Marianne Solivan has established herself as a passionate, hard-swinging vocalist known for her commanding stage presence. She captivates audiences with her joyful exuberance and wit. Having performed and recorded with notable artists such as Christian McBride, Peter Bernstein, Jeremy Pelt, Bruce Barth, Gregory Hutchinson, Jonathan Blake, Xavier Davis, Michael Kanan, Steve Wilson, Gene Bertoncini, and Lewis Nash, Solivan consistently raises the bar for singers of her generation. Following the release of her recent album, “Break’s Over,” we caught up with her to discuss her career.
Marianne, thank you for agreeing to take time out of your busy schedule to speak with Occhi Magazine. Before we discuss “Break’s Over,” could you tell us about the mentors and influences who shaped your early musical development?
I was so lucky to have an amazing high school music teacher, Helen T Taylor. She transformed my life and really showed me how music could be a real part of my future. She was full of enthusiasm and kindness but would put you in your place in a moment if need be. She loved music and it spilled out of her in her singing and piano playing. She was my biggest supporter when I decided to go to school for music and she helped me get it together to move to NYC after I graduated. Her love for music, expression, and the connection that it offered you with other musicians and the community at large was passed on to me and became the reason I became a musician.
Were there specific vocalists or musicians who particularly inspired your approach to jazz?
When I first started learning about Jazz I was in love with Ella, her voice seemed to wrap itself around me in warmth and I couldn’t get enough of it. As I learned more about the tradition Carmen McRae rose to the top of the ladder in my heart. I felt a kinship with her and her matter-a-fact phrasing and feel. Once I got deeper into the music, I found Betty Carter and that really took me to a new place. Her freedom, sheer creativity, and drive inspired me to dig more into what I had to say and how to say it in my own way. Carmen and Betty are still my favorite vocalists, though. Of course, there are so many that I love, they have and continue to have a deep effect on me.
From performing five or six gigs a week in Boston to now releasing “Break’s Over” with jazz legend Buster Williams, how has your approach to storytelling through jazz evolved?
Oh, well I think it’s changed a great deal. There was a good amount of time in my early years when I didn’t really have much life experience and I didn’t know how exactly to express myself, additionally, I think I thought I was supposed to show you, the listener, what I knew about “Jazz”, like I was being tested. It took many years of performing and personal life growth to become ok with and then confident in, my open and honest expression of a lyric. I also had to learn how to pick better material for myself, material that I connected with and understood how to communicate. Once that all started coming together, I began to feel much more inspired and clearer on what I enjoyed singing and how to deliver it to an audience. It’s still an evolving process but one that I’m much more secure in. I want to share stories, feelings, and experiences with you, I want you to get to know me, I want us to share a moment of authenticity.
“Break’s Over” explores themes of passion, loss, despair, and light. How have your experiences – from Berklee to teaching at Syracuse University – influenced the emotional depth we hear in this album?
Oh goodness! Well, I’ve lived, that’s for sure. I’ve had so many ups and downs and countless adventures. Berklee was the beginning of my life as a real musician, not just a singer, but a musician. This has allowed me to be in a position of creative control over the music I make and participate in. This is a gift. I’ve been teaching voice, ensembles, and theory for over 20 years in some capacity. It’s made me a better musician and forced me to keep growing in my craft. All the technical things I can do and know allow my creative side to grow.
Outside of my own experiences that I’m bringing into the music, I’m relying on everything that the band will bring to it as well. I want to feed of everything they give me and see how it affects me musically and how I then respond. That’s the best part of playing with others!
You’ve worked with numerous jazz greats throughout your career, from Christian McBride to Peter Bernstein, and now Buster Williams on your latest album. How do these collaborations shape your growth as an artist?
Well, they all helped show me how this music and tradition were to be presented, played, and how it all can move forward. Some helped me understand my role as a vocalist better, some it was musicality and flow, some helped me better understand my role as a bandleader, and even how to walk into a room, venue, and stage and exude the joy and energy that I have in me. They all helped me figure out how to do what I do and keep getting better. I’ve been very blessed to have met many amazing musicians at a time in my life when I was eager to learn, and they were open to sharing their experiences and expertise with me.
As the leader of the only female-fronted big band and now releasing an intimate quartet album, how do these different ensemble formats allow you to express your artistic vision?
I’ll start by saying I don’t think I was the only female-fronted big band…. At the time I believe I was the only one in NYC, but that’s changed now, thank goodness!
Working with a big band is a world of difference to playing in small groups. In a big band my role is pretty set, and I must fit into the arrangement, though I do leave myself some room to stretch, I’m meant to sing with 12 other musicians and much of the music needs us to be inline together, so I must keep that in mind with my musical choices. With a small group there is so much more opportunity to go outside the form, the arrangement, and the feel or time. If we are all listening and being clear, we can go wherever the music takes us and then return to the original plan at any time. I try and be clear on what I’d like to express before I get a big band arrangement made, so that I leave enough room for my choices and don’t feel fenced in. Then, working with the arranger, we create a roadmap together that feels right.
