Tish Oney's Music Blog

I love being what some refer to as a "crossover artist." All it really means is that you are good at more than one thing: you excel as a singer in multiple genres. Being one such type of performer gives me the opportunity to stretch different vocal mechanism muscles (really!), hone my precision and technique, challenge myself musically and intellectually, and keep from being bored singing in one style. The main thing I keep in mind is that I strive to be an expert in whatever style I'm singing, rather than dwelling on the "C" word ("crossover"). I sing "classical" or "legit" soprano repertoire (baroque and contemporary art music mostly, but also classic and romantic period material in 6 languages) from the standpoint of being a specialist in those genres rather than as a jazz singer dabbling in crossover. Likewise, I sing jazz from the perspective of a specialist in that genre, calling to mind the greats who have gone before m...

I was honored today to receive an email informing me that my CD will be featured over this weekend (June 25-27) on Dick Robinson's internationally-syndicated radio show, " American Standards By the Sea ." I went to their website today and was delighted to hear a show dedicated to my favorite singer, the late Ella Fitzgerald. Ella was featured with Duke Ellington's band, in a duet with Stevie Wonder (which took my breath away) and in a number of other settings. She is always so refreshing and restores to me the wonderful state of mind that excellent music has always brought to me...it's mesmerizing and so very fulfilling to hear that kind of musical and poetic perfection. Anyhow, I was struck by the reality that I am now one of the torch-bearers for this increasingly-important-to-preserve Great American Songbook. I'm a contemporary musician who has selected this genre in which to grow and develop, both as an artist and a songwriter. I am humbled and thankf...

April 15 I conducted a master class for jazz students and voice majors at Syracuse University 's Setnor School of Music in conjunction with a concert I performed on April 18: " Tish Oney--The Peggy Lee Project " featuring esteemed guitarist John Chiodini . Having directed collegiate-level vocal jazz ensembles for a number of years, I most often am asked to provide coaching for an entire collective group at once. However, since the SU Vocal Jazz Ensemble (directed by pianist Bill DiCosimo ) had already completed its final concert of the school year, I instead offered a soloist's master class and worked with individual students in the jazz combo setting (accompanied by piano, bass and drums). We focused on jazz stylization, interpretation, mic technique, improvisation and whatever else I felt the students needed in the short twelve minutes I had with each. Most of these students had almost never worked one-on-one with a microphone, which was a...