October 21 An Evening with Vocalist Michelle Lordi
Colton Weatherston- guitar
Robert Mervak-piano
John Dana- bass
“An emotionally insightful performer with an arrestingly beautiful sound”-Andrew Gilbert, San Francisco Chronicle.
A singer blessed with a sumptuous voice and persuasive sense of swing, Michelle Lordi turns each musical encounter into an emotionally charged communion, creating an exhilarating circuit between her voice, her collaborators and the audience.
Whether she’s stretching out with Philadelphia or New York jazz legends, exploring experimental soundscapes, or delivering taut, mesmerizing pop ballads with The Bad Plus pianist Orrin Evans, Lordi is looking for those moments of discovery when the unfolding musical narrative reveals something new and unexpected. She is comfortable exploring an array of musical currents, but is most drawn to jazz.
Her critically hailed 2015 album Drive centered on her collaboration with fellow Philadelphian Orrin Evans, the brilliant pianist who produced the project and accompanied her on a luscious, ballad-laden program. She followed up with 2017’s Dream a Little Dream, a briskly swinging set of standards featuring some of Philly’s most revered jazz veterans, particularly tenor saxophonist Larry McKenna and guitarist Sonny Troy.
Singing with poise and purpose, Lordi draws creative sustenance from these well-traveled musicians, who’ve played an essential role in her growth. “I really owe this album Sonny and Larry and that session, and it reflects all of the fun we’ve had at Vintage,” says Lordi, referring to the weekly jam session she launched in the fall of 2014 at Vintage Bar & Grill in Abington, a town a few miles north of Philadelphia.