Cécile McLorin Salvant - Dreams and Daggers (2017)

Vocalist Cécile McLorin Salvant is an adept jazz singer who came to the public's attention after winning the 2010 Thelonious Monk Jazz Vocal Competition. Born in Miami, Florida to a French mother and Haitian father, Salvant was interested in music from a young age. She began piano lessons at age five, and by age eight was singing with the Miami Choral Society. She studied classical voice privately before enrolling at the Darius Milhaud Conservatory in Aix-en-Provence, France, where she studied law as well as classical voice. It was during this time, studying and performing with reed player Jean-François Bonnel, that she became increasingly interested in jazz performance. She released her European debut album, Cécile, in 2009. A year later, she took home the top honor at the Thelonious Monk Vocal Jazz Competition in Washington, D.C. Subsequently, Salvant performed with a variety of artists and appeared on pianist Jacky Terrasson's 2012 album, Gouache.

In 2013, Salvant released her U.S. debut album, WomanChild, on Mack Avenue Records. Showcasing a mix of originals and standards, it also featured contributions from Jazz at Lincoln Center regulars pianist Aaron Diehl, bassist Rodney Whitaker, guitarist James Chirillo, and drummer Herlin Riley. Highly acclaimed, the album garnered Salvant a Grammy nomination for Best Jazz Vocal Album. Two years later, she returned with her second album for Mack Avenue, For One to Love. Once again, it found Salvant backed by pianist Diehl, along with bassist Paul Sikivie and drummer Lawrence Leathers. Also well received, it reached number two on Billboard's U.S. Jazz Albums chart. The album also earned the singer her first Grammy Award when she took home the prize for Best Vocal Album of 2016. The following year Salvant delivered her third effort, the double-disc Dreams and Daggers. Recorded live at the Village Vanguard and New York's DiMenna Center, it featured accompaniment by her regular trio with Diehl, Sikivie, and Leathers, as well as pianist Sullivan Fortner and the Catalyst Quartet. ~ Matt Collar