News: Articles+Reviews

August 30, 2010

"For the Love of Imelda," from Baby Gil with Philippine Star

I believe it would take several books or at the least one full-length musical to capture the many faceted life of former first lady and now Rep. Imelda Marcos. But the efforts of David Byrne and Fatboy Slim in the double CD release, Here Lies Love come close.

This is one remarkable feat considering that Byrne is a British artist best known for the hits of Talking Heads and his later avant garde recordings while Slim is a DJ, whose expertise is of course, in dance music, mainly electronica, while Imelda is Dahil Sa ‘yo. But that must be the reason why this disco opera works. They have no preconceived notions about Imelda, just what they had read. They also have no emotional connections, having never lived in the Philippines much less had any experience with the Marcoses.

Truth to tell, my initial interest in this project came about because of Charmaine Clamor. The US- based Filipino jazz artist was one of those whom Byrne picked personally to record for Here Lies Love. She sings Walk Like A Woman and she sounds great. Hers is actually one of the best cuts in the album. Good break for Charmaine because she is among big names like Cyndi Lauper, Tori Amos and Natalie Merchant in an album produced by Byrne and Slim. I thought it would be a collection of songs that we might or might not associate with Imelda. I listened to hear Charmaine and also to find out what Byrne and Slim had done with the music.

Here Lies Love turned out to be much more than that. The focus is on Imelda and Estrella Cumpas, the girl who took care of Imelda as a child. Described as a song cycle, it traces Imelda’s life from her childhood in Leyte to her days in Malacañang, the assassination of Benigno Aquino Jr. and the departure of the Marcoses for exile in Hawaii. Alongside these is Estrella’s uneventful life whose highlight was being once close to Imelda’s family and who was promised that she will always be taken care of. The story says she was not.

Byrne and Slim stayed close to story and the songs are all narratives, at times too literal. The garage people in Here Lies Love by Florence Weleb or like Martha Wainwright as the young Imelda singing The Rose of Tacloban and country music star Steve Earle as Ferdinand in A Perfect Hand where his mother’s every tear is a victory. I would have prepared something more lyrical with songs that can be lifted off the musical and appreciated in another context. But then this is about Imelda and Byrne and Slim simply worked with the facts.

I didn’t think Byrne, extremely talented though he is, would be able to pull this one off. But he does and I can honestly include Here Lies Love among his best. The key to everything here is the music. Because Imelda loves to dance, Byrne and Slim zeroed in on ‘70s disco and used the genre for their palette. The melodies and arrangements are what draw the listeners in. Then caught up in the beat they start listening to the lyrics, find them brilliant and so they stay up to the end of the tale.

I am sure a lot of Filipinos will buy copies of Here Lies Love because it is a unique look at the history of this country. They will be glad to find out that it is also great music with lots of little treats strewn around.

Like the cover photo of Imelda at her most beautiful; the rare pictures inside the sleeve; like did you know that Imelda dated Ninoy Aquino but the relationship didn’t get far because he found her too tall? It is Byrne himself who sings the Ninoy song here Seven Years with Shara Worden as Imelda; did you know that Imelda once said that Here Lies Love is what she wants written on her tombstone?

Among the songs included are: Every Drop Of Rain by Candie Payne and St. Vincent as Imelda and Estrella Cumpas; You’ll Be Taken Care Of by Tori Amos as Remedios Trinidad y de Guzman Romualdez, Imelda’s mother; How Are You? by Nellie McKay as Estrella; Eleven Days by Cyndi Lauper as Imelda; When She Passed By by Allison Moorer as Estrella; Don’t You Agree by Roisin Murphy as Imelda; Pretty Face by Camille as Imelda; Ladies In Blue by Theresa Andersson as one of Imelda’s Blue Ladies and Why Don’t You Love Me? by Cyndi Lauper as Imelda and Tori Amos as Estrella.

So listen, find out more, remember the era and enjoy the music.

by Baby Gil, for Philippine Star, August 30, 2010

August 26, 2010

"Jazzapino Sounds," from Brick Wahl with LA WEEKLY

It's been a sweet summer, so cool, the heat sneaking in only at the end. The festivals have been good, as have the free concerts everywhere. Alas, it's fading now; you switch on the lights earlier to read this paper, and find fewer free places to go. But there are still a few series left.

Indeed, luck has it that two of jazz's finest imports from the Philippines are playing this weekend on consecutive nights and within a short stretch of Wilshire Boulevard. Mon David, who is at LACMA on Friday, has been building his reputation as a jazz vocalist around the world for some time now, though his introduction to the States has only been recent. He's quite the master, with a splendid voice, a daring sense of rhythm and the ability to take over anything, from Wayne Shorter and bossa nova to traditional Filipino melodies. Good-looking cat, too. Check out his U.S. debut, Coming True.

Then on Saturday evening at the Levitt Pavilion in MacArthur Park, well-known "jazzapino" vocalist Charmaine Clamor will do her unique thing: combining jazz standards and spare arrangements of homeland classics, a little pop and some funk even. It's an unusual mix in the stylistically conservative world of female jazz vocalists — her talent and persona (and looks) have gone over real big back at home, where she's quite the star. We're told she'll have a horn section with her at this gig, led by tenor Robby Marshall — who tore it up with Dave Douglas at the Bowl not long ago, and who sounds good on her latest, Something Good (on FreeHam). After, dash over to Nyx in Glendale (156 S. Brand Blvd., 818-545-0333), where Katia Moraes & the Brazilian Hearts perform at 8:30 p.m. Superb and very genuine bossas and sambas, and she'll melt your heart. Free.

by Brick Wahl, for LA WEEKLY, August 26, 2010

July 21, 2010

"Appreciating Musical Talent" from Prosy DeLaCruz with Asian Journal Midweek Magazine

The appreciation for music is intimately related to our ability to learn the underlying music we like -- the equivalent to grammar in spoken or signed languages- and to be able to make predictions about what will come next. Composers imbue music with emotion by knowing what our expectations are and then very deliberately controlling when those expectations will be met, and when they won’t. The thrills, chills and tears we experience from music are the result of having our expectations artfully manipulated by a skilled composer and the musicians who interpret that music." - Daniel J. Levitin, 2007

WHEN Fil-Am Jazz Festival was born with Charmaine Clamor and her jazz colleagues, we were impressed, not just with her music, but with her choice of songs which made visible her cultural heritage and her identity. My Funny Brown Pinay, a take on My Funny Valentine became one of our favorites. She had a sultry, sexy style that we knew in time would put her in the mainstream.

In her second concert, she donned a blonde wig while singing this song, and took it off to illustrate her self-awakening that she is now a valuable brown Pinay -- with no need to bleach her skin nor aspire to be blond!

"Even today, in the 21st century, my beautiful little brown nieces wear heavy long-sleeved shirts under the broiling sun for fear that they might become even darker -- which they equate with "uglier." Visiting them recently reminded me of my childhood, when I was called a negrita and teased for my flat nose. I recall desperate (and fruitless) attempts at bleaching my skin with papaya soap. I tried pinching my nose every night, hoping I would awake the next day to find it nice and pointy. (Take a look at my face: It didn’t work!). As a lifelong fan of American jazz standards -- and as a tribute to America, where, for the first time in my life I learned to appreciate my unique attributes-- I’ve rewritten the lyrics to the classic Rodgers & Hart tune, My Funny Valentine, while preserving its essential sentiments. I’m trying to communicate to all my dear Pinay sisters a sincere appreciation of their Indio beauty. I say with the utmost pride, "Stay, don’t change your hair" -- or anything else. Because you are Filipina, and you are beautiful, " Charmaine said.

4 years later, she launched CDs in the US: Flippin Out, Searching for the Soul, My Harana, through Freeham Records, and Jazzipino through VIVA records in the Philippines. By the way, Jazzipino was a coined term, a creative fusion of Philippine music with jazz tunes from Ted Benito, who sought new forms of bringing Filipino music into the mainstream. Ted’s original idea of fusing them enabled Charmaine’s songs to be enjoyed by her many fans in the Philippines and her Pilipino songs to be recognized by American mainstream jazz enthusiasts. Charmaine’s collaborations include Mon David’s Coming True and a guest rendition with David Byrne/Fat Slim’s Here Lies Love.

Her website says "With two consecutive albums in the JazzWeek World Music Top-10, including the rare feat of simultaneously making Top-5 on both the World (#2 ranking) and Traditional Jazz (#4) radio charts, Charmaine has earned unprecedented praise for introducing American audiences to Filipino languages, melodies, and instruments – and for sharing a once-in-a-generation, astonishingly expressive voice." When the USAmbassador to the Philippines, Harvey Thomas Jr. told Philippine Star that he is a fan of Charmaine Clamor, he had this to say: "My Brown Pinay is a tribute to Filipino women to love and embrace themselves."

But, her awards nor her success do not seem to taint Charmaine’s inner loob. She is gracious and accessible to her fans. "Opo," she will say, a form of polite salutation to elders. We have always loved that about Charmaine, that fame has not altered her personality, she remains a kababayan na maganda ang loob! Charmaine is one of those artists whom we love not just for her songs, but for her serene and soulful personality.

Where did our love for music start? We were barely six years old when our piano teacher, Mrs D. rigorously taught us how to play white keys and black keys. While we dutifully knew the musical notes, we could not pick up the rhythm and Mrs D. would hit our hands in frustration. It jarred our spirits, making us decide -- no more piano lessons for us! Luckily, our mother, Asuncion Abarquez understood. Yet our soul’ s yearnings remained alive.

Anyone who loves good music has the capacity to be stirred by it. As Daniel J. Levitin describes: "The thrills, chills and tears we experience from music are the result of having our expectations artfully manipulated by a skilled composer and the musicians who interpret that music."

We first experienced these tears and chills when saxophonist Michael Paulo played with his father Ray Paulo, My Heart and Soul at the FANHSconference in Hawaii in 2006. It was a four-minute rendition of soulful sax playing and all 70 participants at the workshop, shamelessly cried. To this day, Michael’s biggest hit record is My Heart and Soul, which he recorded in 1989. Michael headlines mainstream events such as the Temecula Wine Festival and Smooth Jazz Nights. Though he has been playing for mainstream crowds for over two decades now, Los Angeles would see him again when he headlines Jazzmopolitan: Filipino Men of Jazz, produced by Ted Benito on September 11, 2010 at the Ford Amphitheater. The last time Michael played for Filipino American Library’s Jazzmopolitan, several community members erupted into dancing. It did not matter that there was no dancing floor, they simply stood up and spontaneously swayed their booties.

Scott Yanow narrated that Michael Paulo took up saxophone at age 15. "He developed quickly and before he left high school, he was playing gigs around Hawaii. After graduation, Paulo became a member of the Hawaiian pop/rock band Kalapana (1975-79), recording four albums with the group. …and Herbie Hancock during this period. Paulo was a busy studio musician in Hawaii when he moved to Los Angeles in 1981. He played with Ray Armando, with a local R&B band and in 1983 became a member of Al Jarreau’s touring band -- for a decade. He has worked with Patti Austin, David Benoit, Johnny Mathis and many others, concentrating on his solo career in recent years."

Just as we long aspire to become a musician, we continue to wish for a concert that bring these soulful, talented jazz artists: Charmaine Clamor and Michael Paulo, and who knows, perhaps the boss of USAmbassador Harvey Thomas, Jr., President Barack Obama, an avowed jazz fan might find the time to join them in Los Angeles! How about it, music producers out there, would you consider actualizing our dream?

by Prosy DeLaCruz, for Asian Journal Midweek Magazine, July 21, 2010

July 15, 2010

"Leading Filipino Jazz Vocalist to Serenade Juneau Tonight" from Klas Stolpe with Juneau Empire

It took Charmaine Clamor three months to formulate and compose her first song. Laying in her crib in Subic Zambales, Philippines, Clamor seemed destined to show that singing was going to be more important in her expression of Filipino culture than speaking.

"My parents said I was singing before I could talk," Philippine-born recording artist Clamor, 32, said. "Then they could never shut me up."

The sounds of the ocean on the white sands of Kale beach, the more than 600 bird species from 7,000 tropical islands, the familial lifestyle of the culture, even the radio near her crib that played Philippine ruler Ferdinand Marcos' propaganda song every hour, all combined to stimulate a critically acclaimed singing style, "Jazzipino," and a voice with two consecutive albums in the JazzWeek World Music Top-10, including a No. 2 World and No. 4 Traditional Jazz simultaneous radio ranking.

"We had a lot of family gatherings and celebrations that involved getting together around water and the beaches," Clamor said. "It definitely contributed to my love for exploration which may have had impacts on my singing."

Her mother, Eve, was a pianist with an operatic voice, father Bal adept at indigenous instruments, and grandfather Josefino a jazz band bass player in a World War II marching band in Manilla. Clamor became a musical flower of sorts, listening to opera and jazz, Filipino torch songs called Kundiman and serenade songs called Harana.

The impacts of Clamor on audiences, from neighbors to the bus driver, was instantaneous and lasting. She was singing hello's and goodbye's as a toddler to her kababayan (countrymen) when passing them on the streets. On bus rides she would plant herself at the back and sing for hours.

"I think my parents may have been a little embarrassed," Clamor said. "But the passengers seemed to like it."

Some buses would even keep their seats full minutes after a stop to let the young singer finish a tune, or ask her to sing another before getting off.

Soon she was in elementary school and performing in high school productions and writing poetry and articles for the school paper. After graduating from St. Columban's College-Seniors' high school at age 12, she moved with her family to Los Angeles for better economic opportunities.

During her first year at Our Lady Of Loretto Catholic High School, no one knew she could sing, as she worked toward an eventual Valedictorian honor.

"We came here for economic stability," Clamor said. "So I was concentrating on school work, and not entertaining arts that much."

Winning a talent show her senior year by performing Gloria Estefan's "Anything For You" changed all that.

Clamor began winning karaoke competitions while obtaining a masters degree in physical therapy from Cal State-Northridge. She sang at weddings and parties and became the karaoke hostess, or KJ, at Max's Filipino Fried Chicken restaurant. It was there, at Max's, that she was discovered by the founder and musical director of the jazz group Crescendo.

"A fried-chicken restaurant," Clamor laughed. "I am very proud of it, man!"

She began touring with Crescendo in 1996, and released her first solo album, "Searching for the Soul," in 2005. She has since released "Flippin' Out," "My Harana," "Jazzipino" and "Something Good."

Based in Los Angeles for the past 20 years, Clamor still travels to the Philippines at least once a year.

"To stir the musical pot," Clamor said. "I miss my family and the relationships we have and the memories."

Memories that include her favorite delicacy - lumpia, a type of egg-roll filled with meat, carrots, onion and other bits and tastes of the land.

Memories of the Simbang Gabi celebration in December, with its pastries and fiestas, and spending every weekend with her parents at Kale beach. Memories of walking in rice fields and biking in the mountains and watching the sunset. Memories of the Ylang-Ylang tree's scent in the cool night breeze and the fruit of the Duhat.

Memories of her first poem and her first 'love' at age 10. Memories of courtship in the Filipino culture that last a year before a kiss is granted.

"But that is the most thrilling kind of relationship," Clamor enthused. "Can you imagine the thought of anticipation? I think maybe that poem was about love. Always love. Filipinos are all about love and serenading (laughs). My first album was all about love. It was all about 'I would die if you don't return my love back,' or 'my life is all about loving you.' We are very romantic individuals. And I think I am no exception."

Clamor will perform tonight at the Juneau-Douglas High School auditorium, singing a mix of Filipino and jazz songs which she has named "Jazzipino."

"The music came up organically," Clamor said. "I have been singing jazz and been in love with jazz a long time and started incorporating my heritage's indigenous music in my live acts."

Clamor hopes music from her Filipino culture will be enjoyed by those yearning for it.

"Usually what I sing, the older generation especially, will not have heard it live," Clamor said. "I want to connect with them, ask them how they got here and what made them choose to live in Juneau. And to other Alaskans I want to show them how beautiful our culture and music is."

Juneau's Filipino community will relish hearing the "Kulintang" gongs from Mindanao in the Southern Philippines and the Laud (similar to the Spanish Rondalla).

Band members include Filipino's Abe Lagrimas (drums/Cajon/Ukulele) and Bo Razon (Kulintang/Percussion/Laud), and Americans Eli Brueggemann (piano) and Dominic Thiroux (bass).

When Juneau hears Charmaine Clamor sing they may feel themselves lifted onto wings of tropical birds and set down upon beaches of white sand with curls of green blue water.

They will imagine the taste of lumpia... the touch of a hand.. the sound of indigenous instruments... all reflected in the shiny ivory keys and black top of a piano in the sand.

They will imagine a little girl with a voice of the stars standing before them in the body of a woman singing to her Kababayan.

by Klas Stolpe, for Juneau Empire, July 15, 2010

April 07, 2010

"Toe-Tapping" from Kyle Phillips with American Songwriter

Here Lies Love is a collaborative “song cycle” by revered new-waver David Byrne and infamous English electropop-smith Fatboy Slim. The album chronicles the controversial life of former Filipino First Lady, Imelda Marcos and the woman who raised her, Estrella Cumpas. While Imelda Marcos has historically represented the corruption of her husband’s twenty year presidential reign, Byrne & Slim instead posit her relationship with Estrella as an intimate examination of power.

Byrne’s extensive research on the two provided quotes from the women that served as capstones for the framework of his narrative. The unique philosophy behind the story finds Byrne exalting the emotions and feelings of his characters rather than choreographing events into a conventional plot. Norman Cook (aka Fatboy Slim) executes the ‘70’s and ‘80’s club music feel that Bryne envisioned as the backdrop for the story to primarily represent Imelda’s socialite persona, and secondarily to explore how a narrative could be laid across a dance album. In order to achieve the absolutely necessary feminine spirit in the story the unlikely team enlisted a female vocalist dream-team including Tori Amos, Shara Worden (My Brightest Diamond), Annie Clark (St. Vincent), Sharon Jones, and Cyndi Lauper (just to name a few) to act as the vehicles for the story.

The result is undeniably intriguing, and songs like the Charmaine Clamor-performed “Walk Like a Woman” fully achieve the toe-tapping ideal the duo set out for. The hitch in the album is the hit-or-miss probability of the listener connecting with the quizzical story, wrought in obscurity.

by Kyle Phillips, for American Songwriter, April 07, 2010

April 07, 2010

"Tableside with Legends" from Brick Wahl with LA WEEKLY

Vocalist Charmaine Clamor returns to Catalina's on Saturday, where she really pulls them in with this "jazzapino" thing — traditional Filipino songs rendered into jazz by her strong quartet. The stuff can be spookily effective: Throw in some standards, a couple soulful, Joe Bataan–like pinay anthems, a dirty blues, plus her tune from the latest David Byrne project, Here Lies Love (an Imelda Marcos tribute), and you've got a powerful couple of sets. Once again there's the money thing at Catalina's — you will spend some — but budget accordingly and check out this show.

by Brick Wahl, for LA WEEKLY, April 07, 2010

March 15, 2010

"Clamoring for a Pinay's Mesmerizing Voice" from AJ Press with Asian Journal

SET to debut worldwide on April 6, 2010, is a new double-CD from Rock & Roll Hall of Fame member David Byrne (Talking Heads) and British beat-master Fatboy Slim, titled "Here Lies Love." The all-star album from Nonesuch Records is a disco-pop opera about former Philippines first lady Imelda Marcos and her childhood yaya, Estrella Cumpas.

Each of the 22 songs on the project is sung by a different guest vocalist which includes an all-star cast like Cyndi Lauper, Tori Amos, Natalie Merchant, Martha Wainwright, and Sia. Together with the celebrity vocalists in the album, David Byrne chose one Filipina, multi-awarded and acclaimed Fil-Am jazz vocalist Charmaine Clamor.

Charmaine said. "I’m thrilled and honored to be included on this intriguing project. Mr. Byrne is a musical legend, and the other singers on ‘Here Lies Love’ are some of the giants of the industry. I’m proud to represent my Pinoy Community, especially since I grew up under the Marcos regime and understand fully what role Mrs. Marcos played in Filipino history."

Music critics have been stunned and mesmerized with Charmaine Clamor ever since 2005 when she came out with her first album, "Searching for the Soul." Jazz Times Magazine described her as "a dynamic new compass point in world music." Jazz critic Don Heckman of the Los Angeles Times stated that "Her debut album, ‘Searching for the Soul’, announced the arrival of an impressive new vocal artist." He subsequently wrote that Charmaine is "one of the important and original new jazz singers of the decade."

Two years later in 2007, Charmaine released another critically acknowledged album, "Flippin’ Out". Once again, she captivated the music world, specially jazz enthusiasts, by creating a whole new musical genre-her own new style of music which she has coined as "Jazzipino"- a genre of music utilizing American jazz, blues, soul, Filipino folk music, and other musical forms.

In her meteoric rise to the top, Clamor has simultaneously made the top 5 on both JazzWeek’s World (#2) and Traditional Jazz (#4) charts and is the first Filipino-American artist to place two consecutive recordings in the World Music top 10. She has been profiled on NPR’s "Weekend Edition" and BBC’s "The World." Charmaine performs at America’s leading jazz clubs in New York, Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco, Seattle, Atlanta, and Miami, in performing arts centers, and concert halls.

She frequently top bills Filipino cultural celebrations, such as the San Francisco Filipino-American Jazz Festival and the Filipino Library’s annual gala in Los Angeles.

In November, 2008, Charmaine released "My Harana: A Filipino Serenade" and in September, 2009, "Jazzipino" was launched with a full fledged promotional tour in the Philippines under the Viva Records label.

Charmaine was selected by The Filipino Women’s Network as one of the 100 Most Influential Filipino Women in the United States. In July, 2009, in San Diego, California, she won the 6th Annual Asian Heritage Award in the Performing Arts which recognizes Asian and Pacific Islander leaders in various fields. In October, 2009, Charmaine won the 12th Annual FILIPINAS Magazine Achievement Award in Entertainment. She was also honored with a special FAMAS Award (Filipino Oscar) for her cultural trailblazing.

Born in Subic-Zambales, Philippines, Charmaine revealed in an earlier interview that she has been singing since she was an infant. "My mother claims that I sang before I spoke. At three months, I started singing "Bu–ba." This is "Mabuhay," the Martial Law propaganda song that played every hour on the radio my parents put beside me in my crib," Charmaine said. Her singing career began when she was 3 years old. "Before grade school, I would entertain passengers on the back of buses traveling from Subic to Manila – whether they liked it or not! I always had a strong attraction to singing," she recalled.

Her parents loved to sing and they taught her Filipino songs, as well as English classics.

When she was 16, their family immigrated to the US, where she pursued a career as a physical therapist, (she has a Masters degree in Physical Therapy). She revealed in an interview featured in her website that "It is typical for a Filipino family to view the arts not as a career but rather an extracurricular activity. As an immigrant in the United States, I was not encouraged to dream about singing professionally. I was encouraged to concentrate on my studies and find a secure job. Therefore, I followed the norm and pursued physical therapy, a field that I was interested in as well."

Working as a full-time physical therapist in hospitals and clinics, Charmaine admitted that the time came when she just had to heed to her true calling as a singer. "I decided to jump off the cliff, quit as a full time physical therapist, and pursue a career in music when I just could not deny the hunger I had in me to perform. People always claim to embrace "carpe diem," but few of us actually seize the day," she said.

Clamor’s music has been called original and innovative, and her obvious love for and loyalty to her Filipino heritage has made her so beautifully unique. Her albums represent the first time that a distinct Filipino flavor has been added into the melting pot of American jazz. " It’s the first time songs entirely in Tagalog have been heard on mainstream American radio stations! Its novelty, I believe, is what contributed to jazzipino’s success," said the diva.

Believing that her musical success is a direct result of her unusual voice ("A gift from my parents") and her accepting and exploring her minority status as a Filipino, Charmaine’s songs proudly display her cultural heritage. Her lifelong dream has been to share the music of the Philippines to a wider audience and she has truly done it with her best- selling albums.

Explaining that Filipinos need to be Filipinos, the singer said she yearned to find her own identity while living as an immigrant in LA for many years. "How can an artist grow successfully without embracing her own culture? My Filipino heritage is rich, and panahon na to share it with the world. Placing two consecutive jazzipino albums in the top 10 of the world music radio charts is pretty good evidence, I believe, that the world is ready to listen," noted Charmaine.

One of Charmaine’s songs which made an impact is the satirical song, "My Funny Brown Pinay", which is a remake of the classic "My Funny Valentine." The song sends a strong message to Filipinas around the world to be proud of their color and native qualities. Clamor admitted that having been conquered by the Spanish for many years, the Filipinos have lost pride in their indigenous beauty. While in the Philippines, she herself tried every soap and cream to lighten her skin and pinched the bridge of her nose to make it pointy. (As you can see, that didn’t work!"). But in America, Charmaine has experienced being appreciated for her Filipina qualities, like her brown skin and dark hair. With her song, Charmaine is encouraging her "Pinay" sisters to appreciate and embrace their natural beauty.

Clamor has explained that America is her home while the Philippines is her homeland. That’s why everything she does as an American is influenced by memories of the Philippines. With this love for the two cultures, Clamor has founded JazzPhil-USA, a non-profit organization that promotes jazz artists of Filipino descent in the United States and has been credited with introducing Filipino culture to mainstream audiences.

Later this year, Charmaine will narrate a 60-minute documentary film, The Hidden Dream, which explores Filipinos’ relationships with America. Commenting on her success, the acclaimed vocalist says, "I feel extravagantly blessed to earn a living by creating music, by singing. I’m essentially making a career out of something that I would do for free, out of sheer love. I feel satisfied that when I leave this world I’ll know that I honored my individual gifts and, at the same time, contributed to the global recognition of my native culture."

Readers may catch Charmaine Clamor in LA during her one-night-only concert at Hollywood’s famed jazz club, Catalina Bar & Grill, on Saturday April 10, at 8pm. The concert will celebrate her first appearance on an international pop album, Here Lies Love, and she will be singing her track from that project, Walk Like a Woman. Visit www.CatalinaJazzClub.com for more information.

by AJ Press, for Asian Journal, March 15, 2010

March 01, 2010

"The Jazzipino Queen on Music and the Motherland" from Stephanie Castillo with Female Network

Charmaine Clamor isn’t afraid to speak her mind—or sing it. Lauded by the Los Angeles Times as “one of the most important and original jazz singers of the decade,” the Subic-born songstress made waves with her satirical ballad, “My Funny Brown Pinay.” Using the melody of jazz standard “My Funny Valentine,” the song praises the looks of the average morena in an ode to true Filipina beauty. “Look at my skin—it’s brown / Look at my nose—it’s flat,” Charmaine purrs on the track, flaunting her Pinay assets with pride, even pleasure.

In a nation where fair skin, pointy noses, and straight hair are the prejudiced but prevalent ideal, Charmaine’s candor about her physical appearance is inspiring. It seems that growing up Stateside—and having two consecutive albums in the Jazzweek World Music Top 10—has left her with no airs and graces about who she is or where she came from. In fact, it is her unfailing loyalty to the Philippines and Filipinos that has brought this domestic diva so much success in her career—even spawning the hybrid Fil-Am jazz genre she coined “Jazzipino.”

In the following interview, Charmaine gives FN her views on fame, Filipino mentalities, and the future of jazz, ultimately leaving us with a simple message: be bold, be brown, be beautiful—and be grateful for your heritage. Read on!

When did you first realize that you wanted to be a singer?

My mother claims that I sang before I spoke. At three months, I started singing “Bu–ba.” This is “Mabuhay,” the Martial Law propaganda song that played every hour on the radio my parents put beside me in my crib. Before grade school, I would entertain passengers on the back of buses traveling from Subic to Manila—whether they liked it or not! I always had a strong attraction to singing.

Your life seems to have taken a slight detour before setting you on the path to music (judging from your masters degree in Physical Therapy). What were the reasons behind that?

It is typical for a Filipino family to view the arts not as a career but rather an extracurricular activity. As an immigrant in the United States, I was not encouraged to dream about singing professionally. I was encouraged to concentrate on my studies and find a secure job. Therefore, I followed the norm and pursued physical therapy, a field that I was interested in as well.

Now you’re a major name in the American and Asian jazz community. What are the best—and worst—things about your newfound fame?

I feel extravagantly blessed to earn a living by creating music, by singing. I’m essentially making a career out of something that I would do for free, out of sheer love. I feel satisfied that when I leave this world I’ll know that I honored my individual gifts and, at the same time, contributed to the global recognition of my native culture.

