Connie Lansberg
Oakleigh East, Victoria, Australia | SELF
Music
Press
Steve Robertson “Jazz on Saturday” PBS 106.7
SHE HAS HIGH EXPECTATIONS
Some of the brightest stars in the jazz singing firmament have also enjoyed distinguished careers as actresses. Think of Annie Ross, for example, or Julie London or Cleo Laine. Peggy Lee, Billie Holiday all had a go at screen acting while enjoying fruitful careers as much-admired vocalists. So it should be no surprise that Melbourne’s own Connie Lansberg has won raves, not just for her singing talents but also for her acting, which, unlike most of the others, actually came first. Even though acting is a glamour job, it has never replaced Connie’s love of music. As a child she sang and played guitar, in pop bands, mostly. The appreciation for jazz didn’t arrive until later. Working in her original pop group meant discovering another love, dance. And that’s exactly what she does in her regular singing dates at Dizzy’s Jazz "Club, the vocalist of choice for the much-admired Dizzy’s Big Band on Wednesday nights. She’s also been known to cha cha or boogie through a tune with her own small combo at Manchester Lane, the elegant mid-city Melbourne eatery with delectable music four nights a week.
With the big band, the repertoire is strictly standards. Teach Me Tonight is a special favorite; so is Blue Skies or All The Things You Are. Others in her vast repertoire include Georgia, It’s Alright With Me, Lullaby of Birdland, and a really unique version of Cry Me A River. At Manchester Lane, she’s more likely to treat her audience to some of her many original compositions.
But whether it’s something old or something very new, the song, especially the feelings behind it, comes through with crystal clarity. Not simply because Connie possesses the actor’s gift of good enunciation and projection. No, it’s more than that. It’s the way she obviously thinks about what the lyrics mean, perhaps how their message might resonate in her own life. It’s the actress in her. She’s playing her part, and she’s also living the words, living their meaning.
Poised, beautiful and stylishly attired (“my closet is crammed with lovely clothes, and I want to wear them all,” she moans), Connie commands her audience’s attention from the first note. Unlike some singers, she maintains a delightful (and often quite sexy) eye contact with her listeners. No staring off into the lights or the exit signs for her -Connie is very involved, not just with the crowd, but with each individual in it. To say that her male listeners find this quality extremely attractive…would be an understatement.
And the singing? It’s clear, powerful, intimate and in tune, all at the same time. Her breath control is flawless and she uses it to master the dynamics of the song, even over the roar of a big band.
- Steve Robertson PBS Saturday Morning Jazz
Customer Reviews
High Expectations will meet and exceed anyone’s expectations for a jazz album.
by Ariel H
Connie Lansberg has a voice that will melt your heart with her smooth jazz stylings. This Aussie songbird is bound to win over fans of Tierney Sutton, Sade and Diana Krall. Her voice is full of emotion and easily sets the mood for romance.
On her CD High Expectations she takes you on a journey through some of jazz’s best standards such as “Blue Moon” and “Down With Love” Her voice seems to glide over the familiar words of the songs. After a few minutes you’ll find yourself swaying in time to the music.
One particular song, “Teach Me Tonight” a song made famous by Frank Sinatra, stands out amongst all the others. Connie delivers the song about the discovery of love with sweetness and a hint of sensuality, that would prompt any lover to teach her what she wanted to learn.
Connie also breathes new life into the bluesy “Georgia” a song most listeners will associate with Ray Charles, but when Connie sings it, she makes it her own. Her voice will soon have you forgetting any other version of this song you might have heard.
Connie will woo you with her seductive, come hither voice on songs like “Even So” and “Sugar.” These are two songs that you can fall in love to, while falling in love with them. Connie’s music really sets the mood for love, no matter what part of the relationship she’s singing about.
Its not just Connie’s voice that draws you in, its also the expert playing of the members of her band that provide the backdrop for her sophisticated vocals. When the two are combined you have the perfect cocktail to delight your senses. On this album Connie is joined by Matt Boden on piano, Steve Hadley on bass and Peter Hodges on drums.
