Announcing the new Carol Deminski Productions website!

Hi All!

I have put together a website to make it easy for people to find me if they are looking to hire a Jazz/Blues band!

Please check out http://CarolDeminskiProductions.com!

On the website you can find a Contact Page; music videos; a show calendar; photos and bios of some of the musicians who play in my bands; a produced events page, and more!

Take a look at the “Shows” calendar page for a list of events, beginning with the next available show. Right now, it shows my event for tomorrow night at the top!

Click on the graphic on the left side, for the event poster, so you see the whole thing… it looks like this!

On the “Shows” page I hope you’ll notice I’ve gotten into creating a poster for each gig I’m doing. Some of them are very colorful.

On March 5th, I’ll be playing a Sunday Brunch event at Ocean Place Resort & Spa, in Long Branch, NJ. That hotel is located on the beach, and the restaurant has a beautiful view of the ocean, so I chose a watery ocean themed poster style.

When you check out the site, if you want to reach me, feel free to use the Contact form!

If you know of someone who is looking for a high quality Jazz/Blues band, I’d appreciate any referrals too. It’s always tough, when getting started, to build an audience and I can use all of the friend-referrals I can get!

Thanks, and I hope you like the new site!

Continued Success for Singer Celebration!

One of the popular events I host each month is Singer Celebration. I’ve written about it on this blog elsewhere, but I thought I’d mention that there is a big Holiday Edition of this event coming up this Saturday night.

Details: Singer Celebration, Sat, Dec 17th, DLV Lounge, 300 Bloomfield Ave, Montclair, NJ. 9pm to midnight. SINGERS are welcome to come and sing a favorite Jazz, Blues or Holiday tune with my swingin’ band! It’s a great opportunity to meet lots of other singers from the area.

And if you are interested in live music performances in New Jersey, please look at my Facebook page: @CarolDeminskiProductions. There you will find a list of events.

Another place you can find more information is Carol Deminski Productions. I have music videos, photos, along with other tasty goodies you will enjoy!

We will continue on with Singer Celebration in 2017 too….

For the January Show, we will have an amazing Featured Jazz Vocalist!

For the February Show, our Featured Vocalist will be a fabulous Blues singer!

 

 

Singer Celebration – Aug 27th

It’s getting to be that time again, for another Singer Celebration event at the DLV Lounge in Montclair, NJ. On Aug 27th, I’ll be hosting this end-of-Summer get together for jazz singers and musicians!

Saturday, August 27th, from 9pm-12M, DLV Lounge, 300 Bloomfield Ave, Montclair, NJ.

I’m happy to say that the band that’s been playing at these events (since March) has had a lot of the same players. This time, we’ll have most of the same guys back again, including Steve Johnson – trombone, JJ Bell – tenor sax, Jim Bogle – trumpet, Michael Mittelsdorf – drums, Jon Boudrot – guitar (and this time, also ukulele) and Billy Carrion Jr. – bass.

Ahh, but who will be on the keyboard? I’m glad you asked! We will be fortunate to have the talented Max Marshall, who you may also sometimes find playing keys at Cleopatra’s Needle in Manhattan.

But, if you know the Singer Celebration program, you also know there is usually a featured singer. And this coming show is no different. I’m proud to announce that John Bianchi will be not just our featured vocalist for the evening, he will also be on the bandstand playing clarinet for the night … bringing our amazing bandstand to a whopping 8 players.

Not only can John sing and play clarinet, he also plays saxophone, guitar and as you see in this photo, he rocks a mean ukulele too. As you might imagine for someone so talented, John also writes his own songs, and on show night he will perform “I’m Going Back to My Dreams” one of his original compositions. (I have heard him sing this piece, so trust me when I say you will not want to miss his charming performance!)

And what, if anything, is still missing for show night?

YOU, that’s what!

There are so many talented jazz singers that have come through to perform during these events, I’m very grateful to have all of you participate! I’m hoping to see some folks that have been supporters from the beginning (you know who you are!) as well as some new faces too!

Please join us, Saturday, August 27th, from 9pm-12 midnight … DLV Lounge, 300 Bloomfield Ave, Montclair, NJ.

The DLV doesn’t charge a cover, although our hard working band appreciates tips.

Hope to see you there!

May 7th at the DLV Lounge!

“Carol Deminski and the Little Jazz Birds” will be playing at the DLV Lounge in Montclair, NJ on Saturday night, May 7, 2016, from 9p-12M.

Please join me and my band, including keyboard, bass, drums, trumpet and trombone … sit ins welcome! I’ll be the hostess and lead vocalist. We’ll have two featured vocalists, along with many expected guest singers. It will be FUN for participants and audience alike!

The DLV is a small club which emphasizes live jazz. They have jazz jams on Tuesday and Thursday (9-11:30p), special Latin Jazz nights, and other jazz performances. The DLV is homey and inviting, with reasonably priced drinks and a newly opened kitchen offering comfort food. DLV Lounge, 300 Bloomfield Avenue, Montclair, NJ, 07042.

 

 

 

Why A Singer Has to Be Every Instrument

Me singing St. Louis Blues at a jazz jam. 12-7-14

I began my journey as a singer only about 5 months ago, when I started taking jazz vocal lessons. In early September I got up and sang in public for the first time, and by mid-October I had a “debut night” for friends, and since then I’ve been singing at jazz jams at least twice a week… sometimes more.

There are so many lessons I’ve learned by getting up and singing in public. What I’d like to reflect on today is how a singer needs to be every instrument.

There are a lot of things I mean when I say that.

First, a singer has to have a strong sense of time, and needs to be in the groove with the rhythm section. While the singer doesn’t have to be a drummer, it certainly helps when a strong sense of time is embedded in your brain. Some singers sing ahead of, or behind the beat. In order to do that well, you have to have an impeccable sense of timing.

When I sing a song all the way through, and then the band begins doing their solos, I have to know exactly where I am in the song so that I can come back in after the solos and begin singing again to complete the song.

Singers sometimes get “lost” in the tune and don’t know where to come back in, either because they lost count, or they don’t have the lyrics running in their head, or both. A good keyboardist will “cover” for the singer’s error, and just keep playing the tune again until the moment to come in comes back around again, and if you’re sitting in the audience you may see the guy on the keys give a nod or a little signal to the singer to come back in. More advanced singers don’t need these signals, because they know exactly when to come back in.

Beyond that, a singer has to be listening for the changes that the keyboardist is playing to sing a tune with proper pitch. Of course, the singer should have the proper pitch in their head first, and the correct note can come out whether there is music playing or not, but when you are at a jazz jam, what if the keyboard player didn’t hear your key correctly and starts playing your tune in the wrong key? You’d better not start singing until you correct him.

Aside from that, the human voice – as an instrument – should be flexible enough to create sounds that are more “flute-like” or “trumpet-like,” depending on what is desired. If you listen to the live recording of Ella Fitzgerald in Berlin doing Blue Skies, in her scat solo she often sounds like a trumpet. Words like “bop” “dee” and “dot” can sound like a trumpet when sung.

To me, one of the greatest aspects of singing live jazz is the fantastic collaboration a singer can have with a band, to get things swinging and then everybody has a great time.

What experiences have you had, as a musician or a singer, that you’d share with others when it comes to creating the best possible performance?