The downside is that I always feel the need to push myself to constantly grow as an artist and a performer, which sometimes can be very stressful and emotionally tiring. I have what I call “horizon sickness,” a need to always think of the next thing that I could be doing instead of fully being present in the moment.

Your music has been called original and innovative, even spawning a new musical genre called jazzipino. Describe jazzipino and what sets it apart from all the other kinds of jazz fusion.

Jazzipino is what happens when you blend the soul and swing of American jazz with Filipino music, languages, and indigenous instruments. To be more specific, I explored our kundiman and harana, as I believe they closely parallel the Great American Songbook. Both genres have timeless lyrics and classic melodies.

Filipinos have always played jazz, and we have a glorious history of fine jazz artists coming out of the Philippines. But my recordings represent the first time that an identifiable Filipino spice has been thrown into the melting pot of American jazz.

For sure, it’s the first time songs entirely in Tagalog have been heard on mainstream American radio stations! Its novelty, I believe, is what contributed to jazzipino’s success.

You have quite a sense of humor—and a streak of activism as well—based on your satirical song “My Funny Brown Pinay.” Tell us about this infamous track and how you’d like it to change the Filipino standard of beauty.

“My Funny Brown Pinay” is a remake of the classic “My Funny Valentine.” It’s based on my experience growing up as a flat-nosed kayumanggi in the Philippines, where I was considered ugly. I tried every soap and cream to lighten my skin. I pinched the bridge of my nose to make it pointy. As you can see, that didn’t work! It was only when I migrated to the U.S. that I felt beautiful and appreciated for my native qualities. Today, most Filipinos still consider being light skinned and having a pointy nose—the mestiza look—the epitome of beauty. With “My Funny Brown Pinay,” I’m encouraging my sisters to appreciate and embrace their indigenous qualities, and for my people in general to discard a self-hating colonial mentality. [Why take whitening] pills to screw up your liver? Enough already.

You spent most of your formative years here in the Philippines before moving to America as a teenager. How did living in each country affect your ideas about success, about “making it” even though you were a minority?

My definition of success has evolved throughout the years. Now I define it as being able to do what you love the most as your livelihood. I’m blessed to have the career that I have in the United States. Besides my unusual voice, which was a gift from my parents, I believe that my blossoming musical success is a direct result of accepting and exploring my minority status with curiosity and sincerity.

What would you say is the biggest hang-up in the Filipino mindset? What keeps so many talented, capable Filipinos from achieving what they deserve?

We have amazing talents in the Philippines. I think the reason for our lack of global success in the music field is because the Filipino performers and the Filipino audience settle for whatever is currently popular some place else. The talent here generally pursues the music styles of popular foreign celebrities, mostly from the US or Europe. Most of the time, we settle for imitating instead of finding our unique voice, and the rest of the world just doesn’t care. Why would Americans listen to a Filipino artist singing like Mariah Carey or Lady Gaga when they can enjoy the original in their own backyard? Filipinos need to be Filipinos!

Your efforts in bringing Filipino culture to a global spectrum have made you a kind of ambassador for the nation. What makes you so proud of your Filipino heritage, when, as you point out many of our local and international fellowmen (and women) seem to feel it isn't on par with other traditions?

Living as immigrant in Los Angeles for many years, living with many different ethnicities, made me yearn for my own identity. How can an artist grow successfully without embracing her own culture? My Filipino heritage is rich, and panahon na to share it with the world. Placing two consecutive jazzipino albums in the top 10 of the world music radio charts is pretty good evidence, I believe, that the world is ready to listen.

What's the best thing about being a Filipina?

Our innate kindness and generosity to all.

What’s next for Charmaine Clamor?

My first foray into the pop world is on “Here Lies Love,” the David Byrne & Fatboy Slim collaboration, [a song] about Imelda Marcos and her relationship with her nanny-servant, Estrella Cumpas. On this project, each song is sung by a different guest vocalist, such as Natalie Merchant, Sia, Cindy Lauper, Tori Amos and more. I’m the only Filipina.

Later this year I’ll be sharing my music with new audiences in Canada, Hawaii, and Alaska. I am excited to be the closing night performer at the 2nd Annual Asian American Music Festival in Los Angeles, with amazing Asian artists from all over the world. And the thing I’m most excited about this year: the release of my fourth US album, which might just be the best expression yet of where I’m at as an artist. It’s jazz, it’s jazzipino, it’s soul, and blues, and pop. It’s me!

by Stephanie Castillo, for Female Network, March 01, 2010

February 14, 2010

"The Only Filipino in All-Star Soundtrack of Imelda Musical" from Ruben Nepales with Philippine Daily Inquirer

LOS ANGELES—Charmaine Clamor, America’s leading Pinay jazz vocalist, joins Cyndi Lauper, Natalie Merchant, Tori Amos and other singers in David Byrne’s “Here Lies Love,” a musical dramatization of Imelda Marcos’ life.

Charmaine is the only Filipino artist in the double-CD project of David, who was inducted, as part of the Talking Heads, into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. David has won Grammy and Academy awards for his music.

Charmaine, acclaimed “jazzipino” exponent, sings the track “Walk Like A Woman” in David’s collaboration with Fatboy Slim (British DJ and recording artist) on the former First Lady.

The song cycle is described in David’s website (www.davidbyrne.com), thus: “Through a series of songs written by David Byrne, with musical contributions from Fatboy Slim (Norman Cook), “Songs from Here Lies Love” presents Imelda Marcos meditating on events in her life, from her childhood spent in poverty and her rise to power to her ultimate departure from the Palace. In particular, the production looks at the relationship between Imelda and a servant from her childhood, Estrella Cumpas, who appeared at key moments in Imelda’s life.”

The project was performed live twice as a work-in-progress at Carnegie Hall in New York (2007) and at the Ridley Centre in Adelaide, Australia (2006) with Joan Almedilla and Dana Diaz-Tutaan, respectively, doing the Imelda vocals.

Now, the two-CD incarnation, which comes with a lavish booklet and six videos of songs and historical footage from the Philippines, will be released in April by Todomundo/Nonesuch Records.

“I’m thrilled to be in the company of these wonderful female vocalists,” the LA-based Charmaine told us via e-mail from the Philippines, where she is scheduled to do a series of gigs (www.charmaineclamor.com for her Manila schedule). Aside from Lauper, Merchant (as Estrella) and Amos, the CD also features B-52’s Kate Pierson; Martha Wainwright (she sings “The Rose of Tacloban”); Nellie McKay; Roisin Murphy and other chanteuses. Steve Earle (as Ferdinand Marcos) and David likewise contribute vocals on a couple of tracks.

In the Philippines, Charmaine released an album, “Jazzipino,” on the Viva Records label. In the US, she has three albums which have been embraced by jazz and world music critics (www.freehamrecords.com). Below are excerpts of our interview with the trailblazing singer who grew up in Zambales:

How did the offer to sing a track on “Here Lies Love” come about?

In 2007, I was doing my annual appearance at the Iridium Jazz Club in Manhattan. Unknown to me, there was a scout in the audience for Nonesuch Records, David Byrne’s record label. During this show, I sang my “jazzipino” version of “Dahil Sa Iyo,” a well-known Imelda Marcos favorite. At the end of the night, the scout introduced himself and informed me of an “Imelda Marcos project” that David Byrne was developing. The scout said I was perfect for the project, and that he would recommend me to Mr. Byrne. A few days later, Mr. Byrne’s manager contacted my manager, Michael, and offered a contract—no audition! Mr. Byrne listened to my music on my website, CharmaineClamor.com, and decided he wanted me on his record.

How was your first meeting with David?

I didn’t meet him until the day of recording. He flew from New York to oversee the session at a studio in Silver Lake in LA. I was a little nervous meeting this eclectic and brilliant artist whom I admired. But he immediately put me at ease with his easygoing and friendly manner. He said he was intrigued by the story of Imelda, what power had done to her mind. He was especially fascinated by Imelda’s relationship with her nanny-servant, Estrella Cumpas. After visiting the Philippines and doing research for the project, Mr. Byrne amassed quite a lot of information about the life of the Marcoses.

Did David give you recordings of the initial productions for you to listen to?

He sent me a “scratch” audio recording of the entire project. I was impressed with the catchy melodies, and more so with the historical accuracy of the lyrics. This is a serious psychological study of a complex and flawed character whose delusions affected many innocent people. No, the shoes are never mentioned.

What is “Walk Like A Woman,” about?

“Walk Like A Woman” is about Imelda wanting to learn how to impress, how to be a socialite in order to win the attention, full acceptance and love of Ferdinand Marcos. My song is the first number of “Act Two” of the theater piece under development.

Can you talk about being the only Filipino singer in the album?

I am surprised and honored to be not just the only Filipino, but also as someone who lived under Martial Law. I’m thrilled to be in the company of these wonderful female vocalists. This is my first foray into the American pop scene.

You’re in the Philippines now to participate again in the annual Philippine International JazzFest.

Performing for my kababayans in my motherland is always a thrill. This is actually my third appearance at the PIJazzFest. However, I’m especially excited about this one because it’s the first time I’ll be playing in the Philippines with my touring American rhythm section of Dominic Thiroux on bass and Abe Lagrimas on drums. We’ll be doing several concerts throughout the festival, at places like Greenbelt and the Ayala Museum. But I’m most looking forward to the closing night (Feb. 28) at the Sofitel, where I’m fronting for the legendary fusion group, Yellowjackets.

When you return to the United States, you will be putting finishing touches on your next American album. How is this shaping up?

This album is a strong testament to my development as an artist. I’m really going into new territory. The album is jazz, pop, world, blues, funk, samba, swing and “jazzipino.” It’s got horns, organ and kulintang. It’s me! Altogether, it’s pretty good!

Any other interesting developments?

I’ve been blessed with many interesting bookings in 2010—Alaska, Hawaii, Oregon, Canada … I’ve been chosen to close the 2nd Asian American Music Festival in Los Angeles in October, as part of an incredible lineup of Asian artists from all over the world.

by Ruben Nepales, for Philippine Daily Inquirer, February 14, 2010

January 12, 2010

"Self Affirmations, Surprises Highlight Asian American Jazz Festival" from Kirk Silsbee with Downbeat

Strictly speaking, what was billed as the First Annual Asian-American Jazz Festival in Los Angeles, Oct. 3G-Nov. 1,2009, wasn't actually the first, as an unrelated effort took place in 1988. But impresario Paul lm strove to make his the premiere event of its kind. Hong Kong-bom lm even hocked his alto saxophone to help finance this spirited three-day event in Little Tokyo, which drew musicians from as far away as Korea. The unspoken dialectic of the far-reaching booking policy opened the issue of what exactly constitutes Asian-American jazz. Saturday at Cafe Metropol, Celia La sang selections from the Great American Songbook, but her new charl on James Taylor's "Fire And Rain" was a pleasant surprise. Tenor saxophonist Hitomi Oba proved a fluid improviser who can swing on material with many temperatures. Her stripped-down trio of bass, drums and Nick DePinna's trombone made for unusual combinations as well as unpredictable strxctures.

Japan-bom, classically trained pianist Matoko Honda was also fulI of surprises. Improvising on a fisherman's folk song with a piece of glass resting on the middle-register strings, she produced Kurl Weill-like harmonies. A koto augmented her rhydrm section and dancer Midori Makino supplied a visual element. Veteran drummer Bert Karl played somber mallets to plucked piano mrd koto strings in a spacey exchange. Makino reemerged in a black sheath dress to supply flamenco accents to a rolling crescendo closer.

Pianist Bryan Wong's ensemble set used demanding time signatures like 13/8; his elliptical piano and the thoughtful use of space in his anangements would be at home on ECM. Yet Wong also likes to bum. Kai Kurosawa's electric bass foray on "Eucalyptus" was more than up to the bright tempo.

Sunday's action moved to the auditorium of the Japanese American National Museum. Gary Fukushima's variation on the posrBill Evans piano trio fonnat revealed prodigious classical training and an elastic sense of time and dynamics. In contrast to the cerebral pianist, Filipino vocalist Mon David was fulI of passion. He moved between romantic baliadeer, interpreter of Pompangan folk melodies and stops-out scat singer, and his intensity was tangible on "Footprints." Pianist Tateng Katindig, big-toned bassist Dominic Thirour and the protean drummer Abe Lagrimas matched David lbr intensity. They swung hard yet still touched the heart with tunes like Abbey Lincoln's "Throw It Away."

Korea's Prelude trio had a few surprises as well. Front man sa-rophonist Richard Rho has a touch of standup comic, which offsets pianist Heean Ko's attractive tunes. The pentatonic "Breezin' Up" is like much of Korean music, albeit swinging in six.

Charmaine Clamore, another passionate Filipina, took on Jon Hendricks' lpics to Horace Silver's swinging "Doodlin"' as well as the Lenny Welch version of Buddy Johnson's heartpounding "Since I Fell For You." She's an exuberant performer, never more so than on her Tagalog words of 'Jazz-a-pino" matings. 'My Funny Brown Valentine" was an added bit of ethnic affirmation.

Japanese piano phenom Hiromi, whose showmanship matches her virtuosiqr, closed the weekend. Supersonic stride, some outright pounding, a "Minute Waltz" variant, eclecticism gone wild-all went into her kitchensink set. Her musical mastery was never in questron. Hiromi's taste though, isn't for everyone. Still, she received a 1ong, standing ovation. As to the definition of Asian-American jazz, the answer seemed to be that it's an evolving proposition, as personal and distinct as each bandleader and soloist.

by Kirk Silsbee, for Downbeat, January 12, 2010

December 20, 2009

"From One Generation to Another, Filipino Jazz Torch is Passed" from Dennis Clemente with Philippines Inquirer LifeStyle

NEW YORK—IN THE incredible Filipino-American Jazz concert at the Triad on Dec. 11, one talented Filipino jazz artist after another strode onstage saying it was the first time the group held its jazz festival in the city.

Without explaining their long nonappearance on the New York jazz scene, the audience’s curiosity was piqued, especially since the parade of performers showcased that night (on some festivals, there are other or more performers) had every right to be on that stage. The festival has had a successful five-year run in Los Angeles, two years in San Francisco.

The challenge before, said Michael Konik, owner of FreeHam Records, was logistics. Konik, also the North American manager of Filipino jazz sensation Charmaine Clamor, did not elaborate. However, he made it very clear that Clamor’s recent success on the New York jazz scene is one of the reasons the festival was now in the Big Apple, finally.

New York got a rare treat, because Filipino artists are consummate entertainers, and the show, despite the lineup of performers, remained tight and organized. Even one artist who flew in just for the jazzfest, Manila’s Sandra Viray, eased herself into the Filipino band smoothly.

Viray confessed it was her first trip to the United States (the rest of the artists were from the US), and it showed in her choice of songs, “I Left My Heart in San Francisco” fused with “New York, New York.” But as the opening vocalist, Viray acquitted herself well by grooving to “Cheek to Cheek” in a light Latin beat, which warmed up the audience.

New York embraces originality and distinct styles, which she brought to “That’s All,” but the fast, ill-advised arrangement slightly hampered her interpretation.

Viray was at a disadvantage to begin with, coming from an 18-hour flight, a huge time difference, and probably less time for rehearsals. However, she does have lung power, something she can put to good use in adapting her own style, even Filipino style, in American jazz standards when she performs here again.

Legendary singer

Despite her emphysema, Annie Brazil looked radiant and cheerful. She told the audience of her near brush with the illness that she blamed to “cigarettes.” She assured us she was okay now.

In accepting her Lifetime Achievement Award (yes, it even had that part in the show), she giggled and proudly pointed out its unique value: “I am receiving this in New York!”

She then perched herself on a high stool, crooning to standards such as “Satin Doll, “Nearness of You” and later, with surprise guest jazz vocalist, son Richard Merk, on “It Had to Be You.”

The mother-son duet provided the theme of the night: generations of jazz artists sharing a common passion for jazz and showing respect to the ones who came before them. The audience knew they were not just watching a jazz concert, they were also watching a reunion.

After the show, Merk would be overheard telling some of the audience he wished the show lasted longer. The two-hour show was simply not enough to showcase the great Pinoy talents there.

Even the stunning Rachel Anne Wolfe, Brazil’s daughter and also a singer in her own right, could have joined the rousing finale with her mother and brother.

“Next time,” she said demurely.

New crossroads

Clearly, the festival points to a new crossroads—its own intersection between old and new Pinoy talents; the old leaving behind a challenge for the newcomers to keep Filipino jazz alive.

There is no doubt the different generations of Filipino jazz luminaries at the Triad are determined to do just that, especially Mon David and Clamor, the current darling of the jazz world here. The two would take care of jazzing up American jazz standards with a distinctly Filipino wit and sensibility for the entire evening.

The multitalented David, champion of the 2006 London International Jazz Vocal competition, emerged onstage with the flair of a seasoned performer, opening his act with a breathless minute-long scat before launching into “Footprints” in a cappella.

One could hear a pin drop while listening to the baritone’s mesmerizing interpretation. David is like a musical instrument. Would it be fair to say he scats the way Manny Pacquiao punches, with precise high and low hooks that hit the mark? Thus, he got minor musical accompaniment here, as well as in his other songs “Some Other Time” and “No More Blues.”

For someone who hears David for the first time, one may be prompted to ask: “Where did he come from, and why is he getting attention only now?”

David has had several incarnations in the Philippines after graduating with a Classical Voice degree. He was the drummer and vocal coach of the legendary folk-pop trio Apo Hiking Society for seven years, before he embarked on a singing career, first with Fourplay, a jazz group much like Manhattan Transfer, and then as a solo artist.

He moved to the States two years ago and just released his well-received first US music album, “Coming True.”

New generation

Clamor, the most anticipated performer of the night, strutted onstage with the fanfare accorded a hometown girl. Although based in Los Angeles, she has performed in New York, most notably at Iridium, a top jazz haunt that was second home to the late original guitar hero Les Paul. And unlike her other singing compatriots, Clamor started her career in the States.

Clamor represents a new generation of the Pinoy jazz artist. She marries both new and old Filipino song traditions and musical instruments with her own expressive style, which she inflects with some mild social commentary to keep things interesting and on edge. She exudes great showmanship. Her exposure to the “Vagina Monologues” Filipino adaptation in August 2008 has certainly been put to good use.

The showmanship shines through. As a jazz vocalist, she can swagger one minute and be sublime the next. A favorite in her sets was her interpolation of “My Funny Valentine.” In Filipino, she changed the lyrics and sang it as “My Funny Brown Pinay” with patriotic gusto. The song is in her most recent album “Flippin’ Out.”

Switching mood, she gave a soulful interpretation of “Dahil Sa ’Yo” (“Because of You”) that even the non-Filipino audience, not understanding the lyrics, was moved.

Clamor is strongly attached to her Filipino musical roots, even if she has been in the US since she was 16. This conviction was evident in her tribute to kundiman, a traditional serenade that became an art form in late 19th-century Philippines. She pays tribute to this Filipino art form in her album “My Harana” (My Serenade).

Founding member

Clamor might as well be the Kuh Ledesma of her generation in the manner she chooses material, honors musical traditions and supports other artists. As one of the founding members of the Fil-Am Jazz Festival, Clamor is serious about her support of other Filipino jazz artists whom she thinks deserve just as much fame and recognition.

Her success in the jazz world has also opened other opportunities for her outside of it. She has one song, “Walk Like a Woman,” in the album “Here Lies Love” of former Talking Heads front man David Byrne. This album will have other artists such as Cyndi Lauper, Tori Amos, Natalie Merchant and Martha Wainwright, to name a few, performing songs that fit the interesting life of—surprise!—Imelda Marcos, former First Lady of the Philippines. It is almost unbelievable, but the album already has a release date worldwide: Feb. 23.

Clamor also has a solo show on Jan. 10 at Iridium. The day before, the Fil-Am Jazz Fest would have another performance in Montclair, New Jersey. In February, she will be performing in the Philippines.

by Dennis Clemente, for Philippines Inquirer LifeStyle, December 20, 2009

December 19, 2009

"The Magnificent 5th Fil-Am JazzFest" from Prosy Delacruz with Asian Journal

"Every jazz musician leaves his thumbprint on the music he plays, much as the people of one’s culture would leave its imprint on the art form of another when cultures come together." - Angel Matias Pena, the Dalai Lama of Pinoy Jazz

According to 100 Masterpieces of Van Gogh Museum, "Van Gogh was charmed by Dupre’s use of colour in which he discerned a trace of magnificent symphony. That symphony is amazingly calculated and yet simple and infinitely deep as nature itself."

That same discernment may have prompted the audience to rise and shout out their collective bravos. The headliners are the Asian Jazz Divas (Charmaine Clamor in purple; Charito in yellow; and Sandra Viray in black) with Mon David who introduced the accompanying ‘band Ihate’(Tateng Katindig and Eli Brougermann on the piano, Abe Lagrimas, Jr. on the vibraphone, ukelele and drums, and Dominick Thereaux on bass). Mon usually refers to Tateng as Tateng of the Universe, Ithink, to emphasize that Tateng’s piano skills are beyond world-class.What brought on our collective yells of non-stop bravos? Michael Konik’s greetings of Magandang Gabi at Minamahal Kita earned the audience’s rapport. Some may have perceived him as bilingual. His attempt to speak in Tagalog, the language of the Pinoy musicians on stage, conveyed a tone of respect and inclusion -- an evolving imprint that all these performers are equal, and all are committed to perform their best for the Fil-Am Jazz Festival --it’s fifth in Los Angeles and for the first time in New York and Canada. Sandra Viray, a jazz performer herself and former president of The Jazz Society of the Philippines, sang her opening verses: " It is a new life for me, It is a new dawn, You know how Ifeel." It was a happy beginning that transitioned to a more melancholic mood: "Where were you? There were tears that Ished. It’s all over now." Her next song, That’s All, reminded us of a performer who was once described as having a "soulful, unique singing voice. Her ability to boldly turn any material that she confronted into her own music made her a superstar of her time."

Of course, I’m referring to the great Billie Holiday. Sandra seemed to have done the same, with her self-assured manner, but imprinting the song with her own quality as she sang.

Bubba Jackson, an acclaimed disc jockey of 88.1 KJAZZ, was the festival’s emcee. He introduced Angelo Pizarro. Without losing a beat, Angelo strummed his guitar, playing both classical tunes and flamenco music. He performed as though he was a one-man sound chamber, quickly strumming his hands through all the vibrational ranges. His performance earned profuse praises from Bubba.

It was as though Al Di Meola was present on stage.

Al Di Meola rediscovered, after almost 20 years of acoustic guitar, his love of the electric guitar without denying newer influences. The result is a balancing act between volcanic electronic ecstasy and emotionally moving sound excursions, between fervent improvisations and intimate conversations, including many of his original compositions, and five Piazzolla tunes." Angelo gave it his all -- energy, being and talent were fused together into one impeccable performance. When he strummed his guitar, he had such strength and impact, as though he was an automaton. His hands strummed the entire range with precision -- not a single tune out of place nor out of synchrony.

His attentiveness to each note conveyed joy and oneness with his instrument. His music can be likened to the non-stop crackling and bursting of firecrackers. With speed, depth and force in frequency, the rhythms and sounds compelled us to dance.

One could lose himself in the rapturous sounds of his guitar. It calms one’s heart and soothes one’s soul.

Folks yelled more bravos for his soulful performance. He obliged by playing another piece.

If the stimulus package of the United States government had provision of a billion dollars for jazz festivals to tour around the United States, there would probably be a ten to twenty - factor multiplier to the American economy -- but with no violence of wars nor weapons.

The two-day sold-out event and 300 seats filled up, with each ticketholder spending an average of $100. CDs were also sold, sometimes three for each person.Ihave often wondered how fans could have an unquenchable thirst for jazz performances. Ionly understood after Iheard Mon David’s footprints song, an original composition. His lyrics keep me company as Iimagine, wonder and write about life. "Throw it away/if it is meant for you/ it will come back." A seasoned performer, Mon David’s latest originals include an ode to Manny Pacquiao and Efren Peñaflorida.

His rendition of Balut Penoy elevates the humble and nocturnal balut vendor to a new stature.

I believe that his sense of originality captures the audience and brings them back year after year -- to the eight performers’ stylized renditions, personalities and sparkling performances. No one overpowers, each of them plays a crucial role in the performances. But we should not forget that greatness reaps just rewards. Two legendary performers -- Annie Brazil in New York and Eddie Katindig Sr. in Los Angeles -- were afforded lifetime achievement awards, with Tateng Jr. receiving the award on behalf of his father."Don’ t you just love their music? Has their music played off the charts yet?," Bubba asked. "Around the world, coming from the Philippines, you got it down pat, and you have Charito, the best Filipina jazz singer in Tokyo", he declared. When Abe Lagrimas Jr. played the ukelele, switched to the versapiano and then settled on the drums, you may presume there might be a diminution of talent and skills as he switched instruments. He simply behaved as a one-man, seamless band.

Bubba introduced the last performer of the night. "Jay Rich turned me onto her. She is a legend in jazz -- creating styles and a new genre called, "Jazzipino." He was referring to Charmaine Clamor, who charmed her audience with Hindi Kita Malilimutan, Pinay Sisters, Ako ay Pilipino, Celebrate the Pilipino Way, and Dahil Sa Iyo.

All were talented, some with bit more prowess than the rest, but all their collective souls, along with electrical explosion of their energies, used their whole beings, to unleash their collective inner peace into our hearts. They withheld nothing from this audience, and the audience responded by surrounding them and buying all their CDs.

The night could have ended here, but the audience lingered -- wanting to take in all the warmth and love that were generously given by these Fil-Am artists and forming an unbroken circle of love for these Fil-Am jazz performers.

What a night of magnificent peacemaking -- achieved through music, community-building, harmonic renditions and pride of our heritage!

To Sandra, Angelo, Abe, Eli, Dominick, Mon, Charito and Charmaine -- I offer you this quote from Vincent Van Gogh: "Love many things, for therein lies the true strength, and whosoever loves much performs much, and can accomplish much, and what is done in love is done well." Maraming Salamat po!

by Prosy Delacruz, for Asian Journal, December 19, 2009

December 17, 2009

"Charmaine Clamor Sings for David Byrne" from Baby Gil with Philippines Star

Viva Records’ Jazzipino star Charmaine Clamor has joined the performer line-up of the David Byrne and Fatboy Slim production of Here Lies Love. This is a concept album about our former First Lady Imelda Marcos and her long-time aide Estrella Cumpas that is set for release in February 2010. The title Here Lies Love comes from what Mrs. Marcos is said to want written as her epitaph.

Now based in the US where she has been generating hot buzz in jazz circles, Charmaine made quite a splash in the Philippines early this year with her jazzy interpretation of local classics like Dahil Sa ‘yo and Lahat Ng Araw in the Jazzipino album. Now it looks like she has really hit the big time with this interesting project. It is after all, a singular honor to be tapped by the Grammy, Academy Award, Golden Globe winner and Rock and Roll Hall of Famer Byrne to perform Walk Like A Woman, the only jazz cut in the disco and club sound dominated album.

Here Lies Love is a disco opera that has the fictional Mrs. Marcos meditating on her life, starting from her childhood in Tacloban to beauty queen, First Lady and the departure from Malacañang. The story will be told through songs, in something like an opera, but with a dance beat. The album will be released as a CD, DVD and book package. We still do not know what the songs will sound like but Byrne, who incidentally is the founder of the legendary New Wave band Talking Heads, provides us with a hint through the book’s introduction that he now has posted on his website.

He wrote: “The story I am interested in is asking what drives a powerful person — what makes them tick? How do they make and then remake themselves? I thought to myself, wouldn’t it be great if — as this piece would be principally composed of clubby dance music — one could experience it in a club setting? Could one bring a story and a kind of theater to the disco? Was that possible? If so, wouldn’t that be amazing!”

The other performers in the album are the following: Here Lies Love by Florence Welch of Florence & The Machine; Every Drop Of Rain by Candie Payne and St. Vincent; You’ll Be Taken Care Of by Tori Amos; The Rose Of Tacloban by Martha Wainwright; How Are You? by Nellie McKay; A Perfect Hand by Steve Earle; Eleven Days by Cyndi Lauper; When She Passed by Allison Moorer; Don’t You Agree? by Roisin Murphy; Pretty Face by Camille; Dancing Together by Sharon Jones; Men Will Do Anything by Alice Russell; The Whole Man by Kate Pierson; Never So Big by Sia; Please Don’t by Santigold; American Troglodyte by Byrne; Solano Avenue by Nicole Atkins; Order 1081 by Natalie Merchant; Seven Years by Byrne and Shara Worden; Why Don’t You Love Me a duet by Lauper and Amos; and Ladies In Blue by Theresa Andersson.

