Jennifer Isaacs - Jazz Musician
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ARCHIPELAGO OF DELIGHT
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“Puppets' Peccadilloes Astound” "Archipelago of Delight" is a winner for lots of reasons and can satisfy different tastes in musical theater, even as it confounds. I found it a kooky but appealing experiment that is lifted high by many talents, particularly the singing of Jenny [Isaacs] …” “[Isaacs] is likable and charming and showed a firm command of her difficult but wonderfully arresting hedonist anthems, in the performance I attended Saturday. While the piece knits her songs in with the madness the puppets are made to pursue - for they are like her alter egos, venturing down that sinful road – [Isaacs'] performance can be viewed as a feat unto itself, and a satisfying one at that.” |
Full review: Another Review: http://www-unix.oit.umass.edu/~mromero/pdf/periale_puppetry_journal .pdf |
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FROM HER MENTORS…
Harley Erdman:
Harley Erdman is Associate Professor and Chair of the Department of Theater. Teaching specialties include dramaturgy, translation, and theater history. Research interests include Jewish theater, Spanish and Latin-American theater, and community-based theater.
Harley was the Head Lyricist and worked with Jennifer in the original jazz musical, Archipelago of Delight, 2001 (see pictures, listen to music); He describes her below:
“Jenny has the creativity, flair for characterization, and firm grounding in the varieties of popular music stylings to make a name for herself on the musical stage.”
“a real thinking man’s vocalist who took tremendous interest in the specific nuances, meanings, and structures of the lyrics.”
“a jazz chanteuse with the soul of a poet—somebody unusually gifted in both the musical and literary realms.”
Jeff Holmes:
B.M., M.M., Eastman School of Music. Nationally published and commissioned composer/arranger. Two National Endowment for the Arts Grants in Jazz Composition; twice winner of National Association of Jazz Educators Composition Contest.
Jeff and Jenny worked closely together in developing the music for her original musical,
Wrench, 2001 (see pictures, listen to music, watch video: (It's difficult being perfect, Voyage out, Who is she ? )
“I can attest to Jenny’s keen sense of musical invention, theatre, organization, vision, and follow-through—a very impressive package of talent and savvy.”
“Jenny has a fine creative grasp of the Broadway show, and her vocal, lyric, music, and human nature are ripe for any endeavor.”
Catherine Jensen Hole:
B.M., Western Australian Conservatorium of Music; M.M., University of North Texas. Performed as vocal jazz artist in Australia, Great Britain, Indonesia and the U.S. Received two DOWNBEAT magazine awards. Nationally published vocal jazz composer/arranger. Former faculty member and director of Vocal Jazz, Central Washington University. Director, Vocal Jazz Ensemble.
Catherine was Jenny’s vocal jazz mentor at University and had this to say about her protégé and her Undergraduate work:
“You will be satisfied with her ethic of hard work, dedication to a cause, and wonderful, unique, quirky personality.”
“Jenny’s musicianship, maturity, and organizational ability were able to bring her vision successfully to life.”
“She was just as comfortable in the chair of producer as that of composer/performer.”
“She was able to work well both in the role as leader as well as collaborator.”
“Her high level of musicianship was appreciated by both music faculty and her peers, and she brought a professional attitude into all the projects she tackled.”
CLIPPINGS
INTERVIEW with Jennifer Isaacs about Wrench, Archipelago, Daily Hampshire Gazette
REVIEW “Puppets' Peccadilloes Astound”;
Review in the Daily Hampshire Gazette, Amherst.
By Larry Parnass, Staff Writer, Thursday, May 3, 2001
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