Music like fine wine
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Updated: October 07, 2009 12:02 AM
If you're looking for a warm and cozy end to an evening, stop by the SAGA Pubic Art Gallery at 7 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 11.
Like fine port after a satisfying meal, Flora Ware offers songs in the key of mellow.
At 32, Ware exhibits a maturity in her renditions of popular post-war standards.
"That comes from singing the songs for a lot of years," she says, pointing out she has been singing all her life and performing since she completed her training in contemporary and jazz music in 2002.
She has received classical training in piano and voice, and professional schooling in acting, dance and contemporary music.
"My favourite muses are Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan,” she says. “I love the big, rich fullness of their voices and I wanted to recreate that."
Ware says she also has a fondness for the stories inherent in the jazz numbers.
"There really was a real story line, with characters. I don't think contemporary music has that," she says. "Of course, lots of the stories came out of musicals, so I kind of picked up the torch as it were."
While she tries to incorporate the same richness of sound and storytelling in her own writing, Ware says her own material is more rhythm and blues.
There should be something for everyone to enjoy," she says of Sunday's concert.
Ware puts her soul into singing. Not fitting neatly into any one genre, she is part jazz diva, part folk singer, part cabaret performer.
Whether it's swing standards, R&B, or opera, she isn't afraid to push the boundaries, delivering a comedic or seductive twist to a song.
Described as both a "little-known vocal treasure" and "one of the rising jazz talents" in B.C., Ware is ready to step into a bigger spotlight.
Co-produced by Rick Kilburn and Peter Berring, her new album Insight appeals to a wide audience with its groovy mix of standards and original music influenced by Latin jazz, and Soul/R&B.
Released in September 2008, her album was nominated last year in the BC Interior Music Awards for Best Jazz Artist of the Year, and Paul Grant featured her on his CBC radio show Hot Air in January 2009.
After being awarded a touring grant from the Columbia Basin Trust in 2008, Ware completed a spring tour of the Kootenays in March. She is now embarking on a fall tour on the Interior.
Ware's new CD Insight has been described as "smooth, cool, and a sensuous little trip from the first song to the last."
Her strength as a songwriter is on par with her agile, smoky smooth voice.
The music is decidedly jazzy without being traditional, and Flora's original songs drive the album into a more modern, R&B/Soul landscape.
For Sunday’s concert at the art gallery, Ware will be backed by Kelowna musicians Loni Moger on guitar, and Bernie Addington on drums, and from Kamloops Rich Graham on double bass.
Admission is $15 for adults and $5 for students. Tickets will be available at the door.
Ware will have CDs available for purchase. To get a tantalizing taste of her music, visit www.floramusic.com, or visit her profile on MySpace.
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