Sarah Tolar

Artist Information

Biography

Sarah Tolar's album, Big Blue Moon, gracefully traverses genre by blending her many influences and offering up a record that is both contemporary and timeless. Her jazz leanings infuse style and soul into warm melodies and poignant lyrics, and bring thoughtful musicality to modern songwriting.

Sarah was born into a musical family with professional singers as parents. Though her early influences included mainly folk music, Sarah eventually went on to earn a Masters of Jazz Studies at the University of North Texas. During that time, Sarah was awarded the Downbeat Award for best college female jazz singer. However, her passion for songwriting was not to be ignored. Sarah left Texas and moved to New York City to pursue her career as an original artist. Since that time, Sarah has performed for audiences in New York, Florida, Texas, and California and China and recently opened for five-time Grammy winner Christopher Cross in Washington, DC.

Sarah officially released Big Blue Moon in April 2009. The album, produced by David Cook (Natasha Bedingfield, Jennifer Hudson, Lizz Wright), features some of New York's most talented musicians who, when not playing with Sarah, may be found sharing the stage with Harry Connick Jr, Diana Krall, Natasha Bedingfield, Jennifer Hudson, The Duke Ellington Orchestra, and Cassandra Wilson.

Big Blue Moon tells the story that any debut album might, but in a way you haven't heard it before. Like the aptly-titled first single from the release, Sarah invites listeners to come "Along for the Ride", taking them through her own personal journey both musically and lyrically, and delivering an album that crosses traditional genre boundaries to engage jazz, pop, and folk listeners alike.

Instrumentation

Sarah Tolar - vocals
David Cook- piano and keyboards
Michael Blanco & Alan Hampton - basses
Robin Macatangay & Pete McCann - guitars
Bill Campbell - drums

Discography

BIG BLUE MOON (2008) - NY release April 13th, 2009

Official Website

http://www.sarahtolar.com

Links

• Official EPK (Photo Downloads, etc)
• MySpace
• Facebook
• iTunes

Audio

• ALONG FOR THE RIDE
  Listen  
• EARLY MORNING STILLNESS
  Listen  
• TAKE AWHILE
  Listen  
• Don't Call Me Baby
  Listen  
• COFFEE MAN
  Listen  
• GETTIN BACK TO ME AGAIN
  Listen  
• BIG BLUE MOON
  Listen  

Video

WFSB Better Connecticut - "Early Morning Stillness"

Photo Gallery

Press

• Deena Goodman, Booker, The Canal Room [+ Show ]
  

  Sarah's CD release party at the Canal Room was a huge success. She packed the room and captivated th...Sarah's CD release party at the Canal Room was a huge success. She packed the room and captivated the attention of every person in it with her charisma and charm; a true professional and a true talent!
  
  -- Deena Goodman, Booker, The Canal Room, NYC

• Album Review by Songwriter's Monthly
  

  "Sweety hip."

• Album Review by Chris Spector [+ Show ]
  

  "[a] waify but iron willed singer... a young pro with lite jazz leanings amid her folkie musings, To..."[a] waify but iron willed singer... a young pro with lite jazz leanings amid her folkie musings, Tolar has a lot on the ball and conveys it nicely."

• Album Review by Lara Crombie [+ Show ]
  

  "Tolar proves that contemporary jazz can be sexy, in an unfussy, silk-and-red-wine sort of way...[Bi..."Tolar proves that contemporary jazz can be sexy, in an unfussy, silk-and-red-wine sort of way...[Big Blue] Moon opts for steady sophistication rather than stylized showiness, which speaks well of Tolar’s self-awareness as an artist and makes for a moving debut album." - Lara Crombie, WeHeartMusic.com
  
  Full review at
  http://weheartmusic.vox.com/library/post/sarah-tolar-big-blue-moon.html
  

• Album Review by Paula Edelstein [+ Show ]
  

  "Refreshing....Imbued with the songwriting and vocal qualities of Carole King, Judy Collins and Nora..."Refreshing....Imbued with the songwriting and vocal qualities of Carole King, Judy Collins and Norah Jones. Each song on Big Blue Moon is produced to perfection and should appeal to Tolar’s fans because of their beauty, relevance and intimacy." -- Paula Edelstein, Suite101.com
  
  Full review at: http://contemporary-jazz.suite101.com/article.cfm/sarah_tolar_debuts_big_blue_moon

• Album Review by Wildy Haskell [+ Show ]
  

  "A bright mix of Folk and Jazz with a distinct Pop sensibility that should garner a lot of attention..."A bright mix of Folk and Jazz with a distinct Pop sensibility that should garner a lot of attention for Sarah Tolar. As a songwriter she shows flashes of brilliance...fans who appreciate great music and great songwriting will eat this up."
  
  Full review at: http://wildysworld.blogspot.com/2009/06/review-sarah-tolar-big-blue-moon.html

• Album Review by Paul Paradis [+ Show ]
  

  "...warm, masterfully written music." "Big Blue Moon is an album that will appeal to fans of cont..."...warm, masterfully written music."
  
  "Big Blue Moon is an album that will appeal to fans of contemporary pop/jazz who are looking for something other than yet another rehashing of standards. Solid writing combined with beautiful singing combine to produce a stellar debut by a musician who deserves a huge amount of attention. Sarah Tolar is going places."
  
  Full review at: http://mymindisamuffler.blogspot.com/search?q=sarah+tolar

• Live Review by CulturalCapitol.com [+ Show ]
  

  "Sarah Tolar, a stunning blonde belter, sits in for a few tunes and heats the room, her voice lush w..."Sarah Tolar, a stunning blonde belter, sits in for a few tunes and heats the room, her voice lush with deep-seated generosity. Her take on “Cheek to Cheek” inspires envy, and that casual way of resting one hand on her hip, almost in a half-bend as she hollers… effortlessly sexy."
  

• Album Review by Valerie Smaldone [+ Show ]
  

  "Soothing and evocative...the kind of music you want to hear on a cool Autumn Saturday with coffee b..."Soothing and evocative...the kind of music you want to hear on a cool Autumn Saturday with coffee brewing in the kitchen."

• Album Review by PraiseForWallflower.com [+ Show ]
  

  "Tolar earned her Master's degree in Jazz Studies at the University of North Texas... The album disp..."Tolar earned her Master's degree in Jazz Studies at the University of North Texas... The album displays the knowledge and skills of what Tolar knows best with a folk-country flair" -- PraiseForWallflower.com

Setlist

Sarah customizes her set list to fit the audience and concert type.

Sarah often performs a 45min-1hour set of original jazz/pop/folk music including selections from BIG BLUE MOON and brand new original songs, along with covers by Mac Davis, Joni Mitchell, and/or Willie Nelson.

Sarah also performs a 1-2 hour jazz concert featuring music from The Great American Songbook and Latin-jazz standards, along with jazz influenced original material.

Sarah also performs without her band, accompanying herself on piano.

Basic Requirements

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