A December event called ‘Alexia – The Untold Story of Women in Jazz‘ will pay homage to some of the most important and legendary female performers in Jazz, Soul and the Blues.
Event description and details
From the event organizers themselves: “Alexia pays tribute to some of the greatest female voices of Jazz – Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, Ella Fitzgerald, Betty Carter, Anita O’Day, Abbey Lincoln, Felicia Sanders, and many others, through their more obscure – unknown songs; shedding light on who they were, and how they felt about everything around them, in the World, and in their personal lives, and how they influenced society, through their activism.”
Several accomplished Cypriot jazz musicians will accompany Alexia as part of a 5-piece orchestra. These are Ermis Michail (Electric Guitar), Andreas Rodosthenous (Electric Bass), Christos Yerolatsitis (Piano, Keyboard), Rodos Panayiotou (Percussion), and Elias Ioannou (Trumpet).
Location and Date
The event will take place at RED (Nicosia) on Saturday, December 14th.
The event is scheduled to start at 9:30 PM and finish at 11:30 PM.
A look at some of the female singers the event will pay tribute to
Nina Simone
Nina Simone was an African American singer, songwriter, musician, arranger, and civil rights activist. She attended the renowned Juilliard School of Music in New York City, but was denied admission to Curtis Institute of Music in Philadelphia, despite a successful audition, due to racial discrimination.
After being forced to put classical music to the side for a while in order to make a living as a piano player in a club, she was told that she would have to sing herself if she wanted vocal accompaniment. This essentially launched her career as a jazz vocalist.
Simone went on to record more than 40 albums in a period of 16 years.
Billie Holiday
Billie Holiday, an African American jazz singer, was a prominent influence on the evolution of both Jazz and Pop music.
Her career of more than 30 years made her renowned for her vocal style and ability to improvise.
Holiday has won four Grammy awards and has been inducted in the Grammy Hall of Fame.
Ella Fitzgerald
Ella Fitzgerald, an African American singer, is oftentimes known as ‘Lady Ella’ or ‘Queen of Jazz’. Her voice and overall performance have been praised and noted for their delivery, clarity, intonation, and diction.
She participated in movies, such as ‘Ride ‘Em Cowboy’, and also collaborated with fellow music legends Duke Ellington and Louis Armstrong.
She had a long, storied career of 60 years, winning 14 Grammy awards, the National Medal of Arts and the Presidential Medal of Freedom in the process.
