On Friday 28 March rising West Country based jazz vocalist Heather Wensley will be singing lively jazz and gentle bossa novas combined with sultry blues and exquisite ballads, at the Bridport Arts Centre Jazz Café. She will be accompanied by pianist Philip Clouts who was recently featured on the BBC Jamie Cullum Show with his latest CD release. Heather was the first person to perform at the Bridport Jazz Café when it launched in 2010.
After studying music performance and advanced vocal technique to degree level in Manchester, Heather’s reputation as a vocalist has gone from strength to strength, delighting and enchanting audiences wherever she performs. Heather’s extensive performing experience ranges from five star hotels in the Mediterranean to jazz clubs and session work, performing bossa nova, soul, jazz and big band swing. Influenced by artists as diverse as Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone and Chaka Khan, Heather has developed her own unique and unforgettable singing style.
Heather developed an interest in music from an early age. After studying Performing Arts at college she continued her studies at Salford University where she gained her BA Hons Degree in Music. During her time in Manchester Heather sang with the Salford University Big Band and performed with a gospel choir, singing at Manchester’s prestigious venue ‘Band on the Wall,’ Heather has performed in Covent Garden, Piccadilly, at The Lowry Centre and many other venues as a jazz singer and as backing vocalist with a leading 10 piece Stevie Wonder Tribute Band.
Heather is a much sought-after vocal teacher, currently teaching at Bristol Cathedral Choir School and Clifton College.Her own band ‘The Heather Wensley Quartet’ has taken her all over the UK and abroad performing for festivals, arts centres and private clients including Jasper Conran, Harvey Nichols and many exclusive hotels. She also performs as a guest with the popular ‘Swing Machine Jazz Orchestra’ which features some of the top musicians in the UK.
Friday 28 March Bridport Arts Centre, South Street, DT6 3NR
8pm £10 Box Office 01308 424204
http://www.bridport-arts.com/events/category/music/
