REVIEWS
"A brilliant composer and lyricist, the talented Kathleen Gorman invites us on a journey of the heart, exposing universal intimacies which resonate from the opening note of "Brand New Day"to the closing instrumental,"Ain't The Way". Soulful, poignant and uplifting. Kathleen takes her rightful place as a blues and jazz diva, producing one of the best new original albums of the year. "
-- Paula Arab, Calgary Herald Columnist / Editorial Board.
"....... a wonderful talent. ", Sheila Jordan, Jazz artist
"The songwriting is solid and mature, the vocal expression is just fantastic......An interesting combination of tunes--lots of colors and textures creating the perfect aural journey for the listener." -
Mitch Goldfarb, Producer/Engineer, Lou Rawls, George Benson, Eddie Gomez, Teddy Pendergrass, Bon Jovi.
" Her voice has a certain sophistication and grace: A beautiful, refined and elegant instrument which conveys love and a certain sense of longing. Ms. Gorman is a song stylist who has crafted her very own, singular approach to the art of singing which is remarkable as we live in an age where singers usually don't embrace individuality and often emulate the vocal stylings of others." - Steve Getz, THE JAZZ NETWORK
"Kathleen Gorman has taken her place among Bonnie Raitt, Nora Jones, and Al Kooper in the blues-tinged jazz-pop firmament. She sings, plays, writes, composes and produces with the best of them, making music rooted in jazz that is accessible and contemporary...a fantastic new contemporary voice! " - Jon Burr ( Jazz Artist, Bassist, Composer)
"Kathleen is a talented vocalist, accomplished pianist and a very polished composer.
Stay tuned......."
- Chuck Bolger,
"Jazz or Something Like It", 91.7 FM WMUH Allentown, PA, USA.
Recently Kathleen released a collection of jazz/pop originals with some of Toronto’s top jazz musicians, including Henry Heillig (bass), Rob Piltch (guitar), Ben Riley ( drums)
Dennis Kelde ( Hammond B organ), Colleen Allen ( sax), Eric St-Laurent (guitar),
Marc Pizer (drums) and long time collaborator Kirk Starkey (cello). These self produced and arranged songs feature Kathleen on piano, Rhodes and vocals, beautifully recorded and mixed by Jeremy Darby. "Brand New Day" is available at CDBaby, Itunes and Amazon.com
Kathleen is a Toronto based pianist /singer, songwriter who grew up in Halifax, Nova Scotia, in a musical family where creative expression was encouraged. Piano lessons started at age six, and years of classical studies gave her a solid musical foundation.She was exposed to a wide range of musical genres, from symphony concerts to local blues and jazz bands, touring artists like Ray Charles and Victor Borge. She started composing at the piano in her teens, and always had numerous opportunities to play in local festivals, recitals, and to sing in church choirs. By sixteen she knew she wanted to play popular styles, blues and Jazz, and to write her own music. From the music of Gershwin to Sting, Michel Legrand to Steely Dan and Stevie Wonder, she was inspired to write her own songs and began doing so in her teens.
She completed an ARCT in piano performance, and later a BA in Enlish lit,
all the while developing her early songwriting and compositional skills on the family grand piano. She composed a piano piece for CTV’s final coverage of the Winter Olympics in Sarajevo. This was enough encouragement for her at age twenty two to move to Montreal where she earned a BFA in Music from Concordia, in Jazz and compostion studies, and went on to McGill Universty for composition and orchestration. Montreal provided a rich cultural environment of jazz festivals, late night jam sessions at clubs, and a chance to hear many inspiring Jazz artists from around the world, from Oscar Peterson, Dorothy Donegan, Keith Jarrett, to Etta James, Tuck and Patti, and Shirley Horn.
She performed as a pianist/singer in upscale hotel gigs such as the Hilton and Ritz Carlton, as well as corporate events, performed for a year with a jazz big band, while studying Jazz and composition at Concordia and McGill, before finally moving to Toronto. After setting up a home studio, Kathleen collaborated with local artists and producers on numerous recording projects, including her song, "Hope and Pray" written for 911 which was aired on CBC radio in September, 2001. She has completed several recording projects for herself and other musicians, and continues to compose for film and TV. Recently one of her compositions was used as source music on "Flashpoint", viewed in Canada and the US.
Kathleen has performed at numerous local venues, from the School House restaurant, the Liberty Bistro, Gate 403, Chalkers, to the Distillery Art of Jazz festival. She is a member of the Canadian Songwriters' Association, CARAS, IAJE and SOCAN. She set up the Toronto Music Lab in 2004, a creative project studio for songwriters and local musicians to collaborate and record, and offers her composition and arranging skills to other musicians/artists in Toronto. Her recent CD "Brand New Day" has had regular airplay on Jazz FM 91, as well as numerous stations in the US and Europe, and continues to
receive positive reviews and recognition for its artistic merit and strong original material.
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