and by watching my writing idols, Donald Fagen, Walter Becker and my father. Observing each of them in the moment, creating their magic, has been an intoxicating thing to witness and be a part of."

Carolyn and Wayne play regular jazz gigs at the most prestigous jazz clubs in New York and perform in jazz festivals all over the world. Carolyn even graced the stage with jazz legend Al Jarreau a few years ago.

"The warmest and most generous man I've ever worked with" Leonhart said.

After graduating from the University of Rochester in New York with a degree in Comparative Religion, Carolyn returned to live and work in New York City and shortly thereafter won third place in the Thelonious Monk International Vocal Jazz Competition. "At the Kennedy Center, on the last night of the competition, we were pulled aside for an interview.

One of the questions asked was, 'So tell me, do you consider yourself a jazz singer?' The other finalists immediately answered, 'Yes, of course!' I had grown up around jazz musicians and singers and truly loved singing the music, but I felt like I was often copying these original artists. And that didn't seem like jazz to me," she recalls. "I also loved so many other styles of music, and didn't want to lock myself into any one style, so I answered 'No way! I just consider myself to be a singer.'

To learn more about Leonhart, visit carolynleonhart.com.