Romantic Standards singer Stacey Kent and Jazz Piano Icon Marian McPartland Share the Stage in a March 16 Concert
March 1 , 2006
Stacey Kent, who does wonders with the romantic classics of the American songbook, and Marian McPartland, the guiding light of piano jazz, perform in concert at 7:30 p.m. Thursday, March 16, in Eisenhower Auditorium on the Penn State University Park campus. Kent and her quartet, headed by her tenor saxophonist husband Jim Tomlinson, open the performance. McPartland's trio follows. The headliners close by performing together.
Tickets are on sale at $33 for an adult, $17 for a University Park student, and $26 for a person 18 and younger. For tickets and information, visit www.cpa.psu.edu or phone (814) 863-0255. Outside the local calling area, dial 1-800-ARTS-TIX. Tickets are also available at Eisenhower Auditorium, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays; Penn State Tickets Downtown, 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Saturday; HUB-Robeson Center Information Desk, 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. weekdays when Penn State classes are in session; and Bryce Jordan Center, 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. weekdays and 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday.
Six years ago a feature about Kent on National Public Radio's Morning Edition introduced many Americans to a voice–crystalline, wistful and stylishly romantic–that enraptured them. After the NPR profile, all four of Kent's albums at the time soared to the top 10 in sales at Amazon.com.
"Stacey Kent is a revelation. There is nobody singing today who can compare with her," says Oscar-winning songwriter Jay Livingston. "She has the style of the greats, like Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald. And she sings the words like Nat Cole–clean, clear and almost conversational with perfect phrasing: that's as good as it gets."
Since the 1997 release of her first CD, Close Your Eyes, Kent has harvested critical and popular acclaim for her interpretations of the 20th century's timeless love songs. Let Yourself Go (2000) celebrates songs associated with Fred Astaire. Dreamsville (2001) covers evergreens by the Gershwins, Johnny Mandel, Henry Mancini and others. In Love Again (2002) pays homage to the music of Richard Rodgers. The Boy Next Door (2003), a cross-pollination of jazz and pop, makes a case for songs by the likes of Paul Simon and Carole King to be considered the new standards.
McPartland's influence as pianist, composer and educator is unmatched. She has performed professionally in clubs and concert halls for two-thirds of a century. Her collaborations with many of the great singers and musicians of our time are legendary. And her NPR program, Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz, reaches millions of listeners.
McPartland has released more than 60 albums on the Concord Records label. In 2004, she garnered a Grammy–the Trustees Lifetime Achievement Award–for her efforts as a songwriter, educator and radio host. In 2000, the National Endowment for the Arts named her one of its American Jazz Masters.
Jacki Hunt sponsors the concert. WPSU FM is the media partner. Artistic Viewpoints, sponsored by the Center for the Performing Arts Community Advisory Council, features Kent and is free for ticket holders in the Eisenhower Auditorium Conference Room one hour before the performance.
Contact: Laura Sullivan, 814-863-6379