High Expectations will meet and exceed anyone’s expectations for a jazz album. With Connie’s seductive voice you really can’t go wrong. - iTunes
Meet Connie Lansberg:
Connie Lansberg is a singer/songwriter who performs original folk/pop-jazz and smooth jazz. She is a vocal interpreter of the wonderful stories told by the American Songbook and beyond. She uses her voice in such a way as to reveal and tease out even the most subtle of nuances that define these beautiful songs. Reminiscent of Blossom Dearie and June Christy, but with the modern edge of Everything But the Girl and Sting, Connie Lansberg creates light and shade and sings with an unselfconscious joy that is truly infectious and enfolds the listener within the melody so that each performance is a shared experience that leaves no one out.
Instrument(s):
Vocal/songwriting.
Teachers and/or influences?
Danny Stone was the first singing teacher who told me I should sing jazz. I fell in love with the songs, then Sarah Vaughan, Blossom Dearie, Anita O'Day, June Christy and only then Ella Fitzgerald. Then Nancy Wilson, Carmen McRae... the list goes on.
I knew I wanted to be a musician when...
I played the guitar in church when I was young and also the flute but I didn't want to be a musician until I discovered songwriting. I don't play anything well enough to write on it so my songs start with the story then the music compliments the tone of the story.
Your sound and approach to music:
The pop thing was just not working. I started gigging live with jazz and worked my up to playing with great Melbourne musicians then just threw the originals at them. That's how I discovered my sound. I love Hammond and flute and trumpet the most.
Your teaching approach:
I don't teach.
Your dream band:
I'm actually trying to put a group of female jazz musicians together to compliment my all girl Big Band Connie Lansberg & the Sisters of Sass, Australia's only all female professional Big Band.
Road story: Your best or worst experience:
Well, we here in Melbourne what I like to call the jazz police. I booked a Hammond player who refused to play a single recognizable chord until I had to walk off and then leave them to it! needless to say I never booked him again and never will.
Favorite venue:
I love Manchester Lane in Melbourne. Classy and the sound is fantastic. I like the Rosstown Hotel in Carnegie because it took me four years to get a residency there.
Your favorite recording in your discography and why?
June Christy singing "Remind Me." The orchestration is fantastic.
The first Jazz album I bought was:
Was a Pocket Songs karaoke CD of Sarah Vaughan big band arrangements. I learned how to sing with a big band from that and now I have my own real one!
What do you think is the most important thing you are contributing musically?
Honesty and my unique vibration.
Did you know...
I'm a great hostess but my house just isn't big enough for parties.
CDs you are listening to now:
Joni Mitchell's Shadow & Light;
all June Christy.
Desert Island picks:
Linda Ronstadt's Greatest Hits;
Simon & Garfunkle's Greatest Hits;
June Christy's Night People.
How would you describe the state of jazz today?
We need to figure out how to get young ones out to the gigs.
What are some of the essential requirements to keep jazz alive and growing?
Making it look cool to the next generation. Teaching it in schools in order to appreciate what's going on.
What is in the near future?
I'm doing several new albums, one will be a tribute to June Christy and an original album.
By Day:
I'm writing a film and marketing my first album High Expectations.
If I weren't a jazz musician, I would be a:
Actor/writer. - All About Jazz
Discography
High Expectations
Single:Even So
Single: Crush
All tracks can be heard on CD Baby and Reverbnation
Photos
Bio
CONNIE LANSBERG is a singer/songwriter who performs original folk/pop and cool jazz. She is a vocal interpreter of the wonderful stories told by the American Song Book and beyond. With the Connie Lansberg Quartet, the mood is light, the stories deep. Connie utilizes a committed ensemble of talented jazz artists. Its not just Connie’s voice that draws you in, its also the expert playing of the members of her band that provide the backdrop for her sophisticated and delightful vocals. When the two are combined you have the perfect cocktail to delight your senses. With influences as far flung as jazz greats Blossom Dearie, June Christy and Diana Krall to modern day artists such as Adele and Sting, The Connie Lansberg Quartet is committed to bringing a classic sound into the light of modern music. The band members contract and swell as need be using flute, trumpet, sax and even Hammond to give color and flavor to each unique story.
Connie was lured from LA to Australia with the promise of a record deal but when she arrived, the man who made the promised had died suddenly! Never to be detoured, she met up and became the favorite singer of one of Melbourne’s favorite Big Bands in order to meet as many “real musicians” as possible in the shortest amount of time. The Connie Lansberg Quartet has had, and continues to have, residencies in great Melbourne venues for the past six years and their love of performing live can be felt in every show.
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