A cosmopolitan jazz choir

Who are we?

After 20 years of existence and following a change of choir director, the Hunigue-based jazz/swing/pop choral formation, like a Phénix arising from its ashes, continues to exist under the name of Blue Note Singers, with a unique repertoire in the South Alsace region.  Inspired by their choir director, Nikos Ibarra Mante, the Anglo-Saxon jazz repertoire mainly includes well-known jazz standards from the 'Great American Songbook' (read below).

Although many of our choristers have been member of our vocal ensemble for many years, new choristers have joined our ranks and our vocal arrangements are composed of Soprano, Alto, Tenor, Bass.

During our public performances, a trio of musicians composed of a bass player, a pianist and a drummer, completes our vocal performances.

‘Blue Note’….?

This "Blue Note" (the "surprising" note), is the result of the improvisation that characterizes jazz as well as the musical 'melting pot' of music from (very) different horizons...

Originally, jazz is a musical genre born in  the South of  the United States, created at the end of the nineteenth century and the beginning of the twentieth century within African-American communities. Jazz encompasses many subgenres marked by a heritage of Euro-American and African-American music, designed to be played in public. 

During the twentieth century, jazz gained widespread popularity beyond the borders of the United States and spread around the world, giving rise to many styles and subgenres depending on the country and region. The 'Cool Jazz' of the late 1940s brought calm, delicate sounds, and long, linear melodies* 

Many artists have contributed to the glory of Jazz music; Duke Ellington, Count Basie and Louis Armstrong and their Big Bands to mention just a few, known to all. Composers such as Irving Berlin, Cole Porter and Ira & George Gershwin have also contributed to the composition of sung jazz standards, also known as The Great American Songbook. Among the most famous interpreters of Sung Jazz are Billy Holiday, Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan.

In the '50s and '60s, major musicals (Top Hat, Show Boat, Anything Goes, An American in Paris etc.), largely contributed to the success and renewed the trend towards Cool Jazz. Appropriated and performed by American crooners (Fred Astaire, Geene Kelley, Frank Sinatra, Sammy Davis Jr, Peggy Lee), these melodies have entered our collective memory as a genre in their own right. 

The evolution of jazz over the years has resulted in a sound that was assimilated and interpreted by many, each and every one adapting the melody, the text, in a different way, more or less melancholic, every performer providing their touch and feel to many well known masterpieces.

A Jazzy repertoire, but not only...

The Blue Note Singers continue to share a musical repertoire, largely inspired by 'Cool Jazz', (such as 'Blue Skies'), however the expanded repertoire also includes Latino rythms ('Sway'), Swing ('The Boy from New-York City'), Blues ('Georgia on my Mind')..., with, each time, this "Blue Note" which gives all its musical colour to blues and jazz.

Musical themes as well as rhythms widely known to the general public, evoke a bygone time, which lends itself to nostalgia and well-being.

And the choristers...?

The Blue Note Singers musical ensemble is made up of more than 25 amateur choristers from all backgrounds and ages, spread over four vocal sections (see above), for harmonizations ranging from 3 to 6 voices. All the choristers are passionate about the sung repertoire, which can be felt in the pleasure that the choristers have in singing, their assiduity in rehearsals (once a week), but also in their patience in learning new texts in English and new melodies, sometimes difficult to master at the vocal level.

Aspiring or experienced singer...?

The weekly rehearsals take place on Tuesday evenings from 20:00 to 22:00 in Huningue (contact@bluenotesingers.fr).

Although no musical training is required to be part of our ensemble, knowledge of English, as well as a sense of rhythm and melody, will be assets to be part of the choral note.

The choir, although amateur, is in a constant search for excellence and progress at the vocal level. We tend towards a homogeneity of the choirs and harmonious tuning. The warm atmosphere of our rehearsals promotes a great assiduity, a great involvement of the choristers in the rehearsals, which does not exclude a minimum of personal work outside the weekly rehearsals.

Any passionate fan of our repertoire will be welcome in our ranks.

*Source ; Wikipédia

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