Andrea blends great standard repertoire with original material and music from unexpected sources, from pop to poetry, with influences as disparate as the blues and middle eastern harmonies synthesized into soulfully-expressed windows onto human experience. Andrea revels in interplay with fellow musicians, inviting listeners along for the ride for everything from emotional musical journeys to high-energy, sometimes humorous, often surprising adventures.
Andrea plays with some of the most exciting and respected musicians in New York and beyond. Her most recent recording, "The Small Hours" (VarisOne.Jazz; be1two.net), is built around her trio with guitarist Ron Affif and bassist Ken Filiano. Produced by Todd Barkan, the CD also features drummers Victor Lewis and Jamey Haddad, and guest artists Lou Marini (flute) and Frank London (trumpet and flugelhorn). The CD, with Andrea's arrangements of standard and non-standard music, as well as her own compositions, continues to receive high critical praise and to be heard on radio since its release in late 2005. Andrea's 1998 self-titled debut CD was also praised in music industry journals and has been the subject of radio feature presentations..
Other projects include the improvising trio TranceFormation, with Filiano and the renowned pianist Connie Crothers; Objects in Mirror, a quartet blending improvisation, compositions, and text, with Adam Caine (gutiar), Fung Chern Hwei (violin), and Ken Yamazaki (percussion); and SoHo Voce, an all-vocal improvising ensemble.
Andrea appears in clubs, festivals and concert halls in the U.S. and internationally. New York performance credits include Dizzy's Club Coca-Cola (Jazz at Lincoln Center), JVC New York Jazz Festival, Sweet Rhythm, 55 Bar, Cornelia Street Café, Makor, The Stone, Iridium, and more. Additional appearances include concerts and festivals in Europe, including Donne in Musica Festival (Italy), Jazz at the Cape (South Africa), Greater Hartford Festival of Jazz, Fairfax (CA) Jazz Festival, Jazz on the Plazz (CA), First Night New York, Many Colors of a Woman Jazz Concerts, Dizzy's (San Diego), and performances on numerous other concert and festival stages. She appeared by special invitation in "A Singers Celebration" at the Blue Note in New York, joining an impressive roster of jazz vocalists.
In addition to singing, Andrea is a creative songwriter, lyricist, and arranger. Her original compositions and unusual arrangements of standard material, as well as of poetry and music from a variety of genres, reveal a dynamic, singular musical sensibility. She is also an accomplished writer whose journalism and poetry have appeared in numerous publications and whose non-fiction books have received acclaim. For years, Andrea was a writer of feature articles for Back Stage, and wrote for numerous other publications as well. Among her works are two books, "The Actor's City Sourcebook" (Watson-Guptill) and "Women's Rights, Human Rights: International Feminist Perspectives" (with Julie S. Peters: Routledge); she also contributed an essay to "But is it Art? The Spirit of Art as Activism" (Nina Felshin, Bay Press). As an actor, Andrea performed extensively in her native California and on the Off-Broadway stage; she studied at New York's prestigious Neighborhood Playhouse and Ensemble Studio Theatre.
All these experiences inform Andrea's organic approach to music. Her way with words allows her to create lyrics, for her own and others' compositions, that run the gamut from witty to thought-provoking to deeply moving, and her gift for inhabiting the life and spirit of a character infuses both her approach to song interpretation and her perceptive understanding of the intimate relationship between words and music.
She is a past President of International Women in Jazz, and served on the Advisory Board of the Jazz Vocal Coalition. Andrea earned a black belt in Shotokan Karate.
"The Small Hours" is available from iTunes, Napster, and other digital vendors, and at the usual online & brick and mortar stores.
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For "Andrea Wolper" (debut CD), click here:
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TEACHING, COACHING, CLINICS
Andrea teaches and coaches privately in her Brooklyn studio. She also presents vocal and improvisation clinics; please write to request more information.
Hi Andreia, good to ear from you. Yes, Açores is a special place. Nice to see you in Lisbon too. I will Play on the Clean Feed Fest in N.Y. on 16th Sept. I hope you can show up. Best for you
many thanks for the add and the lovely note! love your voice, and the arranging concept -- nice to see the interplay idea highlighted , almost free playing concept, in a more traditional 'jazz singer' format. its a great and unique approach, i love it!
Good Evening Andrea,
fantastico! ciao e grazie