Take note of that last title. Mrs. Marcos’ Blue Ladies will be immortalized in music composed by Byrne and Fat Boy Slim and Natalie Merchant is singing the song about Martial Law.

by Baby Gil, for Philippines Star, December 17, 2009

December 03, 2009

"A Converstaion with Charmaine Clamor, Rising Star, Jazzipino Style" from Scott Mitchell with Valley Star

Earlier this month the Little Tokyo district of downtown Los Angeles played host to the Asian American Jazz Festival. Japanese piano phenomenon Hiromi and jazz song stylist, Ms. Charmaine Clamor, headlined the historic event and shared the stage on the last night of the festival.

A native Filipina, Clamor now calls Los Angeles her home. Not one to forget her roots and culture, Clamor has found a way to incorporate these important elements of her life into what she affectionately refers to as “Jazzipino.” Clamor has received awards in the Philippines which are similar to the American Academy Awards. She is one of the founders of the Jazz Society of the Philippines-USA.

Clamor took time out of her busy schedule to answer some questions regarding the Asian American Jazz Festival and her music.

Charmaine, how did it feel like to participate & perform in the Asian American Jazz Festival?

It was an honor to share the same bill with the piano genius, Hiromi! To close the jazz festival with her is one of the highlights of my career.

How important was this to you as an Asian artist and performer?

To be recognized as another ingredient in the melting pot of jazz is very cool. And that our contribution is celebrated not only by our Asian American community but also by those outside of our community.

How did it feel as a women, to be not only a participant but headliner?

To have the closing bill of me and Hiromi -- two women -- sends a message of empowerment. The stereotype of "Asian Woman" isn't exactly one that emphasizes leadership. When I'm on stage, I forget about anything but the music. But when I look back on the event, I realize that I have the ability to inspire -- and that's pretty cool.

Do you feel that you are a flag bearer and or role model for young women of Asian, perhaps especially of Filipino descent?

As a Filipina, it was a tremendous affirmation that my music -- our music -- belongs in the ongoing conversation about American music. We don't have to just copy our American sisters. We don't have to try to be "the next" anyone. We can be ourselves. My career, I hope, proves that there's a place in popular culture for artists coming from a distinctly Filipina point of view.

Just think about the message behind the song, “My Funny Brown Pinay”!

"My Funny Brown Pinay" is my reworking of "My Funny Valentine." The message is simple: love yourself, and don't try to change to match societal ideals and expectation. The Philippines were conquered and colonized for hundreds of years. Many of my people suffer to this day from a colonial mentality: they try to whiten their skin and make their flat noses pointy and anything else that will "erase" their indigenous features. I did it myself when I was a girl! (It didn't work, obviously!) "My Funny Brown Pinay" reminds my brown sisters that they are beautiful! And that goes for non-Filipinas as well. It's for all of us.

How important was this to you on a personal note?

To close the historic Asian American festival was a validation of the hard work that I and my team have put into raising awareness of my music, of “jazzipino.” It also made me appreciate even more the amazing support of my fans.

Did you feel any pressure headlining the event with Hiromi?

Only because she is one in a million pianists! I definitely felt pressure. But ultimately I just had to worry about doing my own thing.

What type of preparation was needed to put this particular show together with the musicians backing you?

Put together a good set, learn the songs well, rehearse with the musicians – all of whom travel the world with me and are super familiar with my material -- and off we go!

Can you tell us more about your amazing band?

Tateng Katindig is known as the "Oscar Peterson of the Philippines." The cat blazes. And the big bonus is that he knows all the old Filipino songs I do by heart. He's been hearing them since childhood, like me. You can hear Tatang on many albums recently, including Mon David's "Coming True." The secret is out!

Dominic Thiroux, my funky bass player, joined me in March of 2008, when my old bass player left to join the Manhattan Transfer. He was recommended by my friend and colleague Kim Richmond, the reedman who appears on my first album, "Searching for the Soul." Dominic's first gig with me was in Malaysia, at a jazz festival there. His bass literally fell apart in the middle of the set. So he grabbed an electric axe and soldiered on. He's been with me ever since.

My drummer, Abe Lagrimas, is also a world-class ukulele player, and that instrument is featured on my album "Flippin' Out." He's been with me for close to three years. We've been around the world together, and I look forward to many more trips with him. Abe is as solid as it gets. He's also Filipino!

One of my oldest amigos is Gustavo Garcia, my "Mexipino" percussion man. He doesn't speak much English and I don't speak much Spanish, but we understand ourselves perfectly. Music really is the universal language. Gustavo has a beautiful soul, and it comes out on stage.

On guitar, my collaborator and the arranger of all the music on my third album, "My Harana," is Mr. Richard Ickard. His background is classical, which I think you can hear in his impeccable technique. When Rich and I do Filipino serenades together, I feel like we have mental telepathy.

How did you get started as a singer?

My mom says I was singing in my crib before I could talk properly. At the age of 3, I was entertaining passengers on the back of buses traveling to Manila -- whether they liked it or not! We always had music in our house, and I started playing piano at a young age. By the time we immigrated to America, when I was a teenager, I was pretty serious about singing. But I was a responsible girl who knew that getting an education was first priority. I earned a Masters Degree in Physical Therapy and became a licensed therapist.

How did you end up as a jazz singer?

I was "discovered" in a Filipino fried chicken restaurant while doing karaoke. Whitney Houston, I think. The Musical Director of Crescendo, a vocal harmony group, heard me and invited me to audition. I was with the group for nearly nine years before I did my first solo record. The Crescendo years gave me my jazz chops.

Who were your early musical influences?

Mario Lanza, because my mom played him constantly. I paid tribute to him -- and her -- with my recording of "Be My Love," one of the first songs I remember hearing.

Ella Fitzgerald, Frank Sinatra, Tony Bennett. These were the singers whose voices filled our living room.

Who are some of your more recent influences?

Shirley Horn. That's how deep into the music I want to get.

Rhiannon. That's how fearless of an improvisor I want to be.

Tierney Sutton, Kurt Elling, and Mark Murphy. That's how hard I want to swing.

Barbara Morrison and Linda Hopkins. That's how compelling of a performer I want to be.

What have been your best moments on stage?

Every time the audience digs my music is a best moment. But earlier this year, in Manila, I was touring to support my first album on Viva Records, a big pop label there, and I did a free concert in the atrium of a mall. The crowd was quite large, standing four-deep around all the seats. They knew all my "jazzipino" songs. Every time we started a new one, they broke into applause and cheers and sang along. And at the end of each song they screamed and cheered. I felt like I had really arrived.

Who would you love to open for?

Kurt Elling. We're nothing alike. But I think we both approach our music with a combination of intense seriousness and intense enjoyment. Of course, I'd be honored to be Hiromi's opener for the rest of my career.

Who would you love to work with?

Christian McBride. The cat is so funky, so swingin', and so fun! I got to hang out with him a little the last time he came through Catalina's, and I could feel what a sweetheart he is.

And whenever Keith Jarrett is ready to do a duets album...Hah!

Down the road, when your name and voice and art are recognized around the world and you headline Carnegie Hall and the Albert Hall, who would you like to open for you?

Any Filipino brother or sister who I can help. I've dedicated a large portion of my life to raising the profile of talented Filipino artists, and I remain committed to showcasing my kababayans, my Pinoy and Pinay kinfolk.

Song selection, what is involved with your song selection for stage and for your albums?

For the stage, I always consider pacing, building different textures and feels, and spacing out the climaxes. I try to include a mix of old favorites and new surprises. My set list usually includes some jazz, some world, some jazzipino, and some stuff that can't be categorized. There are certain songs my audiences expect to hear -- like "My Funny Brown Pinay" and "Dahil Sa Yo" -- and I am delighted to comply.

For my albums, I'm simply trying to document what I'm working on, what I'm exploring, at this moment in time. My upcoming project, which will be out in 2010, is called "Something Good," and the concept is simple: It doesn't matter the genre or the label or any of that other stuff. It's like Duke Ellington said: There are only two types of music -- and I'm into the Good kind!

You can learn more about Charmaine Clamor at charmaineclamor.com

Charmaine will be participating in the Fifth Annual Filipino-American Jazz Festival held at the Catalina Bar and Grill in Hollywood, December 4 and 5. Mon David, the top male Philippine vocalist in the world will share the stage with Clamor and company. David’s daughter is a student and dancer at LAVCC!

by Scott Mitchell, for Valley Star, December 03, 2009

November 20, 2009

"A Fruitful Concert" from Rod Garcia with Philippine Daily News

I’m happy to report that the Alay concert at Harmony Hall for flood relief went quite well—artistically.

The singers/musicians were in their A-game. Super cool Jazzer Charmaine Clamor (who flew in from LA that same day) was amazing! She wowed the crowd with her beautiful voice and style. My sister had picked her up from the airport that afternoon, brought her straight to my house, then to the venue. Instead of resting after five hours of flight and two hours of travel on the road, Charmaine opted to go to the venue and practice with the ad hoc band I put together for her. Then she waited for the performance to start later that evening. Charmaine’s good nature, her sense of humor and musicality won everybody over immediately. She garnered a standing ovation that evening. She said she regretted not having enough time to chat, but I told her I might stop by LA before the year is up, maybe.

The other artists mesmerized the audience too, especially Nicki Gonzales and her brother Ira, who did a set in Brazilian samba, singing in Portuguese. It was the first time I had met Charmaine. I’ve known Nicki for a long time. My close friend, pop singer-songwriter Alfa, flew in from a prior gig at the University of Illinois. She had a bad cold that night, but managed to send some male hearts aflutter, it seems.

Local Filipino channel under Lito Serrano covered the event. The rest of the performers did so well too—-most of whom sold all their CDs. I let some singers from college (George Mason, University of Maryland, etc.) do some of the preliminary performances before the concert proper began; and they did so well they almost stole the show from the headliners. The kids were so excited, one of them using the words “this is awesome”—and asking when the next one will be.

The Philippine embassy dignitaries came (and were clearly impressed); and the Maryland Assemblywoman Kris Valderama came up the stage after the finale to thank everyone for selecting her jurisdiction as the site for the concert. She left a phone message in my house the next day saying how much she enjoyed the show and making special mention of how pleasantly “shocked” she was about 14-year old Rocky’s sax playing. My 19-year old daughter Jitter held her own, midst all the superstars around her. Rita Adkins, as a reporter from Philippine News, interviewed me onstage after the finale, and mentioned how she was so moved to tears by Jitter’s rendition of “Nasaan” (from my play, Hacienda). I could tell Rita was still teary-eyed, as she held her hand to her chest, smiling broadly.

Lots of folks to thank (including Manila Mail for giving free ad space for this event). We had a post -concert meeting the other night. The PAFC accountants report a gross of about $7,000.00 at this point. I would have wanted to make more. PAFC is thinking we can sponsor next year’s event in the month of May, while dances and fundraisers have not yet inundated people’s schedules.

The finale of the show was a song called “Sana”— performed by everybody —Alfa and Tacoma Park songwriter Russ Arlotta on violin; Odie Sotomayor and Pong Velasquez of Lucky 28 on lead guitar; Rick Brigham on drums; Nicki Gonzales on congas; Ira Gonazales on rhythm guitar; Charmaine on lead vocals with my daughter Jitter; Rocky on sax; and with me on guitar. I wrote “Sana” a long time ago when I was still in law school; but it has become the theme song of this Alay series. See you in the next concert!

by Rod Garcia, for Philippine Daily News, November 20, 2009

November 15, 2009

"Discovery of the Week" from Marc Myers with Jazzwax

My Harana: A Filipino Serenade by Charmaine Clamor is a collection of Filipino love songs. But is not one of those tasteless albums of faux passion and synthesized strings, which are all too common in countries outside the U.S. Instead, there's a warm, Brazilian ballad feel to Clamor's vocal passion and interpretation. Her voice is genuine, and her timbre shimmers with fragrant beauty. I do not speak Filipino, so the lyrics are lost on me. But you sense instantly what Clamor is singing about, and you realize she is a gorgeous singer. She's that good. Clamor is backed by Richard Ickard on acoustic guitar and a range of stringed instruments.

by Marc Myers, for Jazzwax, November 15, 2009

October 30, 2009

"Far Eastern Swing" from Brick Wahl with LA WEEKLY

Vocalist Charmaine Clamor’s term “jazzipino” might sound a bit like publicity shtick, but there is definitely something going on in her blend of jazz arrangements and traditional Filipino tunes, even including some stunningly spare and gorgeous native instrumentation, especially the gonglike percussion. Mix in the soul, a hint of funk and attitude, some torch tunes and you have a genre in the making. Her “My Funny Brown Pinay” does for the sisters what Joe Bataan’s “Young, Gifted and Brown” did for the pinoy brothers a generation ago.

by Brick Wahl, for LA WEEKLY, October 30, 2009

October 25, 2009

"Pinoy Divas Come Up With New Albums" from Baby Gil with Philippine Star

The big divas from good old America are not the only ones making their bid for the charts at this time of the year. Some Pinoy divas have also joined the race, three of whom, Jaya, Nina and Sitti have already proven they can put one over the foreign releases in the hit lists, while the other is a newcomer also doing the US bit and whose music sounds like nobody else.

Probably because she records in the US and is therefore not aware of the demands of the local market, L.A.-based jazz artist Charmaine Clamor has the most daring and most interesting album among these Pinoy divas. Not only that, she also introduces a new type of music. It is called jazzipino and is a blend of her jazz singing with Filipino melodies.

The effect on the listener is stunning. In fact, it is such a joy to find Filipino melodies performed jazz style by a world-class talent. Jazzipino by Charmaine includes Dahil Sa ‘yo, O Ilaw, Minamahal Kita, Lahat Ng Araw, Pamulinawen, Usahay, Sa Ugoy Ng Duyan, Pakiusap, Minamahal Sinasamba with Mon David, Matud Nila, Dungawin Mo Hirang, Ay Kalisud, Panahon Na/ Hindi Kita Malimot, Harana Sa Dilim, and as a bonus track a reworking of the Rogers and Hart classic My Funny Valentine as My Funny Brown Pinay.

by Baby Gil, for Philippine Star, October 25, 2009

October 05, 2009

"Filipinas Magazine Achievement Awardee for Sports & Entertainment, Charmaine Clamor" from The Editors with FILIPINASMagazine

In the ever-evolving world of music, Charmaine Clamor has pioneered a style all her own called “jazzipino.” A blend of American jazz with the traditional, linguistic and indigenous aspects of Filipino culture, the term is derived from her love of jazz and the Philippines. Since her debut album, “Searching for the Soul,” was released four years ago, Charmaine has received air play in radio stations throughout the U.S. and has topped the jazz charts. Her sophomore album, “Flippin’ Out” claimed the top five spots on the JazzWeek’s World and Traditional Jazz charts. Charmaine’s current album, “My Harana: A Simple Filipino Serenade,” debuted at number seven on JazzWeek’s World Music Top Ten in 2008.

Growing up near Subic Naval Base in Zambales, Philippines, jazz was a constant in Charmaine’s life. “Everyday I woke up, there was always music coming from the living room,” she says in an interview earlier this year with Filipinas Magazine. Additionally exposed to kundiman, opera and classical music, she often sang along with her mother and was already a consummate performer at the tender age of three, serenading bus passengers while the family was on its way from Subic to Manila and vice versa. When Charmaine was 16, the Clamors immigrated to the U.S. and settled in Southern California. She took a job as a karaoke hostess while in college and was “discovered” by Bobbie Garcia, the founder of Crescendo, a Pinoy jazz ensemble, who recruited her to sing with the group. Together, they performed all over Southern California and even came out with an album in 2004. In 2005, Charmaine signed with Freeham Records, an indie record company that concentrates on the jazz and blues repertoire. She introduced her “jazzipino” sound two years later in “Flippin’ Out;” it not only scored her a mainstream hit, but also gave her international recognition.

Since then Charmaine has graced a myriad of magazine covers and has appeared on a variety of TV shows in the Philippines. She has performed at the famed Catalina Bar and Grill Jazz Club in Hollywood, California, and headlined at Yoshi’s in San Francisco. Charmaine is also the co-founder of JazzPhil-USA, which aims to promote Filipino jazz artists in the U.S. She recently signed a multi-record deal with Viva Records (she’s the label’s first jazz artist) and is currently working on her fourth album, which is slated to be out in 2010.

For her accomplishments, Charmaine has garnered an array of accolades including the Award of Merit, Philippine Pride Best Jazz Singer by the Filipino Academy of Movie Arts and Sciences, the Asian Heritage Society Award in Performing Arts, a Certificate of Recognition in Performing Arts from the State of California and Los Angeles as well as being among the 100 Most Influential Filipino Women in the U.S. by the Filipina Women’s Network.

by The Editors, for FILIPINASMagazine, October 05, 2009

September 29, 2009

"Barbara Morrison Celebrates 60th Birthday in Concert" from A. Scott Galloway with Urban Network

A brief stage change resulted in Barbara’s regular cohorts the Stuart Elster Trio taking over the house band chores to back a series of notable up and comers. First up was 16 year-old Mercedes York, a singer being mentored by Motown great Cornelius Grant, who sang the Etta James gem “At Last.” She has the gift of a strong voice but like most young singers today, needs more stage time to hone her performance and interpretive skills. Much stronger was Yvette Stewart who followed with a sweet version of “Just in Time” that featured a tasty piano solo from Elster and marked the entrance of one of the day’s most valuable players, tenor saxophonist Houston Person whose solos were so soulful and heart-hewn, you never wanted them to end. Next up was beautiful Filipina singer Charmaine Clamor who has swiftly won the hearts of Los Angeles jazz lovers with her regular visits to Catalina Bar & Grill offering her unique “Jazzipino” style of singing. This afternoon, she sang “Hindi Kita Malimot (I Will Never Forget You),” mesmerizing the amphitheatre with a blissful moment of sensual loveliness further kissed by the additions of trumpeter Dr. Bobby Rodriguez and saxophonist Albert Alva.

by A. Scott Galloway, for Urban Network, September 29, 2009

September 27, 2009

"Charmaine Clamor: Jazzing Up RP Love and Traditional Songs" from Ronald Constantino with Tempo

JAZZY ARRANGEMENTS – Jazz enthusiasts will surely welcome the release of the CD "Charmaine Clamor Jazzi Pino" – this columnist included.

Hopefully, those who love Filipino songs — love songs and traditional songs – will be just as enthusiastic and welcoming. You see, Ms. Charmaine Clamor, America’s foremost Filipino jazz artist, gives those songs jazzy arrangements. She is currently in town to promote "Jazzi Pino," distributed in the Philippines by Viva Records and manufactured in the US by FreeHam Records.

Amazingly, these Filipino songs easily lent themselves to the jazzy arrangements, some of them by Ms. Clamor herself.

LINE UP – Consider the lineup of well loved and familiar tunes interpreted and arranged with a jazzy, classy twist. "Dahil sa ’Yo" by Mike Velarde and Dominador Santiago. "Minamahal Kita" also by Velarde. "Lahat ng Araw" by Velarde and Dominador Suarez. "Usahay" by Nitoy Gonzales (Visayan song). "Sa Ugoy ng Duyan" by Lucio San Pedro and Levi Celerio (both National Artists). "Pakiusap" by Francisco Santiago and Jose Corazon de Jesus. "Ay Kalisud" by De Jesus and Jovita Fuentes (National Artist). "Hindi Kita Malimot" by Josefino Cenizal (in a medley with "Panahon Na" by Mc. Clamor). "Minamahal, Sinasamba" by Tito Arevalo (adapted by Andrei Dionisio and featuring Mon David, another great jazz artist based in Los Angeles). "Matud Nila" by Ben Zubiri (Visayan song). "Dungawin Mo Hirang" by Santiago Suarez.

TRADITIONAL SONGS – There are three traditional songs in the CD: "O Ilaw," "Pamulinawen," and "Harana sa Dilim" (Bicolano song arranged by Richard Ickard and Ms. Clamor).

There’s a bonus cut. Ms. Clamor’s take on the Richard Rodgers and Larry Hart classic "My Funny Valentine," which she titled "My Funny Brown Pinay."

NOVEL IDEA – Charmaine Clamor was born in Subic, Zambales and moved with her parents to LA when she was 16 years old. She started doing gigs while still in school. A few years ago, she came up with the novel idea of jazzing up Filipino love and traditional songs, including kundiman. Pinoys and Americans, music critics included, were impressed with the soulful results.

by Ronald Constantino, for Tempo, September 27, 2009

September 25, 2009

Fil-Am Singer Bringing Jazzipino Home from Punch Liwanag with Manila Bulletin

Though she’s hardly a household name around these parts, Fil-Am Charmaine Clamor has already made a mark abroad with her new style of music called “Jazzipino.”

The chanteuse’s inimitable style has even caught the ears of American jazz critic Don Heckman of the Los Angeles Times who wrote “her debut album, announced the arrival of an impressive new vocal artist.”

Further, the revered Jazz Times magazine describes the Filipina as “a dynamic new compass point in world music.”

Despite the accolades, Charmaine simply describes her music as a fusion of American jazz and traditional Filipino music, Kundiman.

In an exclusive interview with Manila Bulletin Entertainment Online, Charmaine said that like most singers, she started her career by mimicking the voices she heard on Top 40 radio.

“I sang Whitney Houston and Aretha Franklin songs because that’s the kind of voice that I have,” said she.

It was her parents, however, who first influenced Charmaine to become a jazz artist. “They introduced me to Kundiman, Jazz and Opera because that’s the kind of music that’s coming from our living room when I was growing up.”

Coming up with a musical style all her own came gradually to the singer; far easier, she said, compared to the hardship she endured in trying to break into the Los Angeles music scene.

“It was hard at first kasi kailangan mo ng following,’” she shared. “You really have to work…to get people come to your shows. I needed a lot of support from my family, friends and my management team.”

It was while in Los Angeles that Charmaine learned how to set herself apart from other musicians, and to improve in her craft by listening to jazz records and watching other jazz musicians.

“I also got advice from the living legends of jazz like Tierney Sutton, Barbara Morrison, (members of) The Kurt Elling Band, Sheila Jordan (who used to play with Charlie Parker), James Moody, Linda Hopkins (the first African American Tony award winner) and even Etta James.

“Parang bata ako (nun). Natutuwa sila sa kin [kasi] parang ‘Sino ba itong Pinoy na ito nanghihingi ng advice?’ “I’m like their little protégé and they were really generous in sharing their wisdom with me.”

Charmaine became so good that she was given the chance to cut her first jazz album titled, “Searching For The Soul,” an all-English album filled with jazz standards.

However, it was in her second album, “Flippin’ Out,” that “Jazzipino” came to be.

“Yun ang nagbigay sa akin ng mas malaking recognition nationwide (U.S.) because it was different,” said she.

Charmaine recalled the first time her Tagalog song got played on a U.S. jazz format radio station.

“I first heard “Minamahal Kita” on the airwaves while I was in L.A. Many Filipinos e-mailed the radio station after that. They said the song brought them to tears kasi they were very touched.

“Kasi alam mo, mga immigrant kami eh – there’s a huge piece of us that’s missing and music is one of the greatest ways to connect us to our homeland.”

Surprisingly, though, mixing Jazz and Kundiman was inspired by Charmaine’s American audience. “They were the ones who encouraged me to do this because those watching my shows were mostly non-Filipinos who listen to jazz. Hindi naman panay Pinoys lang ang audience ko in the beginning,” said she.

Many of these non-Filipinos told Charmaine that Tagalog sounds romantic.

“At the start of Jazzipino, unti-unti ko nang kinakanta yung ‘Dahil Sa ‘Yo.’ I’ll play it straight ballad, and Americans will come after the show and say, ‘I was so touched by that melody--what is that song?’ And then I proudly say, ‘That’s Tagalog, it’s one of our classics.’”

Indeed, the song “Dahil Sa’Yo” casts a certain effect on her American audience.

“The Americans come to me after the show with tears in their eyes—I’m not exaggerating! That’s their reaction…” said she.

She mused: “Kundiman is like Opera in that some people don’t know what the words mean but the emotions being poured into the music, dun sila nadadala.”

Charmaine is in Manila to promote her album titled, “Jazzipino,” which contains her versions of the traditional Filipino songs “Dahil Sa’Yo,” “Minamahal Kita,” “Pamulinawen,” “Dungawin Mo Hirang,” and “Sa Ugoy Ng Duyan,” among others.

“I’ve been singing the songs in this album for 3-4 fours years now and thank goodness it’s being embraced by my kababayan and Americans alike.

“Still, I feel that this music really belongs here. And for Filipinos to embrace my music--that will be the greatest reward.”

by Punch Liwanag, for Manila Bulletin, September 25, 2009

September 23, 2009

"US Based Pinay Jazzer Introduces Jazzipino" from Yugel Losorata with Manila Bulletin

When a musician comes out with something unusual to the ear, more often the result is the birth of a new genre. The new album of jazz act Charmaine Clamor, touted as America’s foremost Filipina jazz and world music vocalist, has found itself at a lost in finding the genre it should fall into. Thus, it needed to have the singer herself coin a new one: Jazzi Pino.

Apart from being the title of a 14-track plus a bonus piece album, Jazzi Pino is defined by the thin but beautifully big-voiced talent as “the blending of the soul and swing of American jazz and Filipino melodies, languages and even indigenous instruments.”

During her album launch at the Podium last Friday (which had as special guest young crooner Vince Camua), Charmaine wowed the curious crowd with her jazzy renditions of traditional Pinoy hymns and classic Tagalog oldies such as “Dahil Sa ‘Yo” and “Dungawin Mo Hirang.”

“Ang ganda po ng musikang Pilipino ano po!” the proud 100% Pinay expressed during the short but truly engaging set.

She left the country for Los Angeles when she was 16. She started gigging around and soon came up with the idea of jazzing up kundimans which really impressed both the Americans and the Pinoy community there.

Her album “Jazzi Pino” is her first in the Philippines as she has already released a couple of ones abroad. Viva Records is backing her up and according to her manager Michael Konik, she just signed a four-year, four-record deal with the local label.

Charmaine’s American manager said of her, “She’s slender but when you hear her sing (for the first time with closed eyes), you will think she’s a big African-American because of the soulfulness in her voice. She’s one of the best singers in the world.”

That might be too high a regard. But watching her perform should make one say she’s truly an entertainer of global standard. She delivers her lines with much sincerity and make every number a highlight.

Some other interesting tracks in her CD are “Pamulinawen,” “Panahon Na/Hindi Kita Malimot,” the piece she performed live to open her set with a bang, “Sa Ugoy Ng Duyan,” and “My Funny Brown Pinay (her Tagalog take of “My Funny Valentine”) which she dedicated to her sisters.

Charmaine, born in Subic, Zambales, will do a mall show with The CompanY on Sept. 25 at Shangri-La Plaza and on the 26th at Gateway Mall.

by Yugel Losorata, for Manila Bulletin, September 23, 2009

September 01, 2009

"Queen of Jazzipino Breaks News Ground in America" from Odette Keeley with Philippines Inquirer

OAKLAND (Calif.) -- Many jazz artists and aficionados consider jazz as the immigrant’s music -- embracing and stirring into a big pot the many styles, elements and talents coming from musicians from all over the globe.

Charmaine Clamor, recently hailed as America’s leading Filipina jazz and world music vocalist, believes the “Filipino spice” may have found its renaissance in this pot in recent years, through the hybrid genre she created, ‘Jazzipino’. It’s a blend of the soul and swing of American jazz with Filipino music, languages and instruments. It’s the perfect pairing of her two great loves, Charmaine says, of jazz and her Filipino soul, and it has catapulted her into the American jazz stratosphere.

Now living in Los Angeles, Charmaine was born in the Philippine town of Subic-Zambales, and her mother, a soprano singer inculcated in her a deep love for the Great American Songbook and Filipino music. She remembers that growing up, their home was filled with jazz and opera, alongside Philippine kundimans (torch songs), harana songs (serenades) and folk music.