Your journey from Smoke Supper Club jam sessions to recording “Break’s Over” is remarkable. What key moments led you to develop the confident, emotive style we hear on this new album?
Oh yes, there’ve been lots of moments that have guided me since my days of going to the Smoke Jam sessions. I think maybe the most important element for me, in my growth, has been the consistency of my performing. When I got to NYC, still green in many ways, one thing I had under my belt was a good deal of gigging experience. Though those first few years in NYC were not too busy for me performing wise, I did get on a nice path in the following years and started working a lot. I think those years of consistent performing with all sorts of musicians and bands, large and small, really were my training ground. I was out gigging, checking out music, or sitting in most very night of the week. That really shaped my approach and grew my ability. I also surrounded myself with musicians who were way better than I was and am. Folks that cared about sharing tips with me and pulling my coat is I was going in the wrong direction. I did my best to stay in those circles because they kept me focused.
The new album showcases both standards and original compositions. How does your role as an educator at Syracuse University influence your approach to composing and arranging?
Hmmm.. that’s a good question….I find that my teaching keeps me in a thought process of exploration and challenge. Since I spend a good deal of my teaching time in conversations with students about how they are working on their music and arranging their tunes, I find myself wanting to also push myself to write more and find ways to shape around me rather than fit myself into them. These conversations also keep me searching for new approaches not only to how I arrange music for myself and the band but also how I deliver the song and how I can stay flexible and expressive vocally. It’s a beautiful thing to have a job that supports your own artistic growth while sharing that info with others and watching them grow artistically.
“Break’s Over” features a masterful trio creating beautiful musical energy. How does this intimate setting compare to your big band leadership experience?
It’s quite different to sing and flow in a small group setting. We all have more options on when and where to stretch than in the big band. With a smaller band, it’s much more feasible to go off the chart or arrangement, improvisationally, and have the others follow. This gives the music a more open feel which I love. And working with Brandon, Jay, and Buster takes that to another level because there is so much trust there.
Your singing has been described as “honest storytelling with a modern sense of self.” How does this new album, particularly your original compositions, reflect this description?
Ha! Well, I love that description, and I appreciate whoever stated it. Thank you! I say this often, if you come hear me live or listen to all my records closely, you will get to know me rather well. I’m transparent about who I am and how I feel about things through the repertoire I choose and compose. My originals are very honest and allow me to be open with my thoughts and feelings, sometimes of flirtation, loss, positivity towards the future and frustration. I’m not interested in trying to be anything but me and I want the listen to get to know who I am. That’s part of my we express….to build connection.
Between teaching, performing worldwide, and recording, how do you balance these different aspects of your career, and how did they inform the making of “Break’s Over”?
Balance….that’s my goal, though I’m never sure I’m getting close to finding it. But I’m a lucky woman. Most everything I do in my life has music at the center of it. All these different parts of my life and work feed my musical life and my creative spirit. This is a huge blessing! I feel the closest to any kind of balance when I can have all these parts flowing one to the other, teaching a bit then going on a tour abroad, followed by time at home making music with my favorite colleagues, then performing in NYC, and doing that all over again and again. This flow had slowed and become imbalanced during COVID and when things begin to open again, I knew that I had to jump back into recording as soon as I was able. Putting this record together felt like I needed to jump fully back into making music my priority and doing all I could to perform as much as possible. It’s been getting better and better since the recording and I’m feeling very positive about what’s to come in 2025.
Looking back at your early mentors and forward to your role now mentoring students at Syracuse, how has your understanding of jazz education evolved, and how does this influence your latest work?
My biggest mentors have been very clear that you must be out doing and not just thinking or practicing. This is a sentiment that I strongly agree with. I believe one needs to immerse themselves into the music they want to play. Surround yourself with its practitioners, be part of the community, learn the history and traditions, build your craft, and go out and put it all into practice by performing. Practicing alone will not get you there. You need to go out and play with others, that’s when you can see what works and does not, in your practicing.
Where can our readers find out more about you?
I’m on all the social media’s and would love for you to follow and say hello! My website is a great place to hear music, see videos, and find out where I’m playing next. And I’m very open to emails and DM’s on all platforms if you have a question or just want to say hello.
Instagram: @jazzinmind
TikTok: @jazzinmindms
Facebook: @Marianne-Solivan
Youtube: @MSjazzinmind
Website: www.Mariannesolivanjazz.com
Email: jazzinmind@gmail.com
Marianne Solivan at Birdland Theater 2019 Caroline Conejero
additional photos by Adrien H Tillmann & Maria Garcia Terrier
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