Vocalist Cecile McLorin Salvant Makes Segerstrom Center Debut This Weekend

Segerstrom Center welcomes emerging vocalist Cecile McLorin Salvant in four powerful performances this weekend, November 14 & 15 in Samueli Theater and will be accompanied by virtuoso pianist/composer Aaron Diehl.

"I've never heard a singer of her generation who has such a command of styles," remarks Diehl of his collaborator McLorin Salvant, who is one of today's most highly regarded jazz artists.

Her soulful style and creative energy have garnered her a Grammy nomination and great critical acclaim. Dubbed "the Real Diehl" by Wynton Marsalis, pianist Diehl is introducing a whole new generation to the music of keyboard greats such as Duke Ellington, Art Tatum and Mary Lou Williams.

Tickets for Ce?cile McLorin Salvant with Aaron Diehl start at $69 and will go on sale Sunday, October 12 at 10 a.m. PT. Tickets will be available online at SCFTA.org, at the Box Office at 600 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa or by calling (714) 556-2787. For inquiries about group ticket savings for 10 or more, call the Group Services office at (714) 755-0236. The TTY number is (714) 556-2746.

When Ce?cile McLorin Salvant arrived at the Kennedy Center in Washington, D.C. to compete in the finals of the 2010 Thelonious Monk International Jazz Competition, she was not only the youngest finalist, but also a mystery woman with the most unusual background of any of the participants. When she walked away with first place in the jazz world's most prestigious contest, the buzz began almost immediately. If anything, it has intensified in the months leading up to the launch of her Mack Avenue Records debut, WomanChild.

In the wake of her triumph at the Monk Competition, the jazz world eagerly awaited the winner's first U.S. recording. Answering that call with WomanChild, McLorin Salvant draws on songs spanning three centuries of American music. WomanChild was nominated for the 2014 Grammy Award for Best Jazz Vocal Album. McLorin Salvant may have the deepest roots in the jazz idiom of any singer of her generation. She knows the sounds and styles of modern jazz but also possesses complete command of the classic blues and early American vocal tradition. She has studied the entire recorded legacy of the great Bessie Smith (1894-1937), often called the Empress of the Blues, and also is thoroughly familiar with Valaida Snow, Bert Williams and other early masters of American music. For McLorin Salvant, these musicians are exponents of living traditions that she has drawn into the orbit of her own work.

However, McLorin Salvant can't be described as simply a jazz traditionalist. Alongside fellow Monk Competition winner Jacky Terrasson, she has recorded works by John Lennon/Yoko Ono and Erik Satie, and sings in French, Spanish or English as the mood and situation warrant. Knowledgeable jazz fans can identify the influence and inspiration from some of the most distinctive modern jazz stylists, such as Betty Carter, Carmen McRae and Abbey Lincoln. She is also currently continuing her studies of the classical and baroque tradition. In short, McLorin Salvant is a seeker and a creative spirit who is determined to push ahead, even while she shows an extraordinary command of the tradition that has preceded her.

Aaron Diehl seeks to stand out in his era as an artist who exemplifies quality, authenticity and a fluency in the American musical vernacular. The 2011 Cole Porter Fellow of the American Pianists Association, Diehl has been hailed by The New York Times as "a smart young pianist with a fastidious grasp of jazz traditions." He is committed to unearthing the treasures of a rich musical language through collaborative efforts with artists across generations.

In 2002, Diehl was a finalist in Jazz at Lincoln Center's Essentially Ellington competition and was recognized with the award for Outstanding Soloist. The following year, he was invited to tour with the Wynton Marsalis Septet on their European tour. He graduated from The Juilliard School in 2007 and has studied with Kenny Barron, Oxana Yablonskaya and Eric Reed. He is a Martin E. Segal Award recipient.

Diehl released his first live album in 2008, a solo concert recorded at the Caramoor Festival. In 2010, Live at the Players featured two of his working trios - David Wong and Paul Sikivie on bass, along with Quincy Davis and Lawrence Leathers on drums. His latest release, The Bespoke Man's Narrative (Mack Avenue), is the current product of Diehl's ensemble cultivation, influenced partly by John Lewis and the Modern Jazz Quartet. He is the recipient of the 2013 Jazz Journalist Association's Up-and-Coming Musician of the Year Award.

To learn more about Segerstrom Center's Jazz Series, visit: www.scfta.org/jazz.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts is unique as both an acclaimed arts institution and as a multi- disciplinary cultural campus. It is committed to supporting artistic excellence on all of its stages, offering unsurpassed experiences, and engaging the entire community in new and exciting ways through the unique power of live performance and a diverse array of inspiring programs.

Previously called the Orange County Performing Arts Center, Segerstrom Center traces its roots back to the late 1960s when a dedicated group of community leaders decided Orange County should have its own world-class performing arts venue.

As Orange County's largest non-profit arts organization, Segerstrom Center for the Arts owns and operates the 3,000-seat Segerstrom Hall and intimate 250-seat Founders Hall, which opened in 1986, and the 2,000-seat Rene?e and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall, which opened in 2006 and also houses the 500-seat Samueli Theater, the Lawrence and Kristina Dodge Education Center's studio performance space and Boeing Education Lab. A spacious arts plaza anchors Segerstrom Center for the Arts and is home to numerous free performances throughout the year as part of Segerstrom Center for the Arts' ongoing Free for All series.

The Center presents a broad range of programming each season for audiences of all ages from throughout Orange County and beyond, including international ballet and dance, national tours of top Broadway shows, intimate performances of jazz and cabaret, contemporary artists, classical music performed by renowned chamber orchestras and ensembles, family-friendly programming, free performances open to the public from outdoor movie screenings to dancing on the plaza and many other special events. It offers many education programs designed to inspire young people through the arts. These programs reach hundreds of thousands of students of all ages with vital arts-in-education programs, enhancing their studies and enriching their lives well into the future.

In addition to the presenting and producing institution Segerstrom Center for the Arts, the 14-acre campus also embraces the facilities of two independent acclaimed organizations: Tony Award® -winning South Coast Repertory and a site designated as the future home of the Orange County Museum of Art.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts is also proud to serve as the artistic home to three of the region's major performing arts organizations: Pacific Symphony, the Philharmonic Society of Orange County and the Pacific Chorale, who contribute greatly to the artistic life of the region with annual seasons at Segerstrom Center for the Arts.