Kendra Shank

Last updated
Kendra Shank
Born Woodland, California, U.S.
Genres Jazz
Occupation(s)Musician
Instrument(s)Vocals, guitar
Years active1980s–present
Labels Mapleshade, Jazz Focus, Challenge
Website www.kendrashank.com

Kendra Shank is an American jazz vocalist.

Career

Shank's mother was an actress and playwright and her father was a playwright [1] and teacher at the University of California. [2] When she was five, she appeared onstage with her mother in Threepenny Opera. [3] In her early teens she started playing guitar. [4] [1]

Contents

Shank attended Pacific Lutheran University and the University of Washington, receiving a degree in art and French. [1] During the 1980s, she performed in clubs in Seattle as a folk singer, accompanying herself on acoustic guitar. In 1989 she studied with jazz vocalist Jay Clayton [1] at Cornish College of the Arts. [5] She was a busker on the streets and subways of Paris and while in Paris heard her first Billie Holiday album. [1] Although she had been working as a folk singer in clubs, she bought a method book to learn a few jazz standards. [1]

In the early 1990s, she went on tour with Bob Dorough. [1] Shirley Horn saw her perform and became a mentor, introducing at the Village Vanguard in 1992. [5] Mapleshade released Shank's debut album Afterglow on which she sang and played guitar. [6] She met Frank Kimbrough through Horn, and he became a member of her quartet which recorded A Spirit Free (Challenge, 2007), a tribute to her mentor and friend Abbey Lincoln. [3] She has also recorded with Gary Bartz, Peter Leitch, Ben Monder, John Stowell, and Larry Willis.

Discography

As leader

As guest

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gary Bartz</span> American jazz saxophonist (born 1940)

Gary Bartz is an American jazz saxophonist. He has won two Grammy Awards.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abbey Lincoln</span> American singer (1930–2010)

Anna Marie Wooldridge, known professionally as Abbey Lincoln, was an American jazz vocalist. She was a civil rights activist beginning in the 1960s. Lincoln made a career out of delivering deeply felt presentations of standards as well as writing and singing her own material.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Enver İzmaylov</span> Crimean Tatar folk and jazz guitarist

Enver İzmaylov is a Crimean Tatar folk and jazz guitarist who uses a tapping style on electric guitar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ben Monder</span> American jazz guitarist

Ben Monder is an American modern jazz guitarist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Diane Schuur</span> American jazz musician (born 1953)

Diane Joan Schuur, nicknamed "Deedles", is an American jazz singer and pianist. As of 2015, Schuur had released 23 albums, and had extended her jazz repertoire to include essences of Latin, gospel, pop and country music. Her most successful album is Diane Schuur & the Count Basie Orchestra, which remained number one on the Billboard Jazz Charts for 33 weeks. She won Grammy Awards for best female jazz vocal performance in both 1986 and 1987 and has had three other Grammy nominations.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jay Clayton (musician)</span> American jazz musician (1941–2023)

Judith Theresa Colantone, known as Jay Clayton, was an American avant-garde jazz vocalist and educator.

Jazz guitarists are guitarists who play jazz using an approach to chords, melodies, and improvised solo lines which is called jazz guitar playing. The guitar has fulfilled the roles of accompanist and soloist in small and large ensembles and also as an unaccompanied solo instrument.

William Fredrick Bean was an American jazz guitarist from Philadelphia.

Carla Ruth White was an American jazz vocalist.

Jenna Mammina is a jazz and pop singer from Michigan.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Dena DeRose</span> American jazz pianist, singer and educator

Dena DeRose is an American jazz pianist, singer and educator. Although she began her career just as a pianist, medical problems with her hand forced her to become a vocalist as well. She has released seven solo albums.

Chris McNulty is Australian-born jazz vocalist.

<i>Abbey Is Blue</i> 1959 studio album by Abbey Lincoln

Abbey Is Blue is the fourth album by American jazz vocalist Abbey Lincoln featuring tracks recorded in 1959 for the Riverside label.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jackie Allen (musician)</span> American jazz vocalist (born 1959)

Jackie Allen is an American jazz vocalist. Influenced by jazz, folk, and pop singers, Allen is perhaps best known for interpretations of classic jazz ballads. According to critic Scott Yanow, she brings out "the beauty of the lyrics". Critic Thom Jurek said, "her gift with more pop-oriented material is utterly distinctive and even innovative, since there isn't another singer out there who phrases like her".

Steven (Steve) Novosel is an American professional jazz bassist and educator whose 40-plus year career has spanned numerous genre, from traditional jazz to swing, bebop, mainstream and avant garde.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jeanfrançois Prins</span> Belgian jazz musician (born 1967)

Jeanfrançois Prins is a Belgian jazz guitarist, composer, vocalist and record producer. He has spent many years between New York City and Berlin where he was leading the Jazz Guitar departments in both music universities for a total of 12 years. Upon his return to Belgium in 2016, he became the CEO of the GAM Records label in 2017.

<i>Passion Dance</i> (Roseanna Vitro album) 1996 studio album by Roseanna Vitro

Passion Dance is the fifth album by jazz singer Roseanna Vitro, released in January 1996 on the Telarc Jazz label.

Diane Hubka is an American jazz guitarist and vocalist.

Christine Isobel Correa is an American jazz singer of Indian origin.

Paul F. Murphy is a percussionist, bandleader and composer. He is best known for having led a variety of small jazz ensembles, and for his long tenure in groups led by saxophonist Jimmy Lyons.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Yanow, Scott (2008). The Jazz Singers: The Ultimate Guide. Backbeat. p. 194. ISBN   978-0-87930-825-4.
  2. ↑ Hebert, James (10 December 2014). "UCSD playwright Adele Shank dies". San Diego Tribune. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
  3. 1 2 Skelly, Richard. "Kendra Shank". AllMusic. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
  4. ↑ "Kendra Shank: Biography". Kendra Shank. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
  5. ↑ Yanow, Scott (2013). The Great Jazz Guitarists. San Francisco: Backbeat. p. 233. ISBN   978-1-61713-023-6.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.