In 2007, Charmaine’s second album, “Flippin’ Out” made the Top 5 on both JazzWeek’s World and Traditional Jazz radio charts simultaneously. And in 2008, her third album, “My Harana: A Filipino Serenade” made the Top 10 in the world music charts, making her the first Filipino to place two consecutive albums in the Top 10 world music radio charts.

In this harana album, which includes an enchanting duet with multi-awarded Philippine jazz artist Mon David, “Minamahal, Sinasamba” [“Loving You, Adoring You”], she also made history by being the first Filipina artist to actually record these sacred serenades traditionally recorded by men.

Clamor says she wants to revive this “tradition of courtship through music, to hopefully bring back passion and help make the love field equal among men and women, to empower women to also initiate that romantic connection and not just wait for the men to come to them.”

She has been featured in several Filipino-American, Philippine and mainstream media including NPR (National Public Radio), BBC World (British Broadcasting Corp.), the Los Angeles Times, among others and she has become one of the Philippines’ newest singing icons.

Charmaine has also received numerous prestigious awards here and in the Philippines including, the “Philippines Pride – Best Jazz Singer” recognition from FAMAS – the Philippine equivalent to the Oscars -- and a 2009 Asian Heritage Award in the Performing Arts.

She has headlined several jazz festivals in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Manila and venues throughout Asia. She recognizes she is continuing a long legacy of Filipino jazz legends who made their mark in America and have collaborated with brilliant musicians. These include the “Wild Man:” pianist Bobby Enriquez; legendary pianist and composer, Tateng Katindig; Danny Barcelona, who was Louis Armstrong’s drummer; and Mon David, one of Charmaine’s collaborators and winner of the 2006 London International Competition for Jazz Vocalists.

Charmaine works closely with many of them and the new crop of artists as a founding member of Jazz-Phil USA, a non-profit organization that promotes jazz musicians of Filipino descent in the United States.

In the NAM video profile, author catches Charmaine backstage at premiere jazz house, Yoshi’s, in Oakland just before she hit the stage for a special kick-off concert for the 2nd Annual San Francisco Fil-Am Jazz Festival, held Aug.8-9.

Carlos Zialcita, executive director of the San Francisco Filipino American Jazz Festival introduced Charmaine during the special performance at Yoshi’s. He also shared with the audience the greatest contributions of Filipinos to jazz. According to Zialcita, early Filipino migrants were able to break ground in the jazz scene.

In previous media interviews, Zialcita explained that Filipinos had been living in Louisiana since the 1700s.

“There had been a settlement of Filipinos – known as Manilamen – that lived in Louisiana,” he said. “Filipinos were right there, right in the mix of Bourbon Street (New Orleans) and before long, we were members of the best bands in Bourbon Street.”

Back in the Philippines, Zialcita said, the jazz tradition was starting at the turn of the 20th century. According to him, Filipinos learned jazz from African-American Buffalo soldiers during the Spanish-American War in 1898, and the Philippine-American War until 1915.

“The Buffalo soldiers stationed in the Philippines were comprised mostly of African Americans who came from the South, perhaps including New Orleans,” he pointed out. “They took in Filipino musicians and introduced them to the new forms of music developing in the United States, namely jazz, blues, gospel and many others.”

Michael Konik, founder of FreeHam Records which produced Charmaine’s first three albums, likens the "jazzipino" phenomenon to Brazil’s bossa nova in the ‘60s which, before then, he said, nobody in America had heard.

“On American jazz radio, nobody’s heard somebody singing in Tagalog before, nobody’s heard a kundiman before, and now they’re hearing Charmaine,” Konik enthused.

And no one perhaps is more thrilled with the global advancement of Filipino culture through Jazzipino than Charmaine herself.

“I want our culture, our languages to be sung like the Portuguese, Spanish or French …. so why not Tagalog,” she beamed.

You'll hear Charmaine's warm contralto and her signature Pinay sass and sultry soul in her song, "My Funny Brown Pinay," a remake of the classic "My Funny Valentine." She said the song is a very personal story of hers, explaining that growing up kayumanggi (brown-skinned and flat-nosed) in the Philippines, she had always felt small, almost like a second-class citizen.

But it was here in America that she found her voice and felt her true Pinay beauty being celebrated. She says young Filipinas have come to her with tears in their eyes, after watching her show, saying they have felt the same. And many women of color from all over the world have written her as well, saying they felt empowered with this song.

Charmaine is on her way soon to Manila, where she will launch her very first Philippine album, “Jazzipino” under Viva Records, one of Manila’s biggest music labels. This multi-record, multi-year deal makes her the first and only jazz artist to join the Viva family. Her debut RP album which will contain her most popular “kundimans” and “haranas”, will be released on Sept. 12 and Vic del Rosario CEO of Viva Communications, Inc. looks forward to it saying: "It was a joy to discover somebody like Charmaine Clamor who is giving Filipino music a new life with the Jazzipino sound. And I am very honored to welcome her to the Viva roster of talents. Thank you, Charmaine. You do your country proud."

Meantime, Charmaine will be working on her fourth U.S. album, a Jazz/Jazzipino album to be launched early next year.

“Many people are asking me where Jazzipino is going, and how it is going to evolve, and I hope I can answer that with this next album,” Charmaine quipped.

by Odette Keeley, for Philippines Inquirer, September 01, 2009

August 11, 2009

"Take Five, with Charmaine Clamor" from Dave Douglas with All About Jazz

Meet Charmaine Clamor: The creator of Jazzipino, Charmaine Clamor is America's foremost Filipina jazz and world vocalist. With two consecutive albums in the JazzWeek World Music Top-10, Charmaine has been credited with introducing Filipino languages, melodies, and musical instruments to listeners around the globe. She records internationally for Viva Records and in the United States for FreeHam Records. In 2009, she was given a special FAMAS Award (”Filipino Oscar”) as Philippines Best Jazz Singer.

Instrument(s): Vocals.

Teachers and/or influences? Shirley Horn, Sarah Vaughan, Nina Simone, Ella Fitzgerald, Kurt Elling, Tierney Sutton, Linda Hopkins, Barbara Morrison, Mon David, and Michelle Weir.

I knew I wanted to be a musician when... I began singing in the back of buses traveling from my provincial hometown to the capital city of Manila--at age three!

Your sound and approach to music: Tell a story and tell the truth.

Your teaching approach: Discover your authentic voice and what you want to say with it. Be yourself.

Your dream band: I'm blessed to work with some of the finest musicians in the world here in Los Angeles. But if Laurence Hobgood, Christian McBride, and Eric Harland wanted to play for the door, we could probably make room for them!

Road story: Your best or worst experience: Late set on a wintry Sunday night in Times Square, at the Iridium Jazz Club: I came onstage, and although the lights limited my vision, I could clearly see sitting in the second row center, directly in line with my microphone stand, Mr. Andy Bey. But I kept singing anyway.

Favorite venue: Catalina Bar & Grill, in Hollywood, is my home away from home. They were the first major club to give me a break, and I consider the entire staff there my extended family.

Your favorite recording in your discography and why? Whatever I'm listening to this morning. There is so much sonic beauty in this world, and I'll never get to hear it all.

The first Jazz album I bought was: Miles Davis: Kind of Blue.

What do you think is the most important thing you are contributing musically? I'm trying to set an example: The best way--the only way--to succeed in the arts, in life, is to know who you are and what you want to say. The rest comes naturally.

Did you know... As an immigrant girl who did not arrive in the USA until her teen years, I graduated as valedictorian of my high school class in Los Angeles and went on to earn a Master Degree in Physical Therapy.

CDs you are listening to now: Laurence Hobgood, When the Heart Dances; Christian Jacob Trio, Styne & Myne; Kurt Elling, Dedicated to You; Mon David, Coming True; Eydie Gorme & Los Panchos, Bolero!

Desert Island picks: I'd have to smuggle in my iPod with at least 4,000 tracks or so...

How would you describe the state of jazz today? As bountiful and fertile as any time in history. The quantity and quality of the music being made is astonishing. No one needs to worry about “keeping jazz alive.” It is quite healthy. It is our popular culture that we need to worry about! We just need to get people hip.

What are some of the essential requirements to keep jazz alive and growing? Cultivating audiences with ears, attention spans, and intelligence.

What is in the near future? Later in 2009, I go into the studio to record my newest album, my fourth in America. I return to Asia to support my new Jazzipino release in Manila. And, in 2010, I am thrilled to be part of a collaboration with a member of the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

By Day: No day is long enough to allow me to do everything I want. Nor are the nights.

If I weren't a jazz musician, I would be a: Physical Therapist, making people feel better and creating art through science.

by Dave Douglas, for All About Jazz, August 11, 2009

May 17, 2009

"The Debutante" from Collis Davis with Rogue

Ever since the stunning Charmaine Clamor debuted her musical talent in the mid 1990's, with the five-part jazz harmony ensemble Crescendo -- an LA-based a cappela group that some critics likened to Manhattan Transfer -- her life has been an unending stream of amazing accomplishments, not only as a jazz singer but as the motive force behind the founding of JazzPhil-USA, now in its fifth year. Clamor's artistry put Filipino musical culture on the world map, and through a synthesis of soul and swing, American jazz and traditional Filipino folk music, languages and instrumentation, she created a hybrid genre she calls "jazzipino." Her second CD, Flippin' Out, was a test case in this cross-cultural fertilization. It blew away any doubts that the genre could spark the interest of audiences worldwide. So successful was the CD that it became the first record by a Filipino to make the Top-5 on both the American Jazz and World Music radio charts. On June 27th, FAMAS will award her a special trophy as "Philippine Pride Best Jazz Vocalist" at their 57th Annual ceremony. LA Weekly jazz critic Brick Wahl said it best: "Her husky, sassy tones, languid moves and unpretentious Pinoy attitude -- which is just a tad rebellious -- have the kind of natural appeal you can't buy in any music school."

by Collis Davis, for Rogue, May 17, 2009

May 12, 2009

"Amid the Clamor: The Musical Odyssey of a Brown Skinned Girl in the Land of Milk and Honey" from Krizette Laureta Chu with Manila Sense & Style

What does a little girl from a small town in Subic, Zambales know of the world of Miles Davis, Etta James, Louis Armstrong, and Ella Fitzgerald, of smoky nightclubs throbbing with seductive notes of a trumpeter in a snappy tuxedo, of quick, fun improvising snap-your-fingers-tap-your-toes bebop, of sleepy eyed voluptuous singers poured into their velvet dresses? And how did she ever manage to infiltrate that mercurial, maddening world of the Hollywood music scene, forgiving one moment, furious the next? And more perplexing still: How did she ever sell three critically acclaimed albums in the United States in a span of three years, even managing to land top spots on world charts and traditional jazz lists, by singing in her native tongue? And how in the world did we ever not hear Charmaine Clamor in her own home shore until now?

A DYNAMIC AND NEW COMPASS POINT IN WORLD MUSIC

The jaded music critics couldn't contain themselves. They've found the next Nacy Wilson or Lena Horne, maybe eve Sarah Vaughan herself, and they weren't expecting her to be...brown.

"When Charmaine Clamor is warm, luscious contralto slips into a rhythmically seductive version of 'I'm in the MOod for Love' or purrs through the tender lyrics of 'The Very Thought of You,' there's no doubt that a first-rate jazz talent is present," swoons Don Heckman of the LA Times. Coda, A Canadian magazine, breathily praises, "She is the real deal." "A dynamic and new compass point in world music." affirms the Jazz Times. Jerry D'Souza generously exlaims, "Clamor is on of the finest singers to come around in a long time." In 2010, she'll be part of a living legend's album, a Rock and Roll Hall of Famer who included her in the roster of great many female artists the musician, whose identity is still being kept under wraps, will be collaborating with in a much-awaited record.

Relatively unknown in her home country-it's a classic case of the prophet not honored in his own land-but filling jazz clubs like the Iridium in New York to S.R.O, Charmaine Clamor has gotten rave reviews the likes of established local singers who are trying to make it in the international arena can only dream about.

What makes Charmaine special is that, aside from her first album Searching for the Soul, which included her beautiful rendition of the Gladys Knight classic "Neither One of Us Say Goodbye" and the old standard "The Nearness of You," which according to one Trevor Swings, an Amazon customer, "will put Norah Jones to shame," her next albums are done in a new musical hybrid tradition, jazzipino, that melded Filipino melodies and lyrics with American jazz classics. Influenced by love for Kundiman, Charmaine reworks songs to put her Filipino stamp to it. And her primarily white audience went agog: Who cared what the songs meant to all?

"Sa Ugoy Ng Duyan" became universal lullaby, sung as it was with such depth and emotion that grown men cried for their mamas and exclaimed that they felt the melody seared into their hearts. That dictatorial ditty. "Dahil Sa Yo," became an instant hit, speaking of eternal love and devotion, sans the ghost of Marcoses past hovering around.

Most revealing of all perhaps to Charmaine's journey is the first track on her second album Flippin' Out, the album where she experimented with the jazzipino sound. Reworking "My Funny Valentine," the classic Rogers and Hart tune, to "My funny Brown Pinay," Charimine creates a cheeky tribute to her indigenous looks: "Take a look at my skin, its brown. Go ahead, take a look at my nose, its flat. I'm singing far all my sisters growing up thinking they don't look right, 'cause they ain't white!... My funny brown Pinay."

MEMORIES OF SINGING AVE MARIAS AT THE BACK OF A BUS

She's urban elegance with a mix of filipino fusion and many reviewers, obiviously very healthy males, have been singing praises not only of her distinct sound but her "supermodel looks." If Carmaine were not a singer, she would have no doubt made it as a model, with her endless limbs, cheekbones that cut glass, innate grace. But the funny brown Pinay album is not the vitriol-spewing comedian, but the girl she once was whom many of us know. She tells NPR, a media organization in the US, when they profiled her in 2007, "When I was growing up in the Philippines, I remember using every type of cream, every type of papaya soap-because we believed that papaya soap lightened the skin-and I used it hoping to wake up fair skinned the next day." Her meaningful search for identity eventually produced the new genre that put the Philippines-not exactly jazz country-on the map. "I loved the fact that it was an immigrant's music, where anyone is invited to put in anything they want," she says. "its is a melting point, you could make it your own. That was what solidified my interest."

Even under the glare of Hollywood's bright lights, where she is a fixture in such bars like renowned LA jazz bar Catalina Bar and Grill, where she had the honor to be the first Filipina to headline show, Charmaine Clamor has two feet firmly planted on the ground. She supervises a couple of physical therapy clinics around the area by day-after all, she is Pinay and her parents drilled into her the non-negotiables of finishing school- and by night metamorphisis into a jazz diva, playing music with the industry greats like Tierney Sutton, Mon David, and Jill Scott and landing on the arts and culture pages of the city's biggest papers. The observations have been unanimous: Charmaine's sound is all her owm, raw and rough not fined tuned to uniformity and mediocrity and unfiltered by a formal school. In her timbre and tone, when she sings such filipino classics as "Hindi Kita Malimot and Minamahal Kita," you can sense the entrenched yearning fir her motherland and her profound love for the genre. You can also tell this girl is not-to-the manor born, her voice ebbs and surges like a precious but distant memory, and resulting effect is very few memorable ones, her distinctly soulful sound-the first time you hear her voice, you never forget it-gives her an edge over belters of her generation who break sound barriers.

"I remember singing in the back of the buses, whether the passengers liked it or not, traveling from our hometown in Subic to Manila," Charmaine remembers with a laugh. "I was just standing there in my dress and pigtails and later on asked my mom, 'So what was that I used to sing?' My mom says, "These Ave Marias from Santa Cruzan, in soprano." When she was a teenager, Charmaine left for the US, where for the first time, she learned how diversity breeds contentment. She learned to accept the color of her skin, started to believe the multitude of random guys and girls who told her she was beautiful for the very same reason she thought she was not, and gave in to the lure of the exotica. She also went back and forth to her first love: jazz. Critics, who wrote about the particular flourish she gives each song, wondered how a brown girl from an really exposed to that. Of course, I also explored the pop eighties in my younger years! But sometimes about jazz stayed with me. [I loved] the classic melody and beautiful lyrics."

SHE CAME, SHE CROONED,SHE CONQUERED

Far from being an overnight sensation, Charmaine was already indulging in her passion for singing as part of a professional vocal quarter group called Crescendo for eight years. She was singing Whitney Houston songs at a Filipino fried chicken restaurant when she was discovered by the group's musical director. Five years ago, Charmaine was signed up by independent music label headed by Michael Konik, a multi- hyphenate who is also a singer and a bestselling author but is especially good at spotting talent for FreeHam Records, for which Charmaine has done all her albums.

Asked what inspired her to start incorporating Filipino music into her repertoire, and what made her think her American audience would accept it, she reflects honestly, "When you go to a different country, how do you define your identity? It's so easy to be overcome by the business aspect of the art. It's very easy to get disillusioned. It's a day-to-day challenge." Her foray into absorbing Filipino music in her second album was more of a answer to this need to connect, the Catch-22 of every immigrant, more than a conscious effort to lure Filipino fans too her songs. "I had ti do this because I'm Filipino," she says emphatically. "So for me I had to bridge the two different cultures together. There was no way I was going to do this otherwise." When she thought of the risk she was putting her promising career through, she defended it to herself, "There were apprehensions, but if you always have ti gauge your artistic decisions through the market, you will never survive the business. And you'll never be happy."

Before, it had been very unfeasible to bring Clamor to her audience at home. A CD costs $16.99 abroad and converting to Philippine pesos could mean slow sales. "Who would buy something that would nearly cost a thousand pesos, when you ca buy a CDs her for more than half of that?" Michael Konik explains. A recent trip to Manila last February, when Charmaine guested at the Fourth Manila International Jazz Festival, broke new ground. Viva Records took notice of the dusty sensation and will bankroll an album release this year, and Charmaine is ecstatic. "The biggest challenge for me has always been trying to get my Filipino community to actually support original art," she shares. She will also be presented the Best Jazz Vocalist award at the FAMAS this June, where she is expected to sing a few cuts from her album.

It might have been five years since she first serenaded her adoring American public, but Charmaine Clamor is happily inching closer to home.

by Krizette Laureta Chu, for Manila Sense & Style, May 12, 2009

May 01, 2009

"Charmaine Clamor at Catalina Bar & Grill" from Myrna Daniels with LA JAZZ SCENE

Charmaine Clamor is a young, attractive singer who is capable of singing many styles well. She cherishes her Filipino heritage, which plays a part in every performance. I have seen her before but her show is always intriguing. Accompanied by a terrific trio, Clamor presented a varied and interesting set of tunes...She's very natural and comfortable on stage. The audience embraced her immediately, applauding warmly...The room was silent as Clamor captured the corwd's complete attention. Clamor enunciates beautifully. She has a naturally pretty, very expressive voice.

Without understanding a single word of Tagalog, I found Clamor's "I'll Be Loving You" an enchanting tune, made even prettier when Abe Lagrimas played an amplified ukulele.

It was a very entertaining show. Clamor does everything very well, with great confidence. Good luck to a very talented singer!

by Myrna Daniels, for LA JAZZ SCENE, May 01, 2009

February 11, 2009

"Harana & Jazzipino Inspire at the Iridium" from M. Palaci with Asian Journal

First she introduced the world to Jazzipino, the fusion of American jazz with Filipino languages, melodies, and native instruments. Now Charmaine Clamor, the #1 Filipina jazz singer in the United States, has gone to her Philippine homeland to bring the harana, or serenade, to US audiences.

At the Iridium Jazz Club in Manhattan in January, 2009, the sultry-voiced Charmaine performed this classic Filipino musical form with her guitarist on her most recent CD, "My Harana: A Filipino Serenade," Richard Ickard, and two other accompanists, along with her signature song, "My Funny Brown Pinay" and other jazz/world selections from her CD's.

The event was graced by the presence of Ambassador to the UN and Mrs. Hilario Davide, Phil. Consul General in New York Cecilia Rebong, Phil. Center General Mgr. Gavino Abaya, Jr., and several other tables of cheering Fil-Am and other jazz lovers (including a Puerto Rican gentleman who brought a Filipina friend to this show).

That evening, Ms.Clamor sang some of her selections from the CD -- which features songs eight Philippine languages and dialects, such as Bisaya, Ilocano, Bicolano, Kapampangan, and Tagalog – reviving the lovely Filipino harana courtship music, traditionally sung by a male suitor serenading his love beneath her window. Ms. Clamor is the first female artist to record an entire collection of these beloved Filipino classics.

"No matter where I perform around the world, I share my heritage with pride," said Ms. Clamor. "After the astonishing success of my last CD, Flippin' Out, I was more determined than ever to promote the beautiful musical traditions of the Philippines. Mainstream listeners love the songs. But this album is really for my kababayans."

by M. Palaci, for Asian Journal, February 11, 2009

January 25, 2009

"Charmaine Clamor Has Arrived; Time to Add Another Genre to Your iTunes" from EJM with BakitWhy.com

Charmaine Clamor calls Jazzipino “the new musical genre that results from melding traditional Filipino folks songs and instruments with American jazz and blues.”

You could say that makes her a model Filipino American.

The Los Angeles Times, Boston Herald, Asian Journal, and NPR have raved about her. Jazz Times calls her new release My Harana: A Filipino Serenade “a dynamic new compass point in World Music.”

She has been compared to such legends as Sarah Vaughan, Nancy Wilson, and Lena Horne. Meanwhile, she also enjoys listening to contemporary artists like Norah Jones, Beyonce, and Jill Scott.

One of her greatest joys is the thrill of interacting on stage with her band and the audience.

“I love the musical conversation I make onstage with my band and how this also affects the audience,” said Clamor. “I am thrilled by all the unexpected that happens on stage.”

Her new album spotlights the Filipino serenades, sung in 8 different native Filipino dialects.

But don’t assume she’s for Filipinos only. While writing this article I was listening to her music; my friend (who is not Filipino) was stunned with her voice and how Clamor’s sound is so highly original while also paying homage to so many styles of the past.

And while music is her passion, it is only part of the equation. Acknowledging her Filipino identity and taking care of the environment are also of great importance to Clamor, who the Filipino Women’s Network called “One of the 100 Most Influential Women in the United States” in 2007.

“I’d like Filipinas to be proud of their indigenous beauty, especially my Kayumanggi sisters. I’d like my kababayans to be proud of our music, our different dialects, and to try to be original Filipino artists showing our unique identity. Lastly, I’d like my brothers and sisters to be supportive of one another and to live green and be more proactive in taking care of our environment.”

Jazz has not been the dominant genre in the American pop culture since the 1930s, while Harana also recalls a time long ago in the Philippines. But Charmaine Clamor will take you on a journey that turns back the clock while keeping you in the present, too.

by EJM, for BakitWhy.com, January 25, 2009

January 14, 2009

"An Emerging Vocal Talent" from Joe Bendel with Epoch Times

Jazz is the ultimate musical magpie, able to synthesize influences from anywhere around the world. A fresh example of this phenomenon is the Los Angeles based jazz vocalist Charmaine Clamor, who has been blending the Great American Songbook with the music of her native Philippines. With her third release My Harana, Clamor forgoes the conventional jazz standards, in favor of a repertoire entirely drawn from the romantic Filipino Harana serenades.

Known as songs of courtship and seduction, Harana music derives from the country’s Spanish heritage, which can be heard clearly here in Richard Ickard’s sensitive guitar accompaniment. With his able support, Clamor’s warm-toned voice, singing eight distinct languages and Filipino dialects over the course of the session, weaves some elegantly intimate music.

Clamor sets the late-night vibe right from the start, sweetly caressing the lyrics to “O, Ilaw (Oh, Star).” On the best arrangements of “Harana,” like “Ilaw,” “Mekeni King Siping Ku (Come Beside Me),” and “Lahat Ng Araw (All of My Days)” Gustavo Garcia’s percussion sets a nice groove, subtly propelling the music, but never killing the mood.

In truth, Harana varies little in terms of tone and tempo, but that is clearly by design here. Like the original serenades, Clamor’s interpretation of Harana music was clearly crafted for romantic purposes. A bebop scat-singing workout would actually be counter-productive. To offer a little variety, there is a duet number, “Minamahal Sinasamba (Loving You, Adoring You),” featuring Clamor and the Filipino big band crooner, Mon David. While most of the album has a lush, enticing ambiance, the stripped-down arrangement of “Pamulinawen (Stone Hearted)” provides some contrast, as well. Clamor also contributes one original, “Labis (Too Much),” the only English language tune of the session, demonstrating a nice facility for lyrics of romantic yearning.

Since Harana ballads were traditionally the domain of men, her performances on My Harana are notable in their own right. It would be interesting to hear her stretch out this material in more overtly jazz context. We might have the opportunity in New York this Sunday night (1/18) when she plays the Iridium Jazz Club (set time: 7:00). Those in the Bay Area can also catch her at Yoshi’s on the Jan. 22.

Regardless, Clamor has a lovely voice and a talent for interpreting lyrics, which can be heard to excellent effect on My Harana. It is definitely a fitting disk for candlelight from an emerging vocal talent.

by Joe Bendel, for Epoch Times, January 14, 2009

January 05, 2009

"Hearfelt Desires" from George Harris with Jazz Weekly

On her debut release, Filipino songstress Charmaine Clamor surprised the music world with a charming collection of standards. Her second raised even a few more eyebrows when the Thrilla from Manilla combined the instruments and sounds of her native country with the harmonies of jazz, creating a style of music which she called "jazzipino." On this, her third, she gets rid of all of the jazz encumbrances and delivers a soothing and moving collection of romantic serenades. All themed around courtship, these tunes were initially intended for performing under a maiden's window in order to woo her over (and when was the last time anyone did any wooing?!?). Her sweet, breathy and tender voice is perfectly suited for this collection of folksy nocturnes. There is a gentleness and grace to the caressingly strummed guitar on tunes like "Oh, Star" and "My Plea" that will touch the heart of anyone who's yearned for a lover. Songs like "All of My Days" and "What Sorrow!" have an almost Spanish lilt to the rhythms, as Gustavo Garcia adds gentle and unobtrusive percussion to Richard Ickard and Mon David's guitar strummings. "Stone Hearted' has an almost Japanese painting feel to it, with Garcia's percussion being sparse and spare. This disc will have you wistfully gazing into the stars for many an evening, dreaming of your heartfelt desires.

by George Harris, for Jazz Weekly, January 05, 2009

December 28, 2008

"Singer Charmaine Clamor at the 4th Annual Fil-Am JazzFest" from Don Heckman with International Review of Music

Singer Charmaine Clamor, perhaps the most visible Filipino jazz artist on the current scene, affirmed her desire to maintain a strong connection with her roots as she grows and develops as a jazz artist. The set began with a selection from her new CD, “My Harana: A Filipino Serenade,” a collection of traditional courtship serenades, rendered in jazz settings. She followed with her unusual version of “My Funny Valentine,” which she titles “My Funny Brown Pinay,” transforming the Rodgers & Hart standard into an affirmation of Philippine beauty. And she wound up her brief, but brilliantly eclectic set with a romp through the jazz standard, “Centerpiece.” In each case, her singing underscored her growing status as one of the important and original new jazz singers of the decade.

by Don Heckman, for International Review of Music, December 28, 2008

December 27, 2008

"Last L.A. Jazz Weekend Of 2008" from Jerry Ough with California Examiner

The most intriguing event for my money takes place tonight at the Catalina Bar and Grill on Sunset Blvd. in Hollywood. It's the Fourth Annual Filipino-American Jazz Festival and it features a shining new star on the jazz horizon. Charmaine Clamor can arguably lay claim to the title of America's Leading Filipina Jazz Vocalist. Don Heckman at the Los Angeles Times reviewed her 2005 debut recording, "Searching For The Soul," and said it "announced the arrival of an impressive new vocal artist." NPR's Weekend Edition called her "the perfect bridge of two cultures," and All About Jazz says she's "one of the finest singers to come around in a long time." What they're raving about is Charmaine's creation of a new fusion of jazz and Filipino folk elements and instruments. She calls her hybrid "Jazzipino" and it's truly creating a sensation on the scene. She's also a cultural activist who's been honored by the Filipino Women's Network in 2007 as one of the 100 Most Influential Filipino Women in the United States and a founding member of JazzPhil-USA, a non profit organization that promotes jazz artists of Filipino descent in America. Her latest Cd is "My Harana: A Filipino Serenade" on the Freeham Recods label. Check out her website at www.charmaineclamor.com and go to the Catalina Bar and Grill's website at www.catalinajazzclub.com for info about the Fourth Annual Filipino-American Jazz Festival.

by Jerry Ough, for California Examiner, December 27, 2008

December 03, 2008

"Filipino Fusion: Chanteuse Charmaine Clamor Promotes Tolerance Through Her Own World-Jazz Hybrid" from Christopher Loudon with Jazz Times

When cultures clash, there is typically friction, but occasionally unexpected harmony. Musically speaking, vocalist Charmaine Clamor orchestrated the latter when she combined her two greatest loves -- the traditional kundiman of her native Philippines and American jazz standards -- to create a hybrid she calls "jazzipino."

Born in the tiny village of Subic-Zambales and raised by music-loving parents, Clamor recalls "waking up almost every morning to opera, classical, jazz, and kundiman, which are the Filipino equivalent of torch songs. Being exposed so young to so many types of music made me open to the idea of using my voice to produce different sounds. Some people tell me I have a classical sound when I sing Filipino songs, others say I have a distinct jazz sound."

At age 16, Clamor moved with her parents to Los Angeles, a transition she says was "very difficult. It was the first time I'd ever been out of the Philippines, and I didn't know what to make of all the huge buildings and the mix of cultures -- American, Mexican, Persian, Armenian -- that I'd never been exposed to before." Sadly, discrimination reared its ugly head, "both because I was Asian and because I was a woman. Some of it was subtle, some of it was more overt." The experience made Clamor realize the importance of taking pride in one's ethnicity and appearance. "You must be proud of your indigenous physical attributes," she says. "When I was growing up in the Philippines, the image of beauty was light skin and a pointy nose, so I never thought I was beautiful. Being dark in the Philippines is considered unattractive. It's shameful that any woman, there or here, should be made to feel inferior." Such strongly held sentiments would help define Clamor's musical journey.

First, though, she felt it necessary to train for a more practical career. "When you're an immigrant in this country, you strive for economic stability," she explains. "At the time, I was very interested in physical therapy, but all the way through university and then grad school, I was always singing on the side. After I finished my degree, I finally had the courage to pursue a professional music career."

Four years ago, Clamor began gigging around L.A., subsequently recording Searching for the Soul, and album of American standards. After the disc's release, she began what she calls "an organic transition by taking the soulfulness of kundiman and blending it with the swing of jazz. I asked my musicians, we tried it, and the audiences -- both Filipinos and non-Filipinos -- loved it." So for her sophomore album, the anagramatically titled Flippin' Out, she split the difference, augmenting covers of "I Hadn't Anyone Til You," "Candy," "Be My Love," Nina Simone's "Sugar in My Bowl," and U2's "With or Without You" with a five-part "Filipino Suite." To lead off the disc, she shaped a cheeky reinterpretation of Rodgers and Hart's "My Funny Valentine," re-dubbing it "My Funny Brown Pinay." The lyric reinforces her advocacy of self-love and the celebration of differences among races, and the song has made her realize that "I'm not alone on this journey. Since it came out, a lot of dark-skinned women have shared their similar experiences with me."

While planning her third album, the recently released My Harana, Clamor had "a deep hunger to explore Filipino music further. I wanted to present the harana songs of to my audience, because they're just so beautiful, and also because this is the first time ever that a woman has recorded these songs. Harana is courtship through music. It existed during the Spanish regime in the Philippines, right up until the 1950s. When a man fancied a woman, he went to her house at night with a guitar and sang these heartfelt, passionate songs. But a woman would never, never do that to a man. Here in America it would be more typical for a woman to initiate such a connection, but in our culture is was, and still is, considered a social taboo."

Clamor spent six months researching the album, which spans multiple languages and eight different Filipino dialects. Her goal, she says, was "to cover as many different regions of the Philippines as possible. I had a coach for each of the dialects because I wanted to make sure I was pronouncing them properly and also wanted to interpret them with absolute integrity.. And we incorporated indigenous instruments, so I wanted to make sure they were the right instruments for each region."

Clamor's admirable efforts to bring her native music to a wider audience, while presenting it in ways never before considered, earned her a place on the Filipina Women's Network's list of the 100 Most Influential Filipino Women in America. She met with the 99 other honorees in Washington, DC, and was "high for about a week. To be with so many inspiring women was incredible, and they were very supportive of what I'm doing."

Currently working on a jazzipino follow-up to Flippin Out, Clamor says there is also "talk of a musical play based on the music of My Harana." Ultimately, her goal is to "give the world a little taste of what we have in the Philippines and, in doing so, to allow my countrymen to have pride in our music and our languages."

by Christopher Loudon, for Jazz Times, December 03, 2008

December 01, 2008

"Romantic Love Songs" from Mojo Mendiola with Global Mojo

To grow up without being influenced by American music, is even less possible on the Philippines than it is in Germany. Little Charmaine not only warbled the tunes of her home country but also the American songs sung to her by her mother. So she developed a repertoire and a style fed from both sources, drew attention on the archipelago and also gained much praise for her first two CDs from the American Jazz critique. On the topical album she sings romantic love songs in eight different Philippine languages and in English to the accompaniment of guitar, bass, drums and a string of indigenous instruments of her home. She impresses with a slightly smoky alto voice and a deeply emotional phrasing. And furthermore these recordings make for a small revolution, because so far these serenades have been sung by men only. Try these takes: „Harana Sa Dilim“ and „Labis – Too Much“

by Mojo Mendiola, for Global Mojo, December 01, 2008

December 01, 2008

"A Beautifully and Soulfully Rendered CD" from Bob Gish with Jazz Improv

Notwithstanding vintage country tunes by the likes of Cowboy Copus or T. Texas Tyler, here in thestates one doesn’t hear much about or from the Philippinesand its music. During WW II there was an up-tic in songs about the romance and romances ofFilipinos, all the more understandable given the culturalhistory of those storied islands.

Hawaii has, over the years, cast a more captivating shadow of mystique over that “other” sister grouping of idyllic Pacific places. Thirty or forty years ago during the height of the yo-yo craze and the ubiquitous endorsements of the Duncan yo-yo competitions, the Smothers Brothers became themost visible pop-culture proponents of the tricks and tropical scenes of birds and palm trees carved on the sides of all those beautifully-colored tandem orbs.

The harana tradition of Filipino serenade was almost exclusively male initiated in those times too.

Thankfully now, inside the good old U.S.A we have a wider and wiser perspective on the enticements of Filipino culture and music beyond superficial stereotypes of obsessions with shoes and yo-yos and violations of political correctness. For one thing we have Charmaine Clamor, Mon David and the dozen culturally influenced and representative songs of My Harana, a beautifully and soulfully rendered CD.

The greatest appeal of the project will be to persons already familiar with that culture, including the linguistic essences of Spanish and Tagalog. The prominence of the guitar and its suitability for serenading a beautiful woman standing on a balcony or at some window, a metaphorical pedestal of adoration, is most rightfully credited to the Spanish as something of a consolation of their imperialism. In the Philippines, the serenade was ritualized with its special conventions and parental chaperones and came to be known as “Harana.”

Clamor’s songs are all part of the Harana tradition, in large part as experienced by her as the object of affection of such romancing. As she notes, “Harana had a strict code. If the woman liked what she heard the windows opened and the haranista was invited upstairs by the approving parents. But if she didn’t, the windows stayed shut all night.” Here, Charmaine Clamor, in all her beauty of face and voice, is the haranista for most of the songs, and the listener is positioned at the open window–a window one should say, destined to stay open wide for more than one night.

It’s no accident that here a woman initiates the serenade in that Clamor announcesherself as something close to what might be called a “feminist,” or what might be regarded in more archetypal trans-valuations as a siren or a temptress.

Mon David’s masculine vocals and splendid guitar playing add much to the historical verisimilitude of the implicit settings and to the pleasure of the CD. One need not know the exact meaning of the words sung, although liner notes provide translations, for the beauty of the words is as much in their sound as in their intellectualized, verbal meaning. All one needs to do, regardless of gender or culture, is to swing open the windows of the soul and let the beauty of the music and of Clamor’s far from “clamorous” voice waft through the air.

by Bob Gish, for Jazz Improv, December 01, 2008

November 19, 2008

"Proudly Brown Pinay" from Karla Maquiling with Pinoycentric

Los Angeles-based Pinoy vocalist Charmaine Clamor is putting the Philippines on the world jazz map with jazzipino, a hybrid sound that combines the swing of American jazz with Pinoy soul.

With her evocative and sensuous voice, Charmaine has been compared to legendary jazz figures like Sarah Vaughan and Cassandra Wilson, and this talented Filipina shows that she deserves every recognition. She’s made the top 5 on JazzWeek’s world (#2) and traditional jazz (#5) radio charts simultaneously–a rare feat–and was named one of the 100 Most Influential Filipino Women in the United States. Critics predict that her recently launched My Harana: A Filipino Serenade will most likely head toward the charts again.

In this interview, Charmaine–who is also a physical therapist and a strong advocate for the environment–talks about her Pinoy roots (she hails from Zambales) and coming to terms with being brown and Pinoy and loving it.

Pinoycentric: It is said that when you were three years old, you would sing while on the bus from Zambales to Manila. What were the songs you sang then?

Charmaine Clamor: Kundiman [Filipino love songs], pop songs, whatever records my parents were playing at the time. I have almost no memory of these “performances,” but my mom likes to remind me!

What are your strongest memories of childhood in the Philippines? I remember waking up to beautiful music every day from our living room. Sometimes my mom would be singing along with the recording. And usually I would smell breakfast being cooked from our kitchen. I remember always having friends and family visiting all the time. I loved singing with my mom while I played the piano and my father listened while sitting on the couch, smiling and nodding.

I also remember the innocence of love. I was happy then to just be able to catch a glimpse of the object of my affection.

I will never forget the wonderful memories of family outings, mostly at the beach in Subic, and my dear childhood friends.

What do you miss the most about the Philippines?

I miss being with my family and growing older with them. I miss my friends. I also miss celebrating Christmas and New Year’s in the Philippines because it is just not the same anywhere else.

You mentioned that when you were growing up, you also went through a phase of wanting to be fair-skinned, like most every Pinay. How did you come to the realization that your skin color is beautiful and start to be proud of it? When did this turning point come?

I only started appreciating my indigenous qualities when my parents and I migrated to the US in 1988. I started getting many compliments about my brown skin. It still took some time, maybe a couple of years, for me to believe these compliments, to understand that I could be beautiful with kayumanggi skin.

Did you ever feel that your skin color might stand in the way of your success as a performer?

No. In fact, I believed this would give me an edge, as there is no other Filipina who has gotten nationwide attention in American jazz and world music. This would distinguish me from the other many talented female jazz vocalists who dominate this genre.

LA Weekly’s Brick Wahl observed that you have this “unpretentious Pinoy attitude” that’s a bit “rebellious.” Have you always been comfortable in your being Filipino? I must say it takes a lot of courage to show that side, especially when some people have a limited idea of Filipinos. Onstage, do you always go the extra mile to show the Filipino in a positive light?

As a teenager, I also went through the normal struggle with my identity and self-esteem. But as I matured, I cultivated pride in my unique attributes as a woman and as a Filipino. A lot of it I credit to the way my parents raised me. As a performer, I did not have any challenge in showing the Filipino in a positive light. It came to me organically. All I had to do was to be myself, and that turned out to be very attractive to many non-Filipinos.

Your recent harana album included some pieces sung in Filipino dialects. How did you prepare for these, in terms of research and learning the phonetics (enunciation) of these songs? Also, what Filipino dialects do you know? The research for My Harana: A Filipino Serenade took about 6 months. I searched for harana songs from as many regions as possible. I asked assistance in translation of these songs so that I could interpret them with integrity. In addition, I had a “coach,” a friend or family relative, to help me with the proper pronunciation of each dialect.

Aside from researching the songs, I wanted to research the history of harana in the Philippines, to learn if there is a difference between each region. I found answers from books, online, and by talking to people who had firsthand experience.

In addition, I also did research on our indigenous instruments, and I incorporated them into our arrangements.

My father is Bisaya so I know a little of it and my mother speaks a little Ilokano, which she shared with me.

What keeps you busy when you’re not attending to patients (she is a physical therapist by profession) or performing on stage?

I try to spend as much time as I can on music: creating, rehearsing, or learning. I watch a lot of live music to support artists and to learn from them as well. I love spending time with my family and my friends. I make sure I take annual trips to a place where I can enjoy being with nature and observe the wildlife. I’ve been to the Amazon in South America, and this year I got to enjoy Alaska. Being the chairwoman for the Jazz Society of the Philippines, USA, keeps me busy with our various programs.

I am also a strong advocate for green living and there are numerous environmental organizations that I support. I also take time to exercise and to be spiritually whole.

I’m sure your kababayan would love to hear your music. Are there plans to include Manila in your musical tour any time soon?

Thank you, Karla. I would love for my kababayan to hear my music. In fact, the music video of “My Funny Brown Pinay” is now being shown on the Asian MTV, MYX, which can be seen on ABS-CBN. A music video of “Lahat ng Araw” from my current album will be out soon.

There are discussions for a release of “My Harana” in the Philippines. I am scheduled to do a concert in Manila this November. More detailed information can be found on my Website.

Your last album Flippin’ Out features a song, “My Funny Brown Pinay,” which celebrates the attributes of a Filipina. Tell us, what do you think is beautiful about the Filipino? What gives you great pride in your Filipino roots?

“My Funny Brown Pinay” celebrates the indigenous qualities of a Filipina: kayumanggi skin, flat nose, black hair. I think these physical attributes are beautiful. There are many other Filipino attributes that I admire. I like that we are very family-oriented. I like our respect for our elders. We take care of our lolos [grandfathers] and lolas [grandmothers] and our parents during their golden ages. I also admire our hospitality, the genuine and lasting friendships, our loyalty to family and friends.

We have also a beautiful country that’s filled with spectacular natural wonders. We also have some beautiful original music and art. I’m honored to be part of the ongoing Filipino tradition.

by Karla Maquiling, for Pinoycentric, November 19, 2008

November 16, 2008

"Recommended Listening: Uniquely New Music" from Gordon Murray with Radio & Records

Recommended Listening: Interested in uniquely cool new music? Charmaine Clamor's second album, "My Harana: A Filipino Serenade," (FreeHam Records) is exactly that. Clamor's intimate, timeless "jazzipino" vocal is simply accompanied by subtle percussion from Gustavo Garcia, delicate strumming of a guitar or bandurria from Richard Ickard and/or the plucking of a bass from Dominic Thiroux. This seamless composition instantly lifts the listener to a relaxed café in a foreign land, thousands of miles away from the clamor (no pun intended) of American city life. Recorded in eight different dialects of the Filipino languages Tagalog and Bisaya, the album showcases songs of the ancient native tradition of Harana. (In brief: At night, men, accompanied by a musician or two, courted women by singing songs to them outside their windows, hoping the object of their affection would eventually allow them inside.) Previously, only men had recorded songs like the ones on Clamor's album; now, the young Charmaine becomes the first woman to record them. The album's closing song, "Labis" ("Too Much"), is sung in English, but I think you'll barely notice the difference; that is how good she is at communicating emotion through music. If you're up for a world-jazz cultural and educational seduction, "My Harana" is a must-have.

by Gordon Murray, for Radio & Records, November 16, 2008

November 06, 2008

"Charmaine Clamor's 'Jazzipino' Grooves" from Brick Wahl with LA WEEKLY

Charmaine Clamor’s Flippin’ Out made a huge splash (for a vocalist) with her blend of jazz and Tagalog standards, what some marketing genius called “jazzapino.” It got a lot of play on the world-music radio, even NPR. So this time she really took the world plunge and recorded an entire CD of Tagalog love songs, My Harana, and it’s gorgeous. The instrumentation is spare — guitars (and such), bass, Filipino percussion — her singing is evocative, sensual. The duet with vocalist Mon David is almost spooky. Wonderful stuff — even the non-pinays dig it. The official release is at Catalina Bar and Grill on Sunday, a room she owns whenever she’s there. Like Altman, she doesn’t do that many local gigs anymore, so catch this one.

by Brick Wahl, for LA WEEKLY, November 06, 2008

October 21, 2008

"Another First" from Melody Breyer Grell with Cabaret Exchange

Charmaine Clamor's new release presents various renditions of her country's traditional "courting" music. As the CD's liner notes describe in detail, gentlemen were expected to serenade their prospective brides, pending the approval of her parents. It is said that if the damsel was impressed by the song, she opened her windows in approval, but kept them closed if she remained unmoved. That tale lead me to wonder if there was a thriving practice of voice coaches for men back then… but I digress.

Ms. Clamor has been performing her own brand of vocal jazz called "Jazzipino" in the U.S., and this collection is another first for her, as she is the first female to record the Filipino serenade. One needs to look back a bit into the history of Asia over the past several centuries to appreciate the unique sound of this genre. The indigenous Australasian languages were spoken exclusively until Ferdinand Magellan introduced Spanish in the 1500s. Eventually the official languages declared were Tagalog and English, but this music is clearly and strongly influenced by the classical guitar music of Spain. If I did not know that I was listening to a Filipino record, I would have assumed it to be Spanish. One can picture a senorita with a flower in her hair peeking over her balcony with her duenna not too far away.

Clamor's voice is sensual, sometimes husky, other times pure. Although I am not familiar with the languages sung, her diction is crisp and I would imagine it serving her intentions. She sings in various languages and concludes with an original composition in English. As noted previously, while a good deal of the songs hearken to Spain, there are a few pieces that are more "exotic" to western ears, such as cut # 6, sung in Tagalog with the English title translation being “Loving You—Adoring You.” Originally intended as solo vocal, it was presented here as a duet. Mon David's voice is not particularly complementary to hers, and the tune would have been better served remaining as solo. The liner notes explain that arranger and vocalist Mon David had different intentions by suggesting his inclusion. Ms. Clamor proves herself as an able arranger in other some pieces, and I encourage her to trust her own instincts.

Cut # 7 is probably my favorite, as it shows off the singer's talents as a vocalese singer with floating highs and deep lows -- this tune makes me wonder if Jobim was aware of these songs as he was crafting his classics. Also of interest is the final tune written by Richard Ickard (lead guitarist) with lyrics by the Clamor. While listening I found myself humming Cole Porter's “So in Love” -- it just goes to show how influenced (consciously or unconsciously) one can be whenever we set out to compose or perform.

Some of the other tunes remind me of Don Ho’s retro Hawaiian lounge music of the 1950s and early ‘60s. That is not necessarily a bad thing -- I can imagine folks lounging on a tropical beach, nursing sweet cocktails with those tiny umbrellas tucked in the ice… a very pleasant image for this New Yorker.

Ms Clamor is subtly accompanied by a band consisting of guitarist Ric Ickard, who was the first to win first prize in both classical and jazz guitar competitions in the 1980 Philippine Guitar Festival. That is not surprising, as both elements of his talents are on display for this recording. He is a definite asset with his alluring sound and refined touch. The appropriately laid-back percussion was supplied by Gustavo Garcia with the band rounded out by the gently whispering bass of Dominic Thiroux.

by Melody Breyer Grell, for Cabaret Exchange, October 21, 2008

October 04, 2008

"Jazzipino Music in New CD" from Ruben Nepales with Philippines Inquirer

LOS ANGELES-"Jazzipino" exponent Charmaine Clamor, the first Filipina artist to place on both the world music and traditional jazz music charts in the US, has released yet another labor of love and passion, "My Harana: A Filipino Serenade."

The CD is Charmaine's follow-up to her "Flippin' Out," which earned favorable reviews and got consistent radio and Internet airplay in America. That album secured her title as the purveyor of "jazzipino" music, her hybrid of jazz and Filipino music and lyrics. This time, the Los Angeles-based Charmaine, awarded as one of the 100 Most Influential Filipinas in the US, lovingly tackles some of the Philippines' romantic serenade songs in various dialects.

Backed up primarily by ace musician Richard Ickard on guitar, banduria, laud, kutiyapi and kulintang, Charmaine gives soulful interpretations of such lyrical songs as "O, Ilaw," "Minamahal, Sinasamba" (a duet with Mon David, who sings with such romantic fervor)," "Malinac Lay Labi" in my native Pangasinan (Hey Charmaine, why didn't you ask me to sing this with you?), "Matud Nila" and "Mekeni King Siping Ku."

A spare arrangement of "Pamulinawen," with Richard providing a simple, exotic counterpoint on kulintang and kutiyapi to Charmaine's vocals, makes the Ilocano ditty sound refreshing. This track should guarantee some airplay on world music radio programs.

Charmaine, who grew up in Subic, Zambales, will launch "My Harana" in two high profile events in LA. First, she will sing a few songs from the CD in "Jazzmopolitan: A Celebration of Music," a benefit concert of the Filipino American Library to fund its commendable projects on Oct. 11 at the Aratani Theatre in LA's Little Tokyo (www.jaccc.org). After that is the actual album launch on Nov. 9 at LA's premiere jazz club, Catalina Bar & Grill (www.catalinajazzclub.com).

Below are excerpts of our interview via e-mail with Charmaine about her new CD:

Which dialect/song was the most challenging for you to master? Did anyone coach you?

What was somewhat challenging was singing in Pangasinan for "Malinac Lay Labi." I had to practice how to pronounce "e" and "d." It is different from Tagalog, which is my native tongue. For all the dialects except Tagalog, I had a "coach"-a friend or family member who speaks that dialect fluently. I listened to recordings as well.

Richard Ickard is a true master of the guitar. If you can shout out a thing or two about Richard, what will you say?

<> Richard is indeed a world-class guitarist, a fine arranger and composer. He arranged most of the songs on "My Harana." We have one original song-the last track on the album called "Labis." Richard has exquisite taste in music and this is one of the reasons it is pleasurable to collaborate with him. We have been collaborating for three years now. He is also very creative and plays many instruments. He is originally from Davao but now lives in Los Angeles with his family. Richard is 100 percent Filipino and has made our country proud by releasing an album of classic Philippine music on an international classical label called Naxos Records two years ago.

Tell us about recording "Minamahal, Sinasamba" with Mon David. If both of you were still single, would you open your window if Mon was the one serenading you in your house?

"Minamahal, Sinasamba" is typically sung solo but Mon thought it would make a fine duet. He came up with a haunting arrangement. Which lady would not open her windows to Mon after hearing him sing? And yes, I will ask him to sing more!

You, Richard and Michael Konik came up with a spare, striking arrangement to "Pamulinawen."

We have been presenting this kind of music to performing arts presenters at various art conferences in the US and the response has been tremendous. One of the standout is always "Pamulinawen." Michael and I came up with the spare arrangement and the idea of using kulintang, which Richard played with such great taste. We also used the kutiyapi on this track.

Which track is your personal favorite?

Every piece on this album is special to me because the research for this project took about six months. I wanted to make sure we covered as many regions as possible but with songs that really speak to me. I had to ask assistance for translations of these tunes so I can interpret them with integrity. We have many great harana songs but I could only record 12. If I had to choose one, it would have to be our original harana song, "Labis (Too Much)." I wrote the lyrics and Richard came up with the beautiful melody. I believe that this modern harana song embodies the ultimate romantic love story.

Which of these songs will you perform in the Filipino American Library's gala concert, "Jazzmopolitan: A Celebration of Music" on Oct. 11?

I will be singing four songs. I want to make it a surprise. I will be doing materials from "Flippin' Out" and my new album, "My Harana: A Filipino Serenade" but also one that has not been recorded yet. Among the performers are Mon David, Tateng Katindig and his quintet, Becca Godinez, Three of a Kind and Michael Paulo. I will have Richard Ickard as my special guest during my set.

Can you sum up your experience portraying two characters in "The Vagina Monologues"? And how was it to say your lines in Tagalog?

Being part of "The Vagina Monologues" was liberating. It felt so good to have that freedom to speak and scream repeatedly those words that are considered "taboo" and to celebrate my sensuality. Doing the Tagalog version was even funnier and for me, more honest and direct. That was my first taste of acting and I had an amazing experience. I was the musical director for both the San Francisco and New York productions. I provided the interstitial music between the monologues. The best part was being able to raise funds for our lolas of Lila Pilipina (the comfort women) and other organizations that fight domestic violence against Filipino women.

by Ruben Nepales, for Philippines Inquirer, October 04, 2008

October 01, 2008

"The Sound of Sentiment and Passion" from John Book with The Run-Off Groove

I've been anxiously awaiting to hear new music from Charmaine Clamor after being blown away by her Flippin' Out album. For this new album, she takes the music and inspiration from her native Phillipines and creates My Harana: A Filipino Serenade (FreeHam). It's an album that she sings in a number of Filipino languages, including Tagalog, Ilocano, Pangasinan, and Bisaya, and by doing so reaches across the country for a wonderful story of love, romance, companionship, and common courtesy, when etiquette meant something.

The songs here are a part of the folk tradition, and the moment these songs are heard in homes and dances, people drop and can cry in an instant. When you hear Clamor sing "Pakiusap", "Mekeni King Siping Ku", and "Manamahal Sinasamba", one can almost step back into time and imagine what it must have been like for the people of the Phillipines to hear these for the first time on the radio, on television, or on record, and the millions of transplants who were able to keep one foot home through these songs of joy and occasional heartbreak. Clamor states in the liner notes that these songs are about a time when seeking companionship meant poetry, passion, and a song, something that has been romanticized to death in television shows and movies, but one that seems to be evaporating by those who feel gadgets are the way to link up.

In her voice is the sound of sentiment and passion, she is an incredible jazz singer whose American upbringing and love for the music makes her perfect to be an influence on the next wave of singers, I still feel that way. By singing in and to the native tongue, it feels a lot like comfort food, where a bowl of pork guisantes and rice is what you may need to start an all night (and perhaps all morning) conversation. It's front porch or backyard music, where you didn't care about performing to the masses. If your family heard it, or neighbors, or the mail man, you didn't mind nor care. It sounds very simple, but at times it's the simple things in life that we miss and seek in order for us to gain back a bit of sanity, to regroup. It's a great album that captures her love of family and roots. If she ever does a cover of "Pagdating Ng Takipsilim", perhaps with The New Minstrels arrangement, it would be all over.

by John Book, for The Run-Off Groove, October 01, 2008

September 30, 2008

"A Journey of the Heart" from Karl Stober with Jazz Trenzz

For every romance there is a song, a signature of the fiery infatuation. From culture to culture, love has neither a boundary nor a manual. The breaking of tradition and direction of heart is a social constant which is well documented over centuries. The art of the serenade is lost somewhat but still a strong accent on the feeling within. The art is unearthed through the outstanding talents and vocal chi of Filipino vocalist Charmaine Clamor's My Harana: A Filipino Serenade.

Unlike her past recordings, My Harana: A Filipino Serenade has several journeys of the heart, sung in numerous tongues. Ms Clamor delivers these serenades with all the ardent adornments they were originally written. She has again, faced a challenge, and redelivered her capacity to surprise with dramatic styling. My Harana is an expressionistic glimpse at what was once polished poetry of the heart…the classic serenades!

"Dungawin Mo Hirang: look Outside, My Love" is a wonderfully melodic, enticing the lover to share a quick glance; for that is all the serenade's appetite yearns to stay hungry for her love. Ms. Clamor tones brilliantly evoke that vying for affection, with her delivery. The strings of Richard Ickard are dynamic and throughout the CD, tender a calming experience for the listener.

Carved out of this spin is a stunning duet with special guest vocalist Mon David, who also offers his string manipulation to the task. "Minamahal Sinasamba: Loving You, Adoring You" offers the seductive coo of Ms Clamor with the 'true to tone" delivery of Mr. David. The innovative approach of the duet works and well as two hearts compare notes of complexity in passion. An exceptional and profound spin!

My Harana: A Filipino Serenade is the quintessential wistful collection of moonlit romances. Ms Clamor's diversity in craft and expression makes her one of very few that could deliver such a project. This young woman again proves to the industry that she is a polished performer who is on course for a titanic career of iconic measures.

by Karl Stober, for Jazz Trenzz, September 30, 2008

August 05, 2008

"A Profoundly Unique Debut" from Dennis Wong with Women's Radio News

On her debut release Searching for the Soul, singer Charmaine Clamor slinks into Jazz prominence with a sleek seductiveness denoted by her rich and versatile vocals. In her search for the soul, Clamor contributes her own particular brand of soulfulness in a showcase of Jazz standards from Buddy Johnson to Duke Ellington. Without question, Charmaine Clamor's vocal instrumentation is profoundly unique and purrs with sensual delight that is more than apt for the source material as she utilizes her voice to the full diversity of expressiveness.

Charmaine's take on "Since I Fell For You," is introduced by a lusty, sweeping piano that sets the lingering velvet backdrop for the sheer torchy elegance of the singer's vocals. It's often in moments like these in the album, where Charmaine's voice lingers as a gentle quaver brimming with barely restrained yearning that the singer truly breathes new life into classic balladry with her rich sense of melody and the warm timbre of her voice. The final, wistful notes of the track, and perhaps any notes sung by Ms. Clamor are simply dazzlingly mystifying.

The mournful, melancholy-yet-unrepentantly-loving chanteuse streak continues with a seamless combination of Ray Noble's and the classic "Tenderly" by Walt Lloyd Gross and Jack Lawrence; both songs covered by greats such as Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald. However, in her meshing of the two songs, Charmaine Clamor manages to create something refreshingly appealing and dynamically moody. The track opens with the delicate allure of “The Very Thought of You,” full of effortless charm. “Tenderly” segues in subtly with Charmaine taking on a more dramatic tone. Every breath of the notes of the word “tenderly” seems to ache with unrequited love, in contrast to the previous portion of the track.

The updated version of Duke Ellington's "It Don't Mean a Thing" is a standout track as well, with Ms. Clamor injecting some appropriately upbeat, swinging energy with her staccato bursts of scat singing, and the song as a whole contributing a danceable swing feel to the album. Ms. Clamor's versions of these Jazz standards and Blues ballads serve as great vehicles for her amazing vocal work, making for a lovely listen indeed. “Searching for the Soul” is a more than worthy debut for Charmaine Clamor.

by Dennis Wong, for Women's Radio News, August 05, 2008

July 24, 2008

"The Real Deal" from Bill Barton with CODA

The centerpiece of Flippin' Out is the five-movement Filipino Suite, wherein Clamor is joined by the Pakaraguin Kulintang Ensemble, renowned Filipino ukulele master Abe Lagrimas, and her combo in various combinations. Adapted from traditional music of the Philippines and sung in Tagalog, this is a remarkable performance. The language lends itslef nicely to jazz-oriented phrasing.

And, indeed, phrasing is the key to Clamor's developing greatness as a jazz singer. She rarely resorts to scatting. Possessing a profoundly resonant contralto, her connection to singers of the past is more to Nina Simone and perhaps Billie Holiday than to the gymnastic high-wire songbirds who flew off into "scoobie-doos" at the slightest provocation.

The ensemble also takes part in the opening "My Funny Brown Pinay," Clamor's adapted lyrics -- in both English and Tagalog -- and arrangement of the Rodgers and Hart classic "My Funny Valentine." Witnessing Clamor in concert, with her elegant yet earthy stage presence, it's sobering to a gringo that, as a child, she was teased for being a "negrita" because of her flat nose, attempting fruitlessly to acquire a "nice and pointy" nose by pinching it every night before she fell asleep. She also attempted (unsuccessfully, thank goodness!) to bleach her skin using papaya soap. Pride in her ethnic heritage is central to Clamor's music presentation. Supermodel looks probably won't hurt her career, but she's by no stretch of the imagination "just another pretty face."

There are several other memorable interpretations here. You may need a cold shower after hearing her interpretation of Nina Simone's "Sugar in My Bowl." No other performance in recent memory is as overtly sexual and sensual as this one is; in fact, Clamor trumps Simone when it comes to sheer heat. Her gentler side is to the fore on the closing "Be My Love," a signature song of the late Mario Lanza, one of her mother's favourites, the arrangement based on Keith Jarret's solo interpretation.

Granted, "Candy" may be a tad too sweet and "cutesy" for some tastes, but that's one out of 12 selections. A high percentage of this recording has an emotional depth missing from much contemporary vocal jazz. Clamor is the real deal.

by Bill Barton, for CODA, July 24, 2008

July 11, 2008

"Clamor to Swing in Vallejo" from Rich Freedman with Vallejo Times-Herald

CHARMAINE CLAMOR follows her second album, 'Flippin' Out' with an appearance on the Bay Stage on Saturday at the Solano County Fair.

If Charmaine Clamor rolled up a "Guide to the Stars" and put a little muscle into a hard throw, she could almost hit the famed HOLLYWOOD sign from her home. And the Walk of Fame? A short stroll.

Not that it's made the "jazzipino" vocalist's show business career any easier. Apparently, a selection by The Filipino Women's Network as one of the 100 Most Influential Filipino Women in the United States won't convince the checker at Von's to load up a grocery cart with free food.

"It's super challenging," said Clamor, due at the Solano County Fair with a Bay Stage performance Saturday night. "It's very, very challenging."

Because Clamor's "Flippin' Out" recording is on an independent label, "I don't have this huge machinery," she said. "I have to work. I have to put on a hat as artist and business person. Most artists would love to just play and create. I would love to get there some day."

Then again, when an artist "manages everything," she has "a lot of control" over what goes on the CD.

"Though I wouldn't mind giving some of that control up," Clamor said. "And focus on the artistic aspect and continue to grow and create. That's Nirvana."

But then, there's the performance. It's what the native of Subic-Zambales craves.

"That's the reward," she said. "That and connecting with the audience."

Clamor loves the Great American Songbook and even includes her jazz version of rock group U2's "With or Without You" on her latest recording.

"It's the way I hear it ('With or Without You') in my head," she said. "I think the lyrics should be dark and more melancholy than rocking out. I don't know if U2 would approve, but that's how I hear it."

It's all part of Clamor's unique style, which is where "jazzipino" comes into play. It's a word Clamor and her manager conceived. "It's the synthesis of soul and swing, of American jazz and melodies, instruments and languages of my native Philippines," Clamor said, laughing that "Making money on it ('jazzipino') would be good for me. I'll have to copyright it."

Clamor was a mere 3 when she first faced an audience, singing on a bus to any passengers willing to listen. Yes, she remembered.

"I do. It's incredible," Clamor said. "I would see images in my head when I was very, very little. It's a fond memory that gives me pleasure. My mom said they would be so delighted because this young kid was wailing. She said they would applaud." Clamor laughed. "That was my first gig," she said. "It's their fault."

Clamor arrived in Southern California from the Philippines 20 years ago after U.S. bases closed where her parents worked.

While accustomed to jammed roadways - "The traffic in Manila is really bad" - there was a "culture shock" of adjusting to the way of L.A. life, Clamor said. "Friendship is not as easy," she said. "I do have some great friends, but it's not as easy to come by. It's so easy to get lost."

Clamor didn't only become enamored with music when she was younger. She was a nature lover "even as a child," and supports several environmental causes.

"When I got older, I learned more about global warming and how our daily activities contribute to that," said Clamor. "I'd love to be more involved."

Clamor said she's excited about her first Vallejo appearance, acknowledging the many Filipino residents here. "I love to connect with my brothers and sisters," she said. "I love talking to fans. It's one of the joys I get from performing."

It could be the latest step in gaining notoriety that some day may land Clamor next to Etta James and Sarah Vaughan on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. "I think it would be a little weird, though my mom truly believes it will happen," Clamor said. "It's too surreal to even think about. I would definitely have my handprints and footprints, too."

by Rich Freedman, for Vallejo Times-Herald, July 11, 2008

July 10, 2008

"Filipina Diva Radiates Both Charm, Flair" from Charles Greenfield with Coral Gables Gazette

You know it’s summer when the sounds from the Coral Gables Congregational Church across from the Biltmore hit high Cs or cascade in non-liturgical riffs from jazz vocalists or instrumentalists. In its 23rd season the church’s summer concert series, currently led by artistic director Mark Hart presents the best in regional summer pop, jazz and classical under the Spanish revival wooden beams of the 450-seat sanctuary. While last year the emphasis was weighed almost evenly with classical and pop, this year’s roster has shifted more to jazz and its famous families.

Never shy to bring new talent, the concert series presented the Filipina fusion and jazz songstress Charmaine Clamor July 3. According to her bio she is “the first Filipina jazz singer to find success on American radio, achieving the rare feat of simultaneously making the top five on both JazzWeek’s World and Traditional Jazz charts.” Her second album Flippin’ Out (2007) was a critical hit with a fusion of jazz and Philippine folk music. The attractive contralto brings a sultry and throaty growl to many old-time American standards and introduces the audience to the torch songs of her homeland she terms “Jazzipino”. Her voice has the low resonance and earthiness of the great Sarah Vaughn or grounded voltage of Mississippi-born Cassandra Wilson.

Her trio consists of pianist Jeb Patton, bassist Dominic Thiroux, and drummer and ukulele player, Abe Lagrimas. In the first set she started off with Hoagy Carmichael’s classic, “The Nearness of You,” a hit from Glenn Miller’s orchestration to singers like Diana Shore to Nora Jones. Her ability to sustain notes in mid-range was strong and consistent with Patton’s compliant piano. After a short bridge or transition her climax ended with Thiroux’s smooth arco or acoustic bass and Lagrimas’ swell of the cymbals.

Between songs, Clamor spoke to the audience with a pleasant charm that could use more humor and apply better timing in terms of transitioning from song to speech. After an overly loud version of Alex Kramer’s “Candy” from the trio she segued into Duke Ellington’s reverential “Come Sunday,” with fine lyrics like “I believe God is now, was then always will be” complemented by fine leaps from bass to treble. She followed with probably Ellington’s best-known hit “It Don’t Mean A Thing,” popularized by trumpeter Ray Nance and the great Ella “Doo-Wat” Fitzgerald, and produced a slower tempo with some weak scatting.

Clamor came back with more force and passion in an odd insertion on the program in the next song, “Something Good,” from The Sound of Music. Maria’s lyric, “But somewhere in my wicked miserable past…” certainly belies the happy talk that irrigates the musical’s more optimistic narrative. The singing was sensitive and heart felt with a fine bass riff in mid-section. Her light touch was evident in Minamahal Kita (Loving You), a kundiman or Philippine torch song, in sprightly tandem with Lagrimas on ukulele. Ay Kalisud (How Sad) Clamor was chanted to an amplified bass before the crescendo ending. A final Brazilian song Do’n Sa had an adequate samba beat with vocal bird trilling and percussive effects.

The second set was more cohesive and persuasive. After some low bass growls in Lynn Anderson’s “I Live to Love You,” she brought out her humorous “Jazzipino” arrangement of Rodgers & Hart’s “My Funny Valentine” with “My Funny Brown Pinay,” a personal plea to her Filipina sisters to respect their beauty – “Don’t change your hair for me.” Her next song was a tribute to two women: Nina Simone for “Sugar in My Bowl” and the inspired blues singer Linda Hopkins, a successor to the great Bessie Smith. Clamor’s version retained the racy “sugar” insinuations with more of a teasing tone than an earthy force of nature.

A surprisingly moody version of U2’s “With or Without You” had fine intensity, sustained singing and good backup by the trio from bass and the steady drumbeat. Her native songs continued with Panahon Na (Now’s Our Time), a folk chant from the island of Mindanao, followed by the torch song Hindi Kita Malimot (I Can’t Forget You), accompanied by ukulele. While very different in style, one incantatory, the other sweetly sentimental, the essence of each was well preserved.

Her version of Ray Noble’s “I Hadn’t Anyone Till You,” an homage to Frank Sinatra, was hushed and sultry with a very slow beat with an obvious nod to Sarah Vaughn. Dahil Sa’yo (Because of You), Imeldo Marcos’ favorite kundiman, was sugary and accented with nice phrase endings. For the final song, (her mother was a big Mario Lanza fan) she added her native Tagalog lyrics to Sammy Cahn’s Be My Love. The seven-minute version, inspired by Keith Jarrett’s well-known solo, was fascinating for its bi-lingual variety and charm as well as skillful piano by Patton. Wisely, Clamor avoided vocal pyrotechnics for a sensitive alternation of two languages in a lovely, sometimes halting, treble adulation to “eternal” love.

Despite the obvious pun in her “loud” last appellation, Charmaine Clamor lives up to her first name with charm and flair. Thanks again to the Coral Gables Congregational Church for finding some international sparkle to a humid and generally uneventful summer.

The season ends Aug. 14 with Ellis Marsalis, father to Branford and Wynton, and Aug. 28 with Chris and Dan Brubeck, the sons of the “Take Five” legend, Dave Brubeck.

by Charles Greenfield, for Coral Gables Gazette, July 10, 2008

July 08, 2008

"The Future of Music -- Today!" from Brian Ball with Women's Radio News

From Nina Simone covers to Tagalog and Bisayan traditional melodies, Charmaine Clamor’s sophomore release, Flippin' Out is the true definition of world music which upholds a strong sense of self and family and represents a standard that is to be held throughout the 21st century for jazz singers and musicians worldwide.

The opening track of Flippin’ Out, “My Funny Brown Pinay,” sees an empowering anthem aimed at women of all sizes and colors that cleverly plays on Rodgers & Hart’s “My Funny Valentine” with re-imagined lyrics and stereotype-defying content that showcases the bi-lingual, smooth and warming jazz style that Charmaine has dubbed, “Jazzipino.” Throughout the highs and lows of this assertive number, we are reminded of our own individual beauty and the reality of society’s misleading definition of beauty and fleeting hold on our world’s population.

Change is good. Charmaine has definitely changed the way many will listen to music in the future as well as having updated a few classics… …such as U2’s 20th century pop hit, “With or Without You,” where we are treated to some of the most beautiful low notes our musical scale has to offer, as delivered by one of the most versatile female vocalists of the last 50 or so years. Afterwards, we are left high on a cloud, somewhere between the feeling of being haunted and enlightened, as we move into the middle section of Flippin’ Out.

Tracks 6 through 10 make up the most interesting midsection of any album we’ve listened to this year with her ‘Filipino Suite’ while featuring excellent kulintang representation and masterful ukulele playing on “Panahon Na,” along with Richard Ickard’s charming guitar playing and Guinness Book of World Record composition by Lucio San Pedro & Levi Celerio.

Don’t be misled, as Ms. Clamor is quite versatile, despite the overall jazz theme, as we find her moving seamlessly through several languages, genres and vocal stylings as we progress towards the end of Flippin Out, along with a group of fantastic musicians further supporting and complimenting her uniqueness from start to finish.

This is the future of music—today!

by Brian Ball, for Women's Radio News, July 08, 2008

July 01, 2008

"Spotlight: Charmaine Clamor" from Johnny Aruba with Hot House Florida

The rewarding South Florida summer music program continues to score high as Ms. Clamor joins the prestigious lineup as part of a three-month series. Here's your chance to hear an outstanding vocal stylist whose self-proclaimed "Jazzipino" -- fusing standard jazz and traditional Filipino music -- has been charming the West Coast (of California, not Florida!) for the past three years. Given her rare visits to the East Coast these days, her visits to Coral Gables and Heidi's in Cocoa Beach will be firsts in her touring schedule. Fresh out of the studio after recording her third solo CD ("Harana: Filipino Serenade") in as many years, she will likely provide a taste of what is to come upon its release in October. You can expect this show to sell out, like others in this series. Nab your tix for this South Florida premiere.

by Johnny Aruba, for Hot House Florida, July 01, 2008

June 27, 2008

"Jazz From the East" from Raina McLeod with Miami New Times

When you were a kid, your parents shoved limp veggies, Crayola-hued turtlenecks, and Sunday school down your throat, claiming it was all "good for you." But now the community is your daddy, and when the powers-that-be put together a show, you best believe it's going to do your body good. Thursday, as part of the Coral Gables Congregational Church and the Community Arts Program's 2008 Summer Concert Series, you'll be force-fed buckets and buckets of Filipino jazz chanteuse Charmaine Clamor.

Born in Subic-Zambales, Philippines, Clamor is the originator of jazzipino — a hybrid that combines her native folk music with the smooth and easy nuances of a genre borne by greats such as Charlie Parker and Alice Coltrane. You might know the shooby-doos and baba-dees well, but after a night of American classics and your new soon-to-be-faves, you’ll be Clamor-ing for more. Not to worry — you’ll be able to take home her critically acclaimed second album, Flippin’ Out. Check her out at www.charmaineclamor.com. The show starts at 8 p.m. Tickets range from $25 to $35. Call 305-448-7421, ext. 33, or visit www.communityartsprogram.org for more details about the concert series.

by Raina McLeod, for Miami New Times, June 27, 2008

June 19, 2008

"Sax and the City" from Brick Wahl with LA Weekly

And there are also a couple of exceptional events in the World category this week: Seun Kuti & Egypt 80 are at California Plaza on Friday. Fela’s youngest son, he’s reconstructed the pieces of his dad’s last band, and if it has any of the old spirit, this will be one helluva show. Get there early for a seat, and bring your terpsichorean shoes. Then on Saturday afternoon at LACMA the exceptional mandolin player Ted Falcon (in a quartet with his cohort Pablo Fagundes) runs the gamut of Brazilain choro, forro, samba and who knows what else. When Falcon gets soloing, you’ll hear kinds of Brazilian music you didn’t even know existed (that country ain’t all bossa and tropicalia). And finally, there is a bit of a jazz festival at Pasadena’s Levitt Pavilion on Saturday, the highlight of which has to be singer Charmaine Clamor, whose torchy and swinging jazz blends standards and Filipino classics (often in Tagalog) is pretty irresistible (check out her Flippin’ Out). Charmaine hasn’t played locally since early spring, so it’ll be interesting to see if she’s gone in more of a world music direction after her jazzapino success. It’d be a natural fit. But whatever’s she’s doing, the crowds’ll love it. Something pretty refreshing on the local vocal scene: She hits the stage at 6:15 sharp.

by Brick Wahl, for LA Weekly, June 19, 2008

June 07, 2008

"Jazz Vocals With a Philippine Flavor" from Steve Holtje with Culture Catch

This Filipina jazz singer lived in the Philippines until age 16, when her family moved to the U.S. Long based in Los Angeles, she has progressed from karaoke hostess to adored torch singer, and now has made her second album.

Clamor starts it off with a sociopolitical rewrite of “My Funny Valentine” that turns it into “My Funny Brown Pinay,” an exhortation to the brown-skinned women of her native country to not be ashamed of their color. Preachy, yes, and a bit on the lengthy side what with her repeating (or so I assume) some lines in her native Tagalog language, but it’s a point worth making. And, having thus prompted listeners to be hyperaware of lyrics, her brooding interpretation of U2’s “With or Without You” becomes an uncomfortable (in a good way) psycho-exploration of the balance of power between male and female, its darkness heightened by the sparse accompaniment of bass and drums.

Not everything is so fraught with underlying meaning, thankfully; Nina Simone’s “Sugar in My Bowl” oozes playful sex appeal, and the jazz standard “Candy” is enlivened with brief allusions to the beat of Bow Wow Wow’s cover (featuring, of course, another dark-skinned beauty, half-Burmese Annabella Lwin) of The Strangeloves’ “I Want Candy.” “I Hadn’t Anyone ‘Til You” provides a taste of the straight-ahead jazz on which Clamor focused exclusively on her debut.

The centerpiece of this disc, however, is a five-track suite of Filipino songs incorporating some Filipino instrumentation, notably the national percussion ensemble, kulintang, for which she is joined by the Pakaraguian Kulintang Ensemble (who also contributed briefly to the U2 cover). I would have liked to hear more of this, actually, and more prominently.

A song by fellow FreeHam artist Zaxariades (who plays guitar and scats on the track) provides some uptempo pep, but it’s forgettable musically. But with Clamor accompanied only by pianist Christian Jacob, the album closes on a high note with a gorgeously languorous reading of the old Mario Lanza hit “Be My Love” (written by Sammy Cahn); Clamor includes verses in Tagalog.

If the strong Philippine flavor of this disc puts it in a narrow specialty niche, that would be a shame, for Clamor is a talented artist and there’s nothing gimmicky about her move in this unusual direction. It’s actually pretty brave considering how staid and musically reactionary much of the jazz vocals audience can be, but if they dismiss Clamor on those grounds, they’re missing out on some fine singing.

by Steve Holtje, for Culture Catch, June 07, 2008

April 20, 2008

"Here's Clamoring for More Charmaine" from Ruben Nepales with Philippine Inquirer

LOS ANGELES—Despite having only two albums to her name, Charmaine Clamor is a rising jazz star in the US. Critics couldn’t get enough of her.

For example, LA Weekly’s Brick Wahl, in recommending the Fil-Am singer’s recent two-night gig at Hollywood’s Catalina Bar & Grill as his jazz event pick of the week, wrote: “She made a big splash with Flippin’ Out—its hip mix of beautifully arranged standards and jazzed-up Tagalog love songs took the ‘Filipina Singing Sensation’ into the upper reaches of the jazz and world charts. And no wonder: Her husky, sassy tone, languid moves and unpretentious Pinoy attitude that’s just a tad rebellious have the kind of natural appeal you can’t buy at any music school.”

The acclaim is typical of the critical plaudits that the Zambales-raised Charmaine has been getting since she released her first CD. The LA Times’ Don Heckman raved, “Her debut album ‘Searching for the Soul’ announced the arrival of an impressive new vocal artist.”

Striking while the iron is hot, Charmaine will release simultaneously two CDs later this year—one, an album of harana songs and the other, a follow-up to the very successful “Flippin’ Out” (available on www.charmaineclamor.com), which showcases “jazzipino,” her hybrid of jazz and Filipino music and lyrics. The concurrent release of these albums will make Charmaine the first Filipino artist to have two recordings climb the American charts at the same time.

Below is a continuation of our e-mail interview with the pioneering singer:

Who are the Filipino singers that you admire?

Mon David, Grace Nono, Ryan Cayabyab and Asin, especially Lolita Carbon. I think a lot of the Apo Hiking Society songs are classic. I’m discovering Joey Ayala at the moment. I think Lani Misalucha’s vocal instrument is just divine and Gary Valenciano is an exciting all-round performer.

Can you give us a quick timeline between the year when you arrived in the US and the present? What were the highlights?

I graduated valedictorian in high school at Our Lady of Loretto-Bishop Conaty Memorial High School in Los Angeles. I got my Master’s degree in physical therapy, all the while singing for Top 40 bands, and as a backup vocalist, and then with the harmony group, Crescendo. I met lots of wonderful friends, including my amazing husband. Music-wise, I’ve released two solo albums, and the latest one, “Flippin’ Out,” has earned some lovely reviews and reached listeners all around the world.

You continue to practice physical therapy whenever you can. Have you had a chance to sing to some of your patients as supplemental therapy? Do most patients know that you are also a singer?

I continue to practice physical therapy once or twice a week. I find it very rewarding and I do get a chance to vocalize as much as I can with my patients. Sometimes I use music as a distraction from pain. Yes, most of my patients know that I am a singer and many of them come to my shows or buy my albums. In fact, the California Chapter of the American Physical Therapy Association is a huge supporter of mine.

You still sing with Crescendo. What kind of fulfillment does singing with a vocal jazz quartet bring?

There is nothing like harmonizing and sound ing like one voice with your friends! It is pure aural pleasure, quite different from singing solo. I also enjoy the “in the moment” experiences that we often have, when we do something dynamic or rhythmic because we all felt going there simultaneously.

How was your debut with “The Vagina Monologues” in San Francisco? What are you looking forward to in your next stop with the play in New York?

I am still high from my debut performance in San Francisco. It was a liberating experience, which I think helped with my singing. In New York, I’m looking forward to reconnecting with my FWN (Filipina Women Network) sisters and performing two different characters this time. Most of all, I’m looking forward to touching people’s lives with the production. I’m hopeful that we can end domestic violence and support our lolas, the “comfort women.”

You must feel blessed that you are getting these breaks in the jazz world, including the honor of being the first Filipina vocalist to make the JazzWeek World and Traditional Jazz charts.

I feel blessed to have had these wonderful successes. All of these achievements would not be possible without my amazing management team, my loyal supporters, the media, my selfless family and friends, the inspiration I continue to receive from other artists (legendary and contemporary) and my passion to bring our sounds to the whole world. When you combine all that with determination and hard work, good things happen.

What can we expect from your coming harana album? How did you hook up with guitarist Richard Ickard?

I’m bursting with excitement to do the harana album. It will feature harana pieces from different regions in the Philippines, sung in different languages and dialects. We’ll be using indigenous Filipino musical instruments as well. I am collaborating on this project with my friend and colleague, Naxos recording artist Richard Ickard. He actually found me two years ago through JazzPhil-USA, and we’ve been collaborators since then. He lives in California but he grew up in the Philippines. He has recorded several albums on his own, including a fantastic collection of Filipino folk songs. Richard is a kind and generous person whom I enjoy working with. We have a deep musical connection, which I think you’ll hear on the record.

What are your most memorable, amusing and unusual experiences so far?

My most memorable performance so far was in January of this year, at a club called Anthology, in San Diego. It was my first show in that city, and I wasn’t sure how the reception would be. It turned out we were the “Pick of the Day” in the San Diego newspaper, and we had a full house that night. The club, which seats close to 300, had to turn away patrons. It was unbelievable! The crowd was extraordinarily warm and appreciative—and most of them were non-Filipinos.

The most amusing one was at the Iridium jazz club, in New York City, in September 2007. I was doing my second set when I thought I saw the legendary blues singer, Linda Hopkins, coming down the stairs and into the club. I said to myself, “This is impossible,” because Linda lives in LA, and what are the chances of the two of us being in New York at the same time? A few seconds later, the woman got down the stairs and walked into the light and, yes, it was indeed Linda Hopkins! I was so flabbergasted I almost forgot my lyrics.

As for the most unusual, I was performing a two-nighter at Cecil’s in New Jersey. Cecil’s is a straight-ahead jazz club and a real musician’s hang out. Herbie Hancock was just there the night before my show. I came down from the dressing room to perform and I saw that the crowd was almost entirely African-American. There were maybe two or three Filipinos. I thought to myself, “I’m in trouble. There’s no way this audience will dig my jazzipino songs.” I actually feared they might just stand up and walk out when I started singing in Tagalog. After doing a couple of songs in English, I got up the nerve to sing “Minamahal Kita” and “Dahil sa Iyo”—and they gave me a standing ovation. Unbelievable!

How cool was it to be interviewed by NPR?

It was the coolest of the cool being interviewed by Lianne Hansen, on NPR’s “Weekend Edition.” That was a strong validation of the value of my work, my art. It felt unreal, like in a dream, to know I was being heard by millions of people simultaneously. Wow! That was definitely one of my highlights last year.

Can you tell me one aspect of Charmaine Clamor that has not been brought up yet?

That I like getting food as gifts?! I actually have some fans who started giving me delicious treats after shows, which I believe is a fine tradition to continue, at least until I can no longer fit in my dresses.

Seriously, one possibly-unknown aspect that hasn’t been covered is that I promote living “green.” I eat locally grown organic foods as much as I can. I walk, ride my bike, or take public transportation as much as I can. I purchase music digitally through iTunes or Amazon.com, and my household is getting greener every month. I love nature. In fact, during my birthdays, I take an annual journey to a wild place, like the jungles of South America, where I can enjoy animals in their natural habitat, where there is very little use of technology. I practice yoga as well.

by Ruben Nepales, for Philippine Inquirer, April 20, 2008

April 18, 2008

"Pinay 'Jazzipino' Singer Makes Waves in US" from Ruben Nepales with Philippines Daily Inquirer

LOS ANGELES, California—“Take a look at my skin,” Charmaine Clamor told the audience on a recent night at Los Angeles’ top jazz club. “It’s brown,” she said, almost purring, as her band provided earthy, jazzy musical background.

“Take a look at my nose,” she requested the packed crowd. “It’s flat. I’m singing for all my sisters growing up, thinking they don’t look right. ‘Cause they ain’t white, scrubbing with papaya soap to make it light . . . (But) you are beautiful . . . Maganda ka. Ikaw ay Pilipino.”

In her sensuous, deep contralto voice, Charmaine then launched into her acclaimed interpolation of “My Funny Valentine,” singing “You’re my funny brown Pinay…” Later into the song, she managed to inject Magellan and how centuries of colonial rule made some of us, including herself as a little girl growing up in Subic, Zambales, try “every cream and soap to erase or lighten my skin.” Heavy stuff to interject into a Richard Rodgers and Lorenz Hart standard, but Charmaine made it work with her sincere conviction and impassioned, soulful singing.

Throughout her evening show at Catalina Bar & Grill in Hollywood, Charmaine showcased her “jazzipino,” a fusion of Filipino music, languages and instruments with American jazz. These songs are included in her second album, “Flippin’ Out.”

Through the acclaimed CD, Charmaine broke through as the first Filipina singer to enjoy success on American jazz radio, achieving the rare feat of landing on the top five charts of both JazzWeek World (No. 2) and Traditional Jazz (No. 4).

In her two-night show, the tall, slim Charmaine, who has been described as a singer with the voice of Sarah Vaughan and the body of a supermodel, also sang Filipino standards with guest Mon David and Fil-Am guitar recording artist, Richard Ickard. The mixed crowd of whites, blacks and Asians cheered and applauded all the numbers. A black couple in front of us embraced each other and nodded appreciatively as Charmaine sang Tagalog chestnuts like “Minamahal Kita” and “Dahil sa Iyo” from her “Filipino Suite.”

With her “musical and cultural trailblazing,” Charmaine recently made it to the Filipina Women’s Network list of the “100 Most Influential Filipina Women in the United States.” She dedicated “Flippin’ Out” to “my people, the Filipinos,” saying that her “abiding wish is to have our songs, our language, be sung and enjoyed by the whole world. I hope this album is a start.” The album and her first one, “Searching for the Soul,” are available on www.charmaineclamor.com.

Headliner

Charmaine has performed in the Philippines as the headliner of the International Jazz and Ethnic Arts Festival in Manila in 2006 and 2007. She continues to sing with Crescendo, a vocal jazz quartet which includes her husband, Michael Konik, himself a solo artist and a book author.

She also finds time to practice physical therapy, which she finds “rewarding . . . I do get a chance to vocalize as much as I can with my patients.” The former high school valedictorian, who recently debuted as a stage actress in “The Vagina Monologues,” continues her stint with the same play when it moves to the Philippine Center on Fifth Avenue in New York this weekend.

Below are excerpts of our e-mail interview with the LA-based singer: Nothing could be more groundbreaking than you opening your show in a club where American jazz greats have performed with “My Funny Brown Pinay,” to which you added Tagalog lyrics extolling the Pinay brown skin and beauty.

It truly is empowering to be able to sing a song that celebrates the unique attributes of the indigenous Filipino, especially in my native tongue of Tagalog—and in a venue that has hosted the absolute best in jazz! It’s a validation of our community’s talent and cultural value.

As a performer who’s a member of the minority in America, what does being a brown Pinay mean to you? What inspired you to add and write Tagalog lyrics?

Being a brown Pinay in the jazz community reminds me to be faithful to our culture. It makes me proud to represent our native country, which has given birth to countless beautiful melodies and timeless lyrics, in a multitude of different dialects and languages.

My native tongue is Tagalog, although I can speak a little bit of Bisaya (from my father) and Ilokano (from my mother). “My Funny Brown Pinay” tells the story of my personal experience as a kayumanggi growing up in the Philippines, and I believe the best way to communicate my strong feelings about this experience is through the language that I grew up with.

Are you still surprised about how breaking into Tagalog lyrics in a mainstream American jazz venue seems like the natural thing to do?

I am not surprised by how organic it is for me to do this in a jazz venue. But it still surprises me how mesmerized non-Filipinos get when they hear our language being sung.

Can you tell us exactly how you came up with “jazzipino”?

I came up with the term after listening to the rough mixes of my CD, “Flippin’ Out.” I was sitting in the living room of my home with my manager, Ted Benito. We agreed the music that I had created was jazzy, and Filipino, and something different than anything else anyone had done before, so there wasn’t a convenient label to describe it. I just squashed the two words together: jazz and Filipino!

On a related note, how did you become involved as a founding member of JazzPhil-USA? What are the organization’s next events and projects?

I was driving toward Las Vegas in early 2005, and the thought that came to my head was, “Why can’t we have a Filipino-American jazz festival in Los Angeles?” I met up with my Crescendo colleague, Bobbie Garcia, who was excited about the idea as well. We approached other folks who are active in the community. They supported the idea, which led to the formation of JazzPhil-USA in 2005! For three years in a row, we have presented world-class jazz artists of Filipino descent. Last year’s event received a rave review from the most important jazz critic in Los Angeles, Don Heckman of LA Times! We’ve launched the Annual Emil Mijares Scholarship which awards $1,000 to a graduating high school student. We are also planning on conducting workshops this year and having another scholarship in honor of the late Toti Fuentes. We conduct an annual talent search as well, and the winner gets to perform during our annual JazzFest.

How were your growing up years in Subic? Did you actually use papaya soap and other supposed remedies to whiten your skin?

Generally, I had a wonderful childhood in Subic, Zambales, growing up with my family and friends in the kind of atmosphere where neighbors just drop in.

One of the frustrating experiences I had was the belief that I was a completely unattractive young lady because of my brown skin and flat nose. I used to pinch the bridge of my nose every night before bed, hoping it would be pointy the next day. Yes, like many of my Pinay sisters, I did indeed try papaya soap and all whitening creams I could get my hands on, which, as you can see, didn’t work!

How did you, at 3 years old, get to entertain passengers in the back of buses traveling to Manila? How influential were your parents in shaping your appreciation for music?

When my parents and I traveled from Subic to Manila, we used to ride the Victory Liner bus. My parents tell me that I used to sing at the back of the bus, entertaining passengers—whether they liked it or not! My parents are the reason why I was exposed to beautiful music early on. There were always kundiman, opera, jazz and Great American Songbook standards playing in our living room. They also let me take piano lessons at a young age. One of my fondest childhood memories is accompanying my mother on the piano while she sang and my father listened.

by Ruben Nepales, for Philippines Daily Inquirer, April 18, 2008

April 15, 2008

"Clamoring for Charmaine in Brooklyn" from Robert P. DeTagle with New York Asian Journal

We met Charmaine Clamor as we became the first in the metro New York area to introduce her to the Fil-Am community, when we were co-chair at the Jersey City Fil-Am Independence Day cultural festival in 2006.

Since then, Charmaine, originally from Subic, and now from Hollywood, has performed at jazz venues in New York City, New Jersey and Boston, top billed the JazzPhil festival in Los Angeles, and stayed in touch with us to plan the first such festival in the New York area. She has also been featured in events such as the Filipino Library's in LA, and was named in 2007 one of the 100 Most Influential Filipino Women in the US.

At her last visit to the Big Apple, we introduced her to kababayans at the Phil. Center and then took her around, as she visited Greenwich Village for the first time, even to Filipino jazz legend Annie Brazil's home base on Bleecker St. and to the famous Gray's Papaya - staffed by Pinoys, of course - that is known from Sex and the City and as a one-time feeding spot for Julia Roberts. Charmaine was genuinely floored by being taken to that shrine of jazz, Blue Note Jazz Bar, on West 3rd St. in the Village, humbled by the photos of jazz greats on the walls.

"My Funny Brown Pinay"

What struck me about this lady - whose full tones and confident approach on stage (contrasted to her accessible demeanor off-stage) remind me of Kuh Ledesma – is her desire to keep her Filipino heritage fully in view even as she became the first Filipino jazz singer played on mainstream radio. At her New York City show launching her second album, Flippin' Out, at the Iridium Jazz Club last September, she let loose with "My Funny Brown Pinay" (to the tune of "My Funny Valentine") to proudly tell her story and her background to the mixed crowd that, guess what, included Ms. Brazil.

This afternoon at her Brooklyn debut performance, right off the bat she treated the mixed crowd to this same theme song/anthem ("Look at my skin -- it's brown… Look at my nose – it's flat," she intones matter-of-factly).

Performing with a trio of piano, bass (half-Filipino and half-Japanese, by the way) and drums, Charmaine was also joined by the astonishing Julius Tolentino, a locally-based saxophonist who went to the Hartt Music School on scholarship. Charmaine talked about channeling Linda Hopkins and Bessie Smith; one could say the same of Julius' straight-ahead playing at times rousing and at other times smooth, as one might have heard from the '40s and '50s jazz legends. Julius has been described by jazz historian Lewis Porter as "a fiery alto player with a fresh, open sound."

The words "celebrating her heritage" immediately come to mind and linger with you, as you hear her perform this and other songs, such as another of her tracks from the new CD, "Panahon Na/Hindi Kita Malimot."

This is a stunning medley that brings this theme of jazz synthesis with Filipino rhythms, as the song uses kulintang rhythms in juxtaposition with the kundiman of Cenezal. This, together with her rendition of standards, shows her range and vision of what she calls Jazzipino music. In fact, she is the first Filipino to have made both the jazz charts AND the world music charts, with this album.

By the way, this track, translated as "Now Is The Time," was very fittingly used at a Feb. 17, 2008 event in Jersey City of the Filipino American National Historical Society-NJ honoring the Filipino WW II veterans still battling for equity and benefits promised by Pres. Roosevelt over 60 years ago.)

Ms. Clamor's voice and style have been compared to those of Nancy Wilson and Lena Horne, and as music writer John Book has noted, "Clamor is an asset to jazz music, and a contributor to the continued traditions of women in jazz." She has also been recognized in various reviews ranging from NPR to the LA TImes. Indeed, Fil-Am Bernadette was there at this show only because her husband Earl brought her after he heard Charmaine on public radio recently.

Duke Ellington's "It Don't Mean a Thing (If It Ain't Got That Swing)" summed up the afternoon for Charmaine, Julius and the other musicians: "Just keep that rhythm, give it everything you've got!"

This afternoon was indeed a thrill bridging different musical styles, with songs ranging from standards to bebop (indeed, the only piece missing from a classic bebop ensemble was a trumpet) to a bossa nova original by noted Filipno jazz singer Mon David to "Minamahal (Minamahal Kita)" by Velarde and Santiago to "Crazy" of Patsy Cline. Good thing, the librarian didn't hear all those great sounds coming from the Dweck Center, or we'd have been sent out of that building pronto.

by Robert P. DeTagle, for New York Asian Journal, April 15, 2008

April 08, 2008

"Jazz Explosion at the Grill" from John Lacson with Pinoy Wired

7PM April 5, 2008. Location is Catalina Bar and Grill Jazz club on Sunset blvd in Hollywood, California. The weather is superb and we are in a party mood. Ted Benito, friend and manager to Ms Charmaine Clamor, welcomes us and leads us to Ms Clamor’s dressing room for the press interview. We are impressed by her down to earth personality. No Attitudes, and quite accommodating. There is no evidence of the talent and power this person carries within her during the interview. Our dialogue lasts fifteen minutes and we are happy with the outcome.

The jazz aficionados begin to sprinkle in. The Catalina Bar and Grill is a perfect setting for this event. It is cozy and romantic. Candle-lit tables with dimmed indirect lighting creates the ambience. Waiters were everywhere ready to take orders. Excellent customer service. Jazz lovers tend to be higher end. The genre being that of successful baby boomers and former yuppies now thinking of early retirement. Jazz reflects a mindset. It is someone who has been there and done that. Give me some fine music that does not jumble up my thought process. Give me sounds that soothes and accentuates the soul. Yes!

The audience is a mixture of different ethnic groups. It is clear that Ms Clamor has a following. The well dressed spectators cheer exuberantly as Charmaine enters stage. Her dazzling attire accentuates her fit, slim figure.

The concert starts out with her singing “My Funny Brown Pinay”. The song is a torch for all Filipinas to be proud of the way they look. Accept yourself and be happy. Explore your potentials and achieve your dreams. This composition mirrors Charmaine’s thoughts about her homeland, the Philippines.

She continues. From a mellow start, it begins to pick up with “Sugar in My Bowl”. This is a naughty, naughty song. Sultry, sassy, and provocative. But she delivers it with such control, power, and most of all, personality. Felt like blushing while listening to this song.

The night progresses. Her rendition of “Dahil Sa’yo” is impressive. Forget Imelda Marcos’ rendition. Ms Clamor’s version of this Filipino classic was so jazzy and sung from the heart. The non-Filipino audience where transfixed, mesmerized by the feelings imbedded in the delivery, and the beauty of the melody. Being a Filipino-American, I felt a bit choked up. Goose bumps when she hit those high notes. I felt that way because we Pinoys have this sensitivity. Ya Baby!

Charmaine, backed by master guitarist Ric Ickard, presented some of her harana songs. It is amazing how one great vocalist and an excellent classic guitar player can captivate a roomful of music lovers. And that they surely did. It was apparent that Jazzipino was the new drug being introduced into the veins of all jazz lovers.

Then along came Michael Konik and Mon David. Their vocal jamming with Charmaine was hilarious. It was a duel of musical skills, taunting and teasing each other to the point of making the audience crack up. Mon and Charmaine did a song entitled “San Mig and Balut” which reflected the Filipino eclectic ways. Like, whatever works, we will take it. And Michael Konik kept on coming in indicating he wanted none of that balut stuff but wanted some of Mon David. This was all done in jazz.. almost hip hop jazz but not quite.. a tinge of Al Jurreau.. and should I say bebop? You should have been there. Three masters playing at it. Who could ask for anything more. The spectators not only enjoyed the presence of these talents but also witnessed the birth, the melding of Filipino words into South American melodies and beat, other than classical jazz. Ted Benito referred to this musical hybrid as taganova or bossalog (tagalog bossa nova). Hey, its Pinoy power however way you want to say it.

Time flies when you’re having fun. It was 10PM when the Charmaine Clamor concert ended. The fans stayed around to have their CD’s autographed and photos taken with the celebrities. Please make it a point to see one of her shows. It’s so much better than staying home and watching television. With her, you witness the rise of the Filipino culture on an international level via talent and personality. Charmaine Clamor, Mon David, and Ric Ickard. These are countrymen who represent the capabilities of our culture. Mabuhay!

by John Lacson, for Pinoy Wired, April 08, 2008

April 06, 2008

"Jazzy Pinay Power" from John Lacson with Pinoy Wired

The passion of singing manifested itself early. At age 3 and being an only child, Charmaine Clamor was singing at the back of buses entertaining passengers on their way from hometown Subic Zambales to Manila. Her mother was the role model then. Young Charmaine provided piano accompaniment while mom sung kundimans. In family parties, singing with cousins and friends was part of the entertainment fare. Quite normal activity for a Filipino party then and now. At age 16 Charmaine left the Philippines and migrated to the United States. She is a board certified Physical Therapist in California. Originally, that was going to be her day job until she got into singing again. Ten years back, she co-founded CRESCENDO which is a foremost American Jazz quintet. Being the vocalist, her indoctrination towards American Jazz was kindled. Her group started performing at the CATALINA BAR & GRILL located on Sunset blvd in Hollywood.

This baptism into American Jazz prevailed and Charmaine Clamor was transformed from your talented singer into a full pledged jazz artist. Her parents did not approve of this transition. Like most Filipino elders, they wanted their daughter to keep on doing the Physical Therapy thing, and make sure there was money for food on the table and the bills paid. However, the passion to sing was too strong and Charmaine kept on doing shows.

This successful breakthrough into the American jazz scenario would have been enough for most to lay their laurels on. However, there was a part of Charmaine that remembered those growing up days in the Philippines. Itfs true that in the old country, most women were looked down upon if they were brown and lacked the mestiza features which was a legacy of our Spanish conquerors. Quite frankly, to be a fair-skinned and sharp-nosed was and still is a symbol of aristocracy. Society snobbed a Filipina who was brown and flat-nosed. Even the TV ads and billboards in Manila hawked products that would make women whiter skinned and more western looking.

At 5Œ7 with a well defined nose, Charmaine is tall for your average Filipina. However, she associates herself with those dark-skinned Pinays who have undergone prejudice because of their color. She remembers childhood days when she was teased for her being Pinay. Ms Clamor wants those Pinays to be proud of their looks. To do away with this colonial mentality that brown is poor. And to realize that wealth lies within us. She believes in kindness. Kindness accompanied with a smile makes a person much more attractive. Charmaine has this killer smile that just melts the heart!

True to contemporary jazz, her style is reminiscent of Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughn, and Cassandra Wilson. Once in a while, she throws in a twist of Anita Baker. My opinion is that her range of style is equivalent to the female version of Michael Buble. She is a bundle of great jazz artists rolled into one persona. I am proud to be Filipino when I hear Charmaine Clamor deliver her stuff.

Going back to her cause to uplift the brown Pinay. She created Jazzipino.

This is a fusion of American jazz melodies sprinkled with Tagalog words. This music praises the dark skinned Pinays and encourages them to be proud. Charmaine co-wrote the song gMY FUNNY BROWN PINAYh which reflects her roots. It is amazing how the power and quality of her voice can mesmerize an audience that do not speak a work of Tagalog. Yet they sit still, enthralled by her hypnotic spell.

Charmaine Clamor is here to stay. For now she has two CD releases. The first one titled gSEARCHING FOR THE SOULh was cut during her earlier years as a Jazz artists. The cuts are all in English and shows the promise of an uprising star. Her second CD is titledhFLIPPINf OUTh. This album reflects her crossover from contemporary jazz to Jazzipino.

She is in the process of cutting her third CD which will delve into HARANA. In the Philippines back then, a guy attracted to a certain girl would bring a guitar and serenade the lass at night. If her window opens and she listens, that would signify acceptance of the guy. If it remained closed, then forget about it! This third album would pay tribute to Ms Clamorfs mother who sung kundimans in Filipino vernacular which included love songs. And by the way, news flash! Her parents have finally accepted the fact that their daughter is more successful in singing than doing physical therapy. So for one and all, follow your passion. Go for it!

by John Lacson, for Pinoy Wired, April 06, 2008

April 03, 2008

"You Can't Buy This at Music School" from Brick Wahl with LA Weekly

Charmaine Clamor’s back at Catalina Bar and Grill on Friday and Saturday. She made a big splash with Flippin’ — its hip mix of beautifully arranged standards and jazzed-up Tagalog love songs took the “Filipina Singing Sensation” into the upper reaches of the jazz and world charts. And no wonder: Her husky, sassy tone, languid moves and unpretentious Pinoy attitude that’s just a tad rebellious have the kind of natural appeal you can’t buy at any music school. She’s joined here by swinging crooner (and husband) Michael Konik and the superb Filipino vocalist Mon David (check out his My One and Only Love).

by Brick Wahl, for LA Weekly, April 03, 2008

March 19, 2008

"Jazzipino has Arrived" from Jordan Richardson with Blogcritics Magazine

Charmaine Clamor is a cheeky little firecracker, a singer with an absurd amount of soul, and a gifted artist with a fantastic sense of humour. When her debut album, Searching for the Soul, was released in 2005, many predicted that Clamor would “shake the musical world.” With her new CD, Flippin’ Out, she expands on her career and synthesizes American jazz, blues, soul, Filipino folk music, and other musical forms to create what she dotingly dubs “jazzipino.”

The essence of “jazzipino” is evident from the opening welcoming notes of Flippin’ Out. The enchanting and humorous track “My Funny Brown Pinay” is a raucously entertaining re-invention of Rodgers and Hart’s “My Funny Valentine.” Having a Filipino wife, the song found instant significance in my home as the combination of English and Tagalog lyrics delivered an anthem of native pride. At times on the standout track, Clamor sounds like a revolutionary as she celebrates her heritage and inspires anyone who has ever struggled.

From that wonderful opening number, Flippin’ Out delivers a broad spectrum of addictive music. Some performances are affectionate and ageless, like Clamor’s beautiful vocals on “I Hadn’t Anyone ‘Til You,” while other tracks are back to the fun and culture of the album’s opener, like the swing and strut of the sexy “Candy.”

Another terrific highlight is Clamor’s lingering and exquisite cover of U2’s classic tune “With or Without You.” With Clamor behind the wheel of one of my personal favourite songs, things get very interesting very quickly. Coaxed by a soothingly swaying bass line, the song takes on brave new meaning and Charmaine’s forlorn vocals fit the mood charmingly. It is one of the best covers of the song I have ever heard.

Flippin’ Out moves from gentleness to sexiness without missing a beat. The almost bawdy rendition of Nina Simone’s “Sugar in My Bowl” is scorching and steamy. Clamor claims that friend and mentor Linda Hopkins taught her to “sing dirty,” as it’s not a skill one learns naturally in the Philippines.

At the heart of Flippin’ Out is a splendid homage to Filipino culture. The exquisite “Filipino Suite” is comprised of five tracks sung wholly in Tagalog or Bisayan. The suite melds American jazz superbly with the slightly tropical sounds of traditional Filipino music, making for a lovely piece of music that will please fans of both styles. Using the kulintang, a percussion ensemble of drums and gongs from the Philippines, the suite is beautifully textured and affecting.

After the suite, Clamor buckles down again for a fun scat romp and closes the album out with the striking “Be My Love” by Mario Lanza.

Flippin’ Out is an eclectic, vivacious, poignant, emotive, stunning, and creative piece of music. It is a brilliant CD. Filipino music lovers and those inexperienced with the delightful genre will find something unique and extraordinary on this electrifying album. With several Filipino guest musicians and enough swagger to jolt even the most hardened critic, Flippin’ Out is a splendid world music experience.

by Jordan Richardson, for Blogcritics Magazine, March 19, 2008

March 08, 2008

"Utterly Beguiling" from Barry Bassis with Town & Village

Combining social consciousness and sex appeal is tough to pull off, but Charmaine Clamor manages it on her terrific CD "Flippin Out" (on FreeHam Records). This highly accomplished jazz singer reinvents "My Funny Valentine" as "My Funny Brown Pinay," about prejudice against Filipino women for their physical attributes. What is odd is that this creator of "jazzipino," a tangy mix of jazz, soul, and Filipino music, is beautiful.

Nevertheless, she points out that, when she was a child, she was discriminated against and called a "negrita" and teased for her flat nose.

As she demonstrates on the suggestive "Sugar in My Bowl" and "I Need a Lot of Love," her sexiness comes through in the recording. Whether crooning a golden oldie like "I Hadn't Anyone 'til You" or the "Filipino Suite" (comprised of songs from her homeland), or a novel interpretation of the Mario Lanza hit "Be My Love," the sounds are utterly beguiling.

Pianist Christian Jacob, who has done outstanding work with Tierney Sutton, does the same here, albeit with a very different type of vocalist.

by Barry Bassis, for Town & Village, March 08, 2008

March 01, 2008

"Crazy for Clamor," from Lia Wang with Asian Connection

I'm crazy about Charmaine Clamor and you will be too once you experience her lush honeyed vocals in the Brooklyn Central Library's "Brooklyn Sings, Brooklyn Swings" concert on Sunday, March 2. Ms. Clamor will be accompanied by her quartet, including fellow Filipino alto saxophonist Julius Tolentino.

I first heard Ms. Clamor's latest release "Flippin' Out," late last year, and have been looking forward to catching her live. My favorite song on the CD is a humorous take on 'My Funny Valentine' called 'My Funny Brown Pinay' which celebrates the beauty of Filipinas. "Flippin' Out," made history by reaching the Top Five on both the JazzWeek World Music and Traditional Jazz charts, and she is the first Filipino jazz vocalist to find success on American radio. Her unique blending of American soul and swing with the traditional kundiman of her native Philippines has been dubbed "jazzipino."

Recently named one of the 100 Most Influential Filipino Women in the United States for her contributions to Filipino musical culture, Clamor is based in Los Angeles, and has performed around the world.

The 4PM concert is free and open to the public.

by Lia Wang, for Asian Connection, March 01, 2008

February 27, 2008

"Charmaine Weaves Her Web," from Dick Metcalf with Jazz Improvisation Nation

The opening track on this "W-O-W" CD will do much for anyone with qualms about havin' "brown skin"... "My Funny Brown Pinay" celebrates the joy of being "of color"... a very interesting track! There are lots of tunes written by other folks on this album, but Ms. Clamor makes them all her own... stylistically, & soul-wise as well. I believe it's her deep-rich vocal quality (& it is quality, through & through) that will astound you most... she can reach right out & hook you into her audio fantasy. What comes to mind (even tho' I wasn't there during the era) is the deep, dark after-hours environment of an old-fashioned speakeasy... I can see (& hear) the audience watching (& listening) to this enchantress, as though I were right there. The list of jazz players accompanying her total talent is too long to list here, but if you visit her site you can learn much more. My favorite track (tho' it's very haunting), is "I Hadn't Anyone Till You", cut 2.... Charmaine really weaves her web well on this one. This is a very pleasant jazz experience, & gets a HIGHLY RECOMMENDED from my long-jazzified ears.

by Dick Metcalf, for Jazz Improvisation Nation, February 27, 2008

February 14, 2008

"Valentine's Voices" from the music reviewer with Talkin' Broadway

"My Funny Valentine," of course, is the song synonymous with this holiday, and one of the most covered standards of all time. Appearing on her second album, Flippin' Out, alto Charmaine Clamor's version is one of the most unusual in that she never sings the word "valentine." This Pinay (translation: a woman of the Philippines) recasts the ballad to be a song of racial and ethnic pride for her own people. Additional spoken material she wrote urges confidence and rejection of forced standards of beauty. I have mixed feelings about this hijacking that becomes "My Funny Brown Pinay," though I can see the analogy about beauty being in the eye of the beholder. She keeps most of the original lyrics except the last line. Her rewrite is "Each day we celebrate our way. Pinay!"

Moving to romance, Charmaine takes a more traditional road for the old songs "I Hadn't Anyone Til You" and "Candy." She takes these slow and easy and jazzy (accompanied by some great jazz musicians, including pianist Christian Jacob), with an emphasis on the sultry. Sometimes she sounds like she's slithering about or luxuriating in a bed of rose petals or a bubble bath.

Charmaine is not shy with lusty stuff, like Nina Simone's "I Want a Little Sugar in My Bowl" and "I Need a Lot of Love" where she's joined for some scat singing by songwriter Zaxariades. There are some okay musical moments in these, but I find some of it overdosing on the sass and horny strut. I prefer her work on the prettier side without tricks or tics or attitude strut and embellishments: the album's closer is a long, tender version of "Be My Love." There is also a lot of sweet vocalizing in The Filipino Suite, a group of six songs. English translations are provided in the booklet, but it would have been a safe guess that they are mostly love songs on the contentment side, plus a lullaby. There's a lot to love in this section, featuring gentle percussion and evocative, understated moods thanks to the guitar and ukulele.

Very pleasingly legato on the gentler numbers, Charmaine can also sing in a more clipped way, using little voice. In these instances, the musicians really keep things feeling filled-out; their work is so much more than "accompaniment." Charmaine Clamor will spend her Valentine's Day singing in Long Beach, California, at the Seabird Jazz Lounge. Looking at this CD when I received it in the mail, it was the standards that caught my eye, but these Filipino songs that caught my ear. In any language, romantic is romantic.

by the music reviewer, for Talkin' Broadway, February 14, 2008

February 06, 2008

"Excellent Form" from Scott Yanow with Jazziz

Singer Charmaine Clamor seeks to combine aspects of her Filipino heritage (she lived in the Philippines for her first 16 years) with her love for jazz. On "My Funny Brown Pinay," she sings about loving one's brown skin (as opposed to the practice of "whitening up") before launching into "My Funny Valentine" -- the lyrics becoming both ironic and insightful.

The five-part "Filipino Suite" briefly utilizes San Diego's Pakaraguian Kulintang Ensemble and has Clamor singing several songs by Filipino composers in the Bisaya language. The lyrics are translated in the informative liner notes. Veteran ukulele player Abe Lagrimas, Jr. makes a couple of very charming guest appearances during this medley.

Clamor has a warm voice and is coolly emotional and flexible enough to perform a variety of material. The other selections include a romantic "I Hadn't Anyone 'til You," a sensuous and witty "Candy," U2's "with or Without You," a surprisingly sensitive version of "Be My Love," "I Need a Lot of Love" (during which she interacts with an impressive singer, Mr.Z), and the old-time "Sugar in My Bowl."

Based in Los Angeles, Clamor is in excellent form throughout this recording, assisted by a top-notch rythm section that includes pianist Christian Jacob. With any luck, she'll have a productive career and her name will reach beyond Los Angeles and the Philippines to many points in between.

by Scott Yanow, for Jazziz, February 06, 2008

January 31, 2008

"Clamoring for the Best Miri Jazz Festival," from Rajiri Clemfour with Borneo Post

KUCHING: Singer Charmaine Clamor whose vocals have been compared to jazz greats like Sarah Vaughan and Anita Baker, will be performing at the Miri International Jazz Festival from May 9 to 10.

US-based Clamor is also the first Filipina jazz singer to find success on American radio with her debut album entitled ‘Searching for the Soul’ released in 2005.

Coming from a musically talented family, Clamor began singing at the tender age of three.

Back then, her stage was the bus which she travelled between her hometown of Subic-Zambales and Manila regularly.

Her experience entertaining the bus passengers somehow shaped her into becoming an accomplished singer.

She has also made full use of her talent to try new things like ‘mixing’ American jazz with blues, soul and traditional Filipino folk music.

The end result is a new music genre which she has fondly called jazzipino.

She experimented with jazzipino in her second album called ‘Flippin Out’ which was released last year.

The album was well-received by jazz music lovers in US.

Talent aside, Clamor also holds a master degree in physical therapy and is a licensed physical therapist.

With two albums to her credit and her warm, luscious and sultry alto voice, Clamor is set to woo the crowd in Miri.

The other bands that will also take to the stage at the jazz festival are Habana Sax from Cuba, Rumba Calzada (Canada), Mood Indigo (USA), Diamond Dave and the Doodaddies (Australia), Oma Sound (Japan), Borneo Jazz Quartet (Sarawak) and Amar Sundy (Algeria).

Habanax Sax is making a come-back to the festival as the band was voted the crowd favourite at last year’s jazz festival.

A jazz street band from Holland will also perform around the festival ground.

The presence of 16-piece D’Iventielke will add more colours to the fiesta.

Organised by Sarawak Tourism Board (STB), the festival will be held at the Parkcity Everly Hotel in Miri.

STB is targeting to attract 6,000 people to this year’s festival.

Last year more than 4,000 guests came for the two-night show.

Looking at the steady increase in the crowd turn-out, MIJF is set to become an icon for Miri and in line with STB’s aim of boosting the city’s tourism industry via events and festivals.

Parkcity’s management has also voiced its plan to expand the Pavilion where the main stage is located, to provide more room for the increasing number of audiences.

Ticket to the festival is priced at RM60 per person per night and RM30 per child between three and 12 years old.

They are available online at www.TicketCharge.com.my.

Apart from enjoying the good music, guests can also savour the wide variety of food and beverages at the stalls set up in and around the festival venue.

For further enquiries, contact the Visitors’ Information Centre at Lot 452, Jalan Melayu in Miri (tel: 60 85 434181, fax: 60 85 434179) or log on to www.Mirijazzfestival.com.

by Rajiri Clemfour, for Borneo Post, January 31, 2008

January 09, 2008

"A Dynamic New Compass Point in World Music" from Christopher Loudon with Jazz Times

That Filipino-American singer Charmaine Clamor is as drop-dead gorgeous as Nancy Wilson or Lena Horne is a nice bonus, but is beside the point. What really matters is that Clamor vocally resembles an amalgam of Wilson and Horne, a sumptuously elegant blend of silk and satin, trimmed with gutsy self-possession. It’s a sound that generated plenty of attention when, three years ago, she served up a delectable assortment of standards on her debut disc, Searching for the Soul. Now, with the release of Flippin’ Out, Clamor has moved a giant step forward, crafting an entirely new musical form; a hybrid of American jazz and Filipino folk music dubbed “jazzipino” (a term the album’s title anagrammatically toys with). Working alongside Tierney Sutton’s top-drawer trio—pianist Christian Jacob, bassist Trey Harris and drummer Ray Brinker—Clamor the inventive torch-bearer is still present with a rich, creamy cover of “I Hadn’t Anyone ’Til You,” a playfully sensuous “Candy” and a fresh take on “Sugar In My Bowl” that’s more hard toffee than honey-dipped. She also has terrific fun with guest guitarist and percussionist Zaxariades on his delightfully buoyant “I Need a Lot of Love,” and bows to the classic American pop she was raised on with a brooding treatment of the Mario Lanza chestnut “Be My Love.” But, getting to the jazzipino point, Clamor opens with a clever paean to self-worth by reinventing Rodgers and Hart’s “My Funny Valentine” as “My Funny Brown Pinay,” mixing English and Tagalog lyrics. Then, singing in Tagalog and Bisayan while augmenting the trio with the Pakaraguian Kulintang Ensemble (a traditional Filipino assemblage of gongs and tribal gongs) and Abe Lagrimas Jr.’s ukulele, she fills the disc’s center with a five-part “Filipino Suite” comprised of one harana (a Filipino courtship song), a Filipino lullaby, and three examples of kundiman (the Filipino equivalent of an American torch song). In doing so, Clamor establishes herself as a dynamic new compass point in world music.

by Christopher Loudon, for Jazz Times, January 09, 2008

January 03, 2008

"Tagalog Jazz" from George Varga with San Diego Union-Tribune

A gifted singer who performs in both English and Tagalog, Charmaine Clamor doesn't lack for ambition. She is at the forefront of a musical hybrid she dubs "Jazzipino," which deftly combines mainstream jazz and svelte blues with the traditional Filipino music of her homeland. This unlikely but fetching synthesis is highlighted on her impressive second album, "Flippin Out." So prepare to be dazzled in at least two languages when she and her band perform.

by George Varga, for San Diego Union-Tribune, January 03, 2008

January 02, 2008

"Uncommonly Unique" from the Jazz Reviewer with In Tune International

Another first for me. Charmaine Clamor is a Philippines-born singer with very little accent of any kind. A five-song "Filipino Suite" suplements her carefully chosen programme of seven songs. Ms. Clamor embellishes each song with something uncommonly unique, making a most lasting impression. For example, "My Funny Valentine" (Rodgers/Hart) becomes the blues song "My Funny Brown Pinay." Charmaine outdoes everyone with her dramatic inventiveness in both English and her native language. This familiar standard become just one of many glorious surprises awaiting you. Ray Noble's classic "I Hadn't Anyone 'til You" is slowly and softly vocally cooed. When I first heard this song in a 1950s Bogart film called "In a Lonely Place," I never thought that it would have such a long creative life. The grand movie song "Be My Love" (Brodszky/Cahn) from "The Toast of New Orleans" is smartly sung. Charmaine quietly starts to undersing this remembered evergreen but mid-song in her native language exhibits a most gracious departure to a striking conclusion. Not to be neglected is "Candy" (David/Kramer/Whitney). It's sung for all it's worth in a triple-x rated way. Charmaine midway sensually scats while I stand by with a fire extinguisher facing my player. I never realized until now just what might lie behind some of the most popular songs I grew up with.

by the Jazz Reviewer, for In Tune International, January 02, 2008

December 26, 2007

"Pick of the Week" from Christopher DeLaurenti with The Seattle Stranger

This singer brings her languid phrasing and captivating, dusky alto to jazz standards. I like her cover of "With or Without You," which brings U2's plangent melody back to the blues. Pianist Victor Noriega, whose 2006 disc, Alay, eloquently transmutes Filipino folk songs into jazz, leads Clamor's backing quartet.

by Christopher DeLaurenti, for The Seattle Stranger, December 26, 2007

December 10, 2007

"Putting the Zing in That Swing" from Don Heckman with LA TIMES

Charmaine Clamor and others get into the groove, Filipino-style, at the Fil-Am Festival.

By Don Heckman, Special to The Times December 10, 2007

There weren't a lot of familiar names in the lineup Friday for the third annual Fil-Am Jazz Festival at Catalina Bar & Grill. At least not for anyone in the audience who wasn't Philippine. Although singer Charmaine Clamor has begun to get some much-deserved attention as an appealing new arrival, many of the other artists are best known in their native Philippines.

But surprise! The program was a delight, a nonstop string of first-rate performances testifying to the high quality of Philippine musical talent as well as to the global reach of jazz.

Pianist Tateng Katindig, Philippine-born but an active Southland player since he moved to Los Angeles in the early '90s, opened the evening with a rhapsodic take on the standard "A Beautiful Friendship" before digging into an up-tempo romp through a group of imaginative variations on "Caravan."

Far less known in this country, singer Mon David was the winner in 2006 of the first London International Jazz Competition for Vocalists. His set, ranging from a stunningly improvisatory reading of "Footprints" to the grooving lyricism of "I Remember You" was the stuff of world-class vocalizing. At a time of real paucity in top-ranked male jazz singers, David showed the potential for a significant breakout.

The same can be said for guitarist Johnny Alegre, whose pair of original tunes -- "Offering" and "Barnabas" -- managed to invigorate his inventive lines with Pat Metheny-like drive and a sound reminiscent of Gabor Szabo.

Alto saxophonist Julius Tolentino took a different tack, roving across jazz history, including the bebop licks of a Charlie Parker-inspired "I Can't Get Started" and the honking, bar-walking-style "Jacob's Bounce."

A pair of pianists followed. Veteran pianist-composer Toti Fuentes, joking with the crowd and looking hearty after recovery from cancer, played a gorgeously lyrical rendering of "Alfie." Victor Noriega's "Pandangguhan," a take on a traditional Philippine folk song, blended fiery virtuosity with irresistible swing.

The evening's most remarkable set was provided by the versatile Abe Lagrimas. After playing sturdy drums to back the other acts, he took center stage, playing a harmonically lush version of "The Nearness of You" before demonstrating the ukulele's jazz possibilities with his own swinging "Centipede."

Clamor, wrapping up the impressive program, offered a pair of numbers celebrating the roots of the evening: an incisive transformation of "My Funny Valentine," titled "My Funny Brown Pinay," followed by the proudly declamatory "Ako Ay Pilipino" (I Am a Filipino).

by Don Heckman, for LA TIMES, December 10, 2007

December 05, 2007

"Pacific Heights" from Brick Wahl with LA Weekly

The Filipino Jazz Festival happens again this weekend — Friday, Saturday, Sunday — at the Catalina Bar & Grill. Headlining this year is “Jazzipino” (who came up with that?) singing sensation Charmaine Clamor, whose way hiply titled Flippin’ Out blends some well-done standards and some interpretations of traditional tunes from the Philippines sung in a beautiful, jazzy Tagalog. She’s very effective live too, long and sultry and classic. Also on the bill are ukulele/vibes/drums ace Abe Legrimas (and hearing Bird on the uke is a trip), jazz vocalists Mon David and Arthur Manuntag, both from Manila; Chicago pianist Toti Fuentes; the young Seattle-based pianist Victor Noriega and young NYC alto saxist Julius Tolentino, both of whom have been making a splash; and our own Tateng Katindig, who plays some beautiful and hard swinging jazz piano. This celebratory event is a hit every year, so call for reservations.

by Brick Wahl, for LA Weekly, December 05, 2007

November 28, 2007

"A Four-Star Masterpiece" from the Music Editor with Davis (California) Enterprise

Charmaine Clamor was born in the Philippines and came to the United States when she was 16. Her first tongue was Tagalog, the national language of the Philippines, but she's totally fluent in English; she was the valedictorian of her high school class in Los Angeles.

She earned a Master's degree in Physical Therapy, but music is her life...and has been since she was 3 years old. She sing beautifully in both languages, and adds Bisayan (another dialect) for good measure.

Her backup group here are composed of Filipino artists on alto sax, guitar, and --- I kid you not -- ukulele. The musicians are as modern and appealing as any we hear in the States today.

The important news: Clamor can sing anything. Her ballads are exquisite; her mid-tempo tunes really swing; her blues will light your fire. Her voice is warm and sultry, her phrasing total perfection. Half the tunes here are standards, like "Candy," "Be My Love," and "My Funny Valentine"; the latter's poignant lyrics have been modified for her Pinay sisters.

This lady has the talent to be a major star. I hope she has the management team to make that happen.

by the Music Editor, for Davis (California) Enterprise, November 28, 2007

November 27, 2007

"Flippin' Way Out for Jazzipino" from Karl Stober with Jazz Review

Filipino native Charmaine Clamor is making an impact wherever she performs, quickly finding her name on numerous marquees across the globe. Wherever this young and sultry jazz siren blankets her voice, heads turn to embrace her signature elegance. Ms Clamor not only vocalizes emotions, she sculpts memories with her hypnotic presence in sync with her sensual injection of jazz melodies.

The jazz scribes portray her from the Filipino Sarah Vaughan to the bridge that bonds two cultures; the truth is Ms Clamor is on a stage… by herself. The innovative arrangements, sundry melodies, and metamorphosis of two musical traditions only can be portrayed as stunningly ingenious.

In 2005, this charming young woman crossed the threshold of jazz with the passionate self-debut of “Searching for the Soul,” and two years out, the critically acknowledged second album, "Flippin’ Out" (2007), which integrated the heartbeat and swing of American jazz. No doubt more is to come, but from what direction, we will have to wait, for the passion that drives the force of Ms Charmaine Clamor is not just a passing juncture. Ms Clamor is a stunning entertainer with a mission and message to deliver. Jazz was blessed the day this vocalist's microphone went hot!

As we spent time, she spoke about her heritage and how it factored into her writing and technique. Ms. Clamor addressed the American and Filipino cultures and how they both transformed into what we know today as "Jazzipino."

Recently named one of the 100 Most Influential Filipino Women in the United States by The Filipino Women’s Network, one understands the impact she has had, not just in music, but socially worldwide. There is so much more to this young artist as you will discover when you go between sets with Charmaine Clamor.

JazzReview: Much of your music is based on your passion of your heritage. With that thought on the table, talk to us about your life within the Filipino culture and how it has effected your craft.

Charmaine Clamor: America is my home. The Philippines is my homeland. That's why I wear a necklace with both flags on my album cover. Everything I do as an American is informed by the memories of my birth country.

JazzReview: What keeps drawing you back to that connection of Kundiman and Harana style within your music?

Charmaine Clamor: My parents exposed me to beautiful music early on: opera, jazz, the Great American Songbook, Kundiman and Harana. Kundiman and Harana are analogous to the Great American Songbook. They're our classic music, with elegant lyrics and timeless melodies.

JazzReview: Can you describe both for us?

Charmaine Clamor: Kundiman is a Filipino torch song and Harana is a serenade song. They're both unashamedly sentimental. If done insincerely, some might find them corny. If done sincerely, they're deeply moving -- just like our very best songs by Porter, Gershwin and Kern. The Harana is a beautiful, old-fashioned tradition. In the golden days of the Philippines, before text messaging was born, when a young man fancied a Filipina, he would go to her house at night with a guitar and serenade her with a “Harana” song underneath her window. If the lady liked what she heard, the windows would magically open. If she didn't, the windows stayed shut all night. So you've got to sing it right.

JazzReview: You're quoted as stating that “Jazzipino is the new musical genre that results from melding traditional Filipino folk songs and instruments with American jazz and blues.” Describe the origin of this concept and how you integrate the two. In other words, take a song and go from start to finish within your process.

Charmaine Clamor: It's been a lifelong dream to share the music of my birth country, the Philippines, to a wider audience. After my first record, "Searching for the Soul," it was an organic move to record my Filipino music and the idiom that I chose to do it. "Jazzipino" stems from my love for both jazz and traditional Filipino music. I simply took some of the most beloved songs of my childhood and rounded off the "squareness" and made them swing.

JazzReview: Are there other tunes that you have not recorded that would embrace the “Jazzipino” flavor?

Charmaine Clamor: Yes, there are a lot more beautiful Jazzipino songs coming your way that I will be recording in the near future. In fact, I already started the process.

JazzReview: It can be said that your voice could melt the most complex of moods. It brings moments to life just by the approach you surrender to your audience. At what time in your life did you discover the true style of Charmaine?

Charmaine Clamor: Not until recently. Any singer will admit that in her earlier artistic life, she attempted to imitate her musical muses. I did this as well. Thanks to positive audience reaction throughout the years of performing live, I was given affirmation of the unique sound that I have – contralto with dark, rich, sultry tones. More importantly, I give myself pleasure when I hear this unique sound coming from my voice. The combination of the two helped develop the Charmaine sound.

JazzReview: There can be an epiphany in our lives which sometimes changes our career path. What was it and when did you move from physical therapy to jazz?

Charmaine Clamor: I decided to jump off the cliff, quit as a full time physical therapist, and pursue a career in music when I just could not deny the hunger I had in me to perform. People always claim to embrace "carpe diem," but few of us actually seize the day.

JazzReview: Your first project was “Searching for the Soul” and now jazz celebrates “Flippin Out.” How do the two differ? What did you discover recording the first that brought you greater insight in recording the current one?

Charmaine Clamor: “Searching for the Soul” is about the journey I experienced in finding out which direction I should go artistically, and what it is that I need to communicate to my audience. “Flippin’ Out” is the continuation of this journey, expressing to my audience who I am and what my music is about. What I learned from recording my first album is that you should really find in yourself what makes you unique, what your special ingredient is and throw it in the pot!

JazzReview:What did you like best about recording “Searching for the Soul” and on that note the same for “Flippin Out.”

Charmaine Clamor: With "Searching for the Soul" I enjoyed recording with the talented musicians on the album live in this big recording studio. That was fun. I liked learning about the process of recording. With “Flippin’ Out” I had the pleasure of working with such brilliant musicians, including my idols, Christian Jacob, Ray Brinker and Trey Henry. In addition, I love that I was able to record with my Pinoy brothers and the kulintang ensemble! For both recordings, I like that I was able to record songs by Mr. Z. Recording “Flippin’Out” was just a special experience for me because of the uniqueness of the material and the concept of the album.

JazzReview: You have been characterized as Sarah Vaughan among others. That aside how would Charmaine describe herself in style, performance, and lastly in her philosophies both in art and life?

Charmaine Clamor: My musical muses hail from different genres and different cultures. My life experience as an only child raised by beautiful parents, and growing up in America as a Filipino immigrant all contribute to the sound and style that is uniquely mine. My performance and life philosophy is simple: Tell the truth.

JazzReview: Your climb up the proverbial jazz ladder has been faster than most one would say. What do you attribute that to? Why do feel the Jazzipino was accepted like it was with the public?

Charmaine Clamor: I attribute it to the tremendous support of my family and friends, the fabulous Charmaine Team put together by FreeHam Records, my fierce dedication to spread my music to a wider audience, and the openness of the music community for something different. I believe Jazzipino was given such positive reception because jazz has always been the immigrant’s music. Everyone has something to contribute to the pot.

The fans of this music have a taste for different ingredients, so long as they're tasty! Our Kundiman and Harana have such beautiful melodies and timeless lyrics. If you meld them with the swing and soul of American jazz then they become irresistible.

JazzReview: Now let’s proceed to “Flippin Out,” which has made the jazz populace and by the reaction of the charts, take serious notice. Take us through the development both in the selection of it tunes and the arrangements involved in creating the sound.

Charmaine Clamor: I selected songs that spoke to me, that brought back powerful memories or evoked strong emotions. The arrangements evolved through the genius of the trio, with some input from the chick singer. For example, on "With or Without You," the U2 song, I suggested we do it in a way that emphasized the loneliness, the solitude of the lyrics. Something completely different than the original pop version. Within minutes, right there in my living room, Trey and Ray came up with the incredible groove that appears on the album.

JazzReview: I have to ask about “My Funny Brown Pinay,” which is a retransformation effort one would say. Your effect on this Rodgers and Hart original “My Funny Valentine” piece was a success and sent a very strong message back home. Give us your opinion on this production.

Charmaine Clamor: It's an anthem of pride. I was raised in a culture that is in many ways still feeling the effects of colonial occupation. The key phrase -- "Don't change your hair for me, stay" -- summed up my feelings about my Filipina sisters. You know, it wasn't until I came to America that anyone thought I was attractive, because in the Philippines, everyone is trying to erase their brown skin with lightening creams and soaps. I would pinch the bridge of my flat nose to try and make it pointy. I'm hoping this song -- and my life -- can be an example to women back home: "Maganda ka -- you are beautiful!"

JazzReview: The arrangement of “Candy” just took the mood of the spin to a new level. Was the swing piece difficult to arrange? What impact did saxophonist Julius Tolentino have on the outcome?

Charmaine Clamor: It was effortless. The cats on this record just swing so hard, everything came together magically. And my man Julius can't help himself. He can blaze, he can imply, he can comment, and I love his solo on this song.

JazzReview: The Filipino culture is wonderfully represented in your five-cut production called “Filipino Suite.” First talk about the musicians that accompanied you on this effort.

Charmaine Clamor: They're a mix of Americans and Filipinos, and they all understand how to meet at the intersection of two cultures. My guitarist, Ric Ickard, and ukulele player, Abe Lagrimas (who actually plays drums in my touring band), are Filipinos so they understand the historical context of the music. And my percussionist, Gustavo Garcia, from Veracruz -- he's our "Mexipino" -- puts the Latin spice on it.

JazzReview: In the first piece of the suite you go from “Panahon Na,” which segues from a chant to a sultry ballad called “Hindi Kita Malimot,” a stunning change of moods. How did you come about performing and arranging this piece?

Charmaine Clamor: Panahon Na means "Now is the time." It has two meanings: It is now the time for Filipino music, language and instruments to have a wider audience. And now is the time for the Filipino songs to start on Flippin’ Out. I wanted an abrupt transition to Hindi Kita Malimot, which is a very popular Kundiman, as a sweet treat for my Kababayans (my people). On live performances, I usually get a scream from Filipinos because it is so unexpected.

JazzReview: The love song “Usahay” is such an angelic journey of devotion. You say you first heard it sung in Bisaya in Cebu City. Tell us if you will how this song became part of “Flippin Out” and was it difficult for you to perform?

Charmaine Clamor: I first heard “Usahay’ during my last visit to the Philippines in Cebu City, being sung in a guitar factory I was visiting. This song is in Bisaya that is one of the many dialects in the Philippines, which is also my father’s native tongue. I decided to include this beautiful piece to pay tribute to my amazing father who taught me how to pronounce the words and taught me its meaning.

JazzReview: On the flip side, you seem to be having fun on the spin “I Need A Lot of Love” which is a fiercely heated ride for the listener. What was it like in studio during the recording of this spin?

Charmaine Clamor: Mr. Z, my FreeHam Records colleague, composer of this song and guest vocalist, had so much fun recording this tune. We were dancing in the studio!

JazzReview: When performing live do you stick to the studio version or does it become a more animated presentation?

Charmaine Clamor: We definitely liven up this number up for live performances. It becomes a party.

JazzReview: What was the most difficult part of putting this project together?

Charmaine Clamor: Since we feature many Filipino artists from different parts of the U.S., the hardest part was arranging the recording schedule. Making the music was easy and fun.

JazzReview: If there any element of your craft you would like to get more involved with?

Charmaine Clamor: I took classical piano training as a child and I would like to learn someday to be able to accompany myself. I also would like to be a better composer and arranger, enough that I could record a whole album with my original compositions.

JazzReview: After being part of the music industry and two discs out thus far, what is your opinion of the business and what would you like to see changed?

Charmaine Clamor: I'll say this: It's no place for the faint of heart. Nothing could be harder.

JazzReview: What is next for Charmaine and have you thought of your next spin?

Charmaine Clamor: I have two projects in the works. The first one is a Harana album, which will contain Harana songs from different regions in the Philippines and will be in different dialects. The second one is a straight-ahead jazz album with arrangements by me and my band, and some original compositions from my colleagues here in L.A.

JazzReview: Now for something completely different! If you were contracted to do a CD with 10 cuts on it with 10 different artists from the past in Jazzipino, who would they be and what song would you do?

Charmaine Clamor: Oh, what a fun question. Okay….

1. Sarah Vaughan -- Dahil Sa ' Yo (Because of You)

2. Shirley Horn – Sa Ugoy ng Duyan (Rocking of the Cradle)

3. Betty Carter – Manang Biday (Miss Biday)

4. Ella Fitzgerald & Louis Armstrong – Lahat ng Araw (All of My Days)

5. Frank Sinatra – Hindi Kita Malimot (I Can't Forget You)

6. Charlie Parker – Maalaala Mo Kaya (Could You Still Remember)

7. Nina Simone – Dandansoy (name of a boy)

8. Billie Holiday – Minamahal Kita (I'll Be Loving You)

9. Antonio Carlos Jobim -- Ikaw (You)

10. Duke Ellington -- Sarungbanggi (Isang Gabing Maliwanag)

Karl Stober is a freelance critic and journalist internationally. If you wish to contact him for a project or interview please email jazztrenzz@gmail.com

by Karl Stober, for Jazz Review, November 27, 2007

October 29, 2007

Fil-Am Library's '7th Spirit Awards' from Albert Bataclan with Weekend Balita

IN its tradition of honoring the champions of the Filipino American community, The Filipino American Library hosted the “7th Annual Sprits Awards and Dinner Benefit Gala” in the Crystal Ballroom of the Millennium Biltmore Hotel on Saturday, October 20, in Los Angeles.

Cheryl Burke, two-time champion of ABC’s hit show “Dancing With The Stars,” received this years "Role Model Award." She graciously accepted the award and thanked her all her kababayans for all support and love she has received. She also praised her parents for instilling in her the value of hard work and dedication which she helped her earn the success she has achieved. Marc Dacascos, popularly known as the Chairman on the Food Channel’s top-rating show “Iron Chef America,” presented the award to Cheryl Burke. He jokingly began his presentation of the award by uttering his character’s famous line “And tonight’s secret ingredient is…” which generated applause from members of the audience.

In an interview with BALITA, he said, “I grew up in Germany and have lived in the U.S. most of my life. It’s only now…especially tonight, that I am able to reconnect to my own Filipino heritage.” He also said that he is excited to attend more Filipino American events in the future.

The other Role Model awardee of the evening was "MY13News" and "FOX 11" news anchor Maria Quiban. A prominent community leader and a vocal supporter of Filipino American causes in Los Angeles, she offered her award to her son and her family whom she said stood by her throughout her career. She also praised her fellow kama’aina (fellow Hawaiian), Miss America 2001 Angela Perez Baraquio, who presented her with the award. Congressman Xavier Becerra of California’s 31st District received this years "Public Service Award" from past recipient Warren Furatani, former board president of the Los Angeles Unified School Districts. Bacerra co-sponsored H.R. 760: Filipino Veterans Equity Act of 2007 allowing more programs and benefits to be received by Filipino Veterans of World War II. Jannelle So, host of the popular L.A. 18 show “Kababayan L.A.,” received this year’s "Community Building Journalism Award." In her acceptance speech, So recounted the struggles she faced as an immigrant media practitioner in Los Angeles and how she overcame them the past three years. She attributed her award and success to faith, family and community, which she equally gives importance and gratitude to.

The other awardee of the evening was FilAm ARTS for Community Service for their tireless commitment in staging the Festival of Pilipino Arts and Culture (FPAC) for the last 16 years and their establishment of the Pilipino Artist Network and Eskuwela Kultura.

Bank of America also received this year’s Corporate Philanthropy award for their contribution of over $300 million over the past few years to promote healthier communities through the Bank of America Charitable Foundation. Unforgettable performances

The line-up of performers at this year’s gala sang songs from Broadway, as well as from the beaches of Rio de Janeiro. Singer Dessa began her set with “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now,” the Celine Dion hit. She followed that by her haunting rendition of “Saan Ka Man Naroroon,” which was followed by her medley of R&B hits. Angelo “Gelo” Francisco, of the popular a capella trio “Three of a Kind,” the only male singer of the evening, sang a medley of Broadway tunes and graced the audience with the Spanish bolero classic, “Eres Tu.” Joni Feliciano, the Aliw award-winning singer, who has recently moved to Los Angeles, offered bossa nova classics from Jobim and the classic, “Like a Lover”.

But the evening belonged to Charmaine Clamor, the “Jazzipino” purveyor and singer. Fronting a 4 piece live band, Charmaine sang “My Funny Brown Pinay,” her version of the classic American pop song “My Funny Valentine” as well as the popular Philippine kundiman, “Hindi Kita Malimot.”

Thanks and adieu “What really made this year’s gala truly special was our tribute to Mr. Fritz Friedman,” said John Mina, President of the Board of the Filipino American Library. Friedman was awarded a plaque of appreciation for his years of committed service and dedication to the organization.

It was a surprise tribute which featured a witty video presentation of his speeches and appearances from past celebrations. Ted Benito, the director and co-producer of the galas for the past seven years, was also commended for his work and dedication that evening. In an interview with BALITA, he said, “It’s been a pleasure, honor and privilege to have produced and directed all of the library galas for the past seven years. But it’s time to move on and pass the baton to the next generation of producer and directors who will continue to uphold the mission and goals of the library.”

by Albert Bataclan, for Weekend Balita, October 29, 2007

October 24, 2007

"Something Really Different in Jazz Vocals" from Michael P. Gladstone with All About Jazz

Want to try something really different in jazz vocals? Step into the world of Charmaine Clamor, native of the Philippines, who refers to her music as “jazzpino” and whose primary languages are Tagalog and Bