![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.anthologysd.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/08\/sound-observations.jpg\" "\\"sound-observations\\"")
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Jazz is supposed to be improvisational music, where musical decisions are made on the fly at any moment.<\/p>\n And that spontaneity is one of the things that appeals to Jane Monheit.<\/p>\n The very talented jazz vocalist, who is playing May 29 and 30 at Anthology, says that when she is considering a song, it doesn\u2019t take much thought at all.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I decide to do a song, I know right away and how to interpret it,\u201d Monheit said while on the phone.<\/p>\n That spontaneity is good for singing and good for her other job: being a mother. <\/p>\n Monheit is the mother of Jack, her two-year-old son with her husband and drummer Rick Montalbano, and anyone who has kids that age knows that being able to adapt to sudden changes is part of the job.<\/p>\n \u201cJack, Mommy\u2019s on the phone,\u201d she said, during her phone interview. \u201cGo talk to Daddy. Now, what were we talking about? Oh yes, when I\u2019m choosing to do a song, lyrics and melody are equally important, although many great instrumentalists have shown you can have one without the other.\u201d<\/p>\n A discussion about how some song lyrics sound great in the ear, but lay there flat when you read them on the page leads to a comment about Joni Mitchell.<\/p>\n \u201cI have a book of her lyrics,\u201d she said. \u201cThey read just as well as they sing. As someone who doesn\u2019t write songs, I take lyrics very seriously.\u201d<\/p>\n Monheit is unique where jazz singers go. At the age of 32, she represents a generation of musicians who grew up in the aftermath of the punk revolution. Because her instrument is such a perfect vehicle for jazz, it surprises many people that this virtuoso vocalist is a big heavy metal fan.<\/p>\n \u201cI love it! I especially love the big hair power ballads. But I could never sing it\u201d she said. \u201cIt always surprises people that I like metal, but I like all kinds of music. I love pop music \u2013 like Lady Gaga. She\u2019s a great singer! She\u2019s got a trained voice and writes great melodies.<\/p>\n To this writer\u2019s ear, Lady Gaga\u2019s melodies to lend themselves to jazz interpretation, but while Monheit admires her, she isn\u2019t necessarily going to start adding \u201cPaparazzi\u201d to her set list.. Still, she seems excited about the ballad version of \u201cPokerface\u201d performed on \u201cGlee\u201d the previous night.<\/p>\n \u201cI haven\u2019t seen it yet, but I\u2019m looking forward to it,\u201d she said, before talking to Jack again.<\/p>\n \u201cMommy\u2019s working right now. I\u2019ll be right there. Rick, can you take him for a minute?\u201d she apologized. \u201cI\u2019m sorry. We\u2019re both on the phone talking to different people!\u201d<\/p>\n No need to. Been there, understand it. <\/p>\n The conversation continues and the question is asked: You like rock and heavy metal and Lady Gaga. Do you ever want to adapt those songs?<\/p>\n \u201cIt depends,\u201d she said. \u201cI really like doing a cover where people don\u2019t realize it\u2019s a cover.\u201d<\/p>\n Oh yeah, the writer says. When I saw you at Anthology last year, you opened with a Michael Buble song, \u201cEverywhere.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI don\u2019t know that song,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n You don\u2019t? A quickly fumbled attempt at singing the song gives way to better judgment. <\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019ve never covered one of his songs,\u201d she explained.<\/p>\n Oh, well, whatever song it was, was good.<\/p>\n Along with Lady Gaga, Monheit is a big fan of Corrine Bailey Rae.<\/p>\n \u201cIf I were to commission a song, I\u2019d like to have her do it, because we\u2019re the same age and have the same influences. But so is Norah Jones.\u201d<\/p>\n Once again, Jack is in the background, begging the question, with two parents in the music industry, has he inherited the genes?<\/p>\n \u201cHe is a great drummer and loves to sing,\u201d she said. \u201cHe has a great ear. We rarely play my music in the house, but I played some rough cuts from my upcoming album to my in-laws. It\u2019s the only time the record played in the house and he heard the introduction \u2013 even before the vocals \u2013 and said, \u2018Mommy.\u2019\u201d<\/p>\n Monheit suspects Jack has perfect pitch, something she and her husband both have in common. With some musicians, that can be a blessing and a curse. Monheit admits it was tough when she was younger.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I was younger, it was hard to shut it off,\u201d she said. \u201cNow I can, except it\u2019s tough when I reading a note and trying to transpose it in another key,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019ll read one note and hear another.<\/p>\n \u201cIt can be tough when you\u2019re recording. There are lots of factors that go into singing a note. It\u2019s not just about pitch. Sometimes it\u2019s flat for physical reasons that have nothing to do with pitch.\u201d<\/p>\n That can be rough in the studio, because Monheit refuses to use the Auto-Tune software favored by many contemporary singers (who can\u2019t really sing).<\/p>\n \u201cI try to go for complete takes, but if I hear a note and it\u2019s not right, I\u2019ll do it again,\u201d she said. \u201cI\u2019m punching in vocals all the time.\u201d<\/p>\n As the interview draws to a close, and Monheit gets ready to tend to Jack, there is time for one more question: Is there an instrumentalist who has influenced your singing style?<\/p>\n \u201cYes, [pianist] Bill Evans,\u201d she said. \u201cMostly in his approach to harmony; the delicate way he treats his tunes. When he reharmonizes a song, it\u2019s with integrity. He\u2019s been so influential that now it\u2019s hard for me to listen to him without getting emotional.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" By David Moye Jazz is supposed to be improvisational music, where musical decisions are made on the fly at any moment. And that spontaneity is one of the things that appeals to Jane Monheit. The very talented jazz vocalist, who is playing May 29 and 30 at Anthology, says that when she is considering a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":6,"featured_media":2354,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[893,17],"tags":[372,751,781,752],"class_list":["post-2336","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-interviews","category-past-shows","tag-jane-monheit","tag-jane-monheit-concert","tag-jane-monheit-interview","tag-jane-monheit-live"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/anthologysd.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2336","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/anthologysd.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/anthologysd.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anthologysd.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/6"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anthologysd.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2336"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/anthologysd.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2336\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2829,"href":"https:\/\/anthologysd.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2336\/revisions\/2829"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anthologysd.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2354"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/anthologysd.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2336"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anthologysd.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2336"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/anthologysd.com\/press\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2336"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"\"](\"http:\/\/www.anthologysd.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2010\/05\/monheit_31.jpg\" "\\"monheit_31\\"")
By David Moye<\/cite><\/p>\n