"connecting JAZZ with West Michigan "
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"connecting JAZZ with West Michigan " |
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Dee Alexander Quintet featuring Ari Brown on saxophone www.deealexander.net Dee Alexander is one of Chicago's most gifted and respected female vocalist/songwriters. Her talents span every music genre, from Gospel to R&B, from Blues to Neo-Soul. Yet her true heart and soul are experienced in their purest form through her performance of Jazz music. From a soft, sultry traditional ballad, to a contemporary Jazz-Funk groove; from a high flying swing, to a scat-filled romp, Dee Alexander delivers each style with a passion and love of music that comes across in each and every note, and with a style and grace that is truly her own. Besides being a phenomenal headliner in her own right, Dee has performed as the opening act for many of her musical peers, including David Sanborn, Earl Klugh, Gerald Albright, Roy Ayers, Joshua Redman, and the O'Jays. Not being one to ever feel that the spotlight has to belong exclusively to her, Ms. Alexander has lent her considerable talents as a backup vocalist to the live performances of an array of many other well known artists i.e., Michael Manson, Michael Bolton, Phil Perry, Willie Clayton, and Zora Young and also performs with Douglas Ewart's Inventions and Nicole Mitchell's Black Earth and Harambee Projects. Internationally, Ms. Alexander has performed at the 2008 Sons d'Hiver Festival in Paris, France with Ernest Dawkins' Chicago 12 "2007 and 2006 Made in Chicago Festival" in Poznan, Poland with Inventions, Maggie Brown, Evolution Ensemble and Nicole Mitchell's Harambee Project; 2006 Le Labbra Nude Jazz Festival with Nicole Mitchell's Black Earth Ensemble in Rome, Italy; Banlieues Bleues Festival 2004 in Paris, France with Douglas Ewart and Trio Inventions. She has toured extensively in Italy, Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Luxembourg and France with Sue Conway and the Victory Singers, and in Singapore and Holland with the Art Porter Quartet at the North Sea Jazz Festival. Showing a limitless versatility, Ms. Alexander has even graced the theatrical stage as an actress. Many of her performances have been with ETA Performance Arts Theatre in Chicago, where she has appeared in such productions as "Passenger Past Midnight", "When the Wind Blows", and "Hillary Clay", just to name a few. She has also performed with Muntu Dance Company's "African Swing" and "46664" stage productions. Dee has been featured on various commercial spots, including Alpo, McDonalds, Pert Plus, the Illinois State Lottery, Diet 7Up, Pillsbury, Buick LeSabre, Commonwealth Edison, Dove, and Amoco. Ms. Alexander's television performances include WBBM Channel 2 2005 Portraits in Color; WTTW Channel 11Check Please,; WTTW Channel 11Chicago Tonite with Phil Ponce; WTTW Going Home Gospel with Sue Conway and the Victory Singers featuring Patti LaBelle; WTTW Arts Across Illinois 2001 with Malachi Thompson's Freebop Band; and Bernie Mac's HBO "Midnight Mac" Special. Dee's partial discography includes featured vocals on Orbert Davis' "Blue Notes"; Corky McClerkin's "Island of Dreams"; R. Kelly's "Tp-2.com"and "U Saved Me/Happy People"; Brian Culbertson's "Secrets"; Malachi Thompson's "47TH Street", "Rising Daystar" and "Blue Jazz"; Lines and Spaces' "Shades of Brown", Dennis Winslett's "Soul Journey", "Dee Alexander Live at the Hothouse" and "Dee Alexander &endash; Unplugged" and Rogueart 2008 Blissful. Dee's performance on the title track to "47th Street" was also released on the 2 CD set "Delmark Records, 45 Years of Jazz and Blues" featuring some of the best recordings from the company's rich jazz history. Ms. Alexander has also received the 2007 Chicagoan of the Year in Jazz Award and 2008 Jazz Entertainer of the Year by the Chicago Music Awards. Ms. Alexander is also a member of the AACM &endash; Association for the Advancement of Creative Musicians (AACM).
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