Best New Artist: Esperanza Spalding
This month Esperanza Spalding became the first jazz musician ever to win the Best New Artist GRAMMY award. Her acceptance speech may have been the first time that many viewers had ever heard the 26-year-old’s voice, and apparently the fact that Justin Bieber wasn’t the person gracing the stage was the cause of a collective fit of rage by preteens everywhere. The world is lucky to have been introduced to Spalding, an accomplished bassist, vocalist, arranger and composer.
Growing up in a rough Portland neighborhood, Spalding first took interest in music at age four after seeing Yo-Yo Ma perform on Mr. Roger’s Neighborhood. She taught herself to play the violin, but ended up picking the bass as her instrument of choice. At 20, she became the youngest member ever to become a faculty member at Berklee College of Music in Boston. Her solo work includes three albums, Junjo (2005), Esperanza (2008) and Chamber Music Society (2010). President Obama is a fan; she has performed at the White House and at the Nobel Prize ceremony in Oslo, Norway by his personal invitation.
At first listen the reason for her many accolades is apparent. Spalding’s voice is light, clear, and expressive. The fact that she is both an instrumentalist and vocalist lends a great deal of creativity to her musical expression. The resulting sound is a fresh blend of styles: jazz clearly, but also pop, soul, folk, world music, and more. One of my favorite tracks on her latest album is Inútil Paisagem. Originally written by Brazilian composer Antonio Jobim and usually sung slowly as a ballad, Spalding creates most of the rhythmic accompaniment vocally, scatting bass lines over her own bass and vocal lyric line. The result is an exceedingly innovative version of a song whose original beauty is preserved and at the same time enhanced by the creativity of the musician.
Her touring schedule is extensive for the next several months, but if you can’t catch a live show (many shows are currently sold out) then I would certainly recommend taking a listen to her albums. Esperanza Spalding is a true musician, full of talent and creativity, and a joy to listen to. Hopefully her 2011 GRAMMY win will be the first of many times that talent will be rightfully recognized and appreciated by listeners.
