Fay Victor

Vocalist, Composer, Lyricist

In command, infectious, energetic and strong: Fay Victor hypnotizes audiences, whether she sings a blues, sculpts a free piece, reinvents a Herbie Nichols tune through her own lyrics, or effortlessly scats over the harmonies of a jazz standard. Her musicality is deft and the words (usually hers) speak of universal themes in story-driven ways, running the full gamut of human emotion in an original mix of traditional song forms and free improvisation – she prefers to call it “FreeSong” – that has become her trademark approach to improvised vocal music. This trademark just garnered her latest release, The FreeSong Suite, as Jason Crane’s TOP Pick for 2009, 4^th Place in the Village Voice Jazz Critics Poll and a spot on the best of lists in AllAboutJazz-New York for 2009 Vocal Release. Tremendous attention for an all-original avant-garde vocal project.

At the beginning of the nineties, Ms. Victor began building a name as a jazz vocalist around NY performing primarily jazz standards and blues. After navigating the city clubs for a few years and having formed her first working trio, Victor needed a fresh start and more work and followed the call the Europe. Victor made Amsterdam, the Netherlands her home, living in that city for nearly 8 years. The experience was a fruitful one. Victor used this time to study and hone her distinctive sound, her ear and widen her musical horizons that made the transition from a singer of standards to the unique vocal artist she has become today, a vocalist coming from the jazz tradition as a basis for improvising in the sense of Ornette Coleman/late Coltrane and beyond contrasted by an earthy soulfulness expressed through originals that offer taut construction and witty lyrics. Ms Victor voice and approach is about embracing the gamut of musical expression in an effortless way and talking about the small details that mean so much to so many.

Victor returned home to New York City in 2003 and since then has been one of the most active vocalist on the scene, stretching her voice around the city, touting her groups into clubs, constantly developing new material and forging new collaborations that are taking her as far away as Moscow, Russia.

Victor has appeared at venues/festivals including the BAMCafe Live, The Stone, Roulette/Location One, Het Bimhuis (Amsterdam, The Netherlands),Poklad (Gdynia, Poland), Galapagos Art Space, Barbes, CBGB’s, The Vision Festival Series, MusikTrienniale, FireHouse 12, Cornelia Street Café, Tonic, 55 Bar, The HOWL Festival and the River to River Festival. Outside the USA, Victor’s international appearances are extensive, having performed in the Netherlands, Spain, Belgium, Germany, France, Sweden, Austria, Andorra, Mexico, India, Poland, Russia & Japan. She has collaborated with musicians such Misha Mengelberg, Lawrence “Butch” Morris, Gary Lucas, Steve Coleman, Roswell Rudd, Tim Daisy, Fred Lonberg-Holm, Vijay Iyer, reedist Michael Moore, Duck Baker, Connie Crothers, Tyshawn Sorey, Matana Roberts, Tomas Ulrich, Dom Minasi, Eric Mingus, Andrew Bemkey, John Hebert, Dean Bowman, Wolter Wierbos, Anton Goudsmit, Michael Vatcher, Curtis Clark , the ICP Orkest, the Vince Giordino and Duke Ellington Orchestras.

Besides performance engagements and teaching Ms. Victor curates an experimental weekly vocal series through RUCMA and Arts for Arts, Inc in New York City. The Evolving Voice Vocal Series focuses on vocalists with strong vocal personalities and clear musical & conceptual vision.  The series has garnered acclaim from participants and audiences alike for its eclecticism and quality of programming. For more information on the series, please visit rucma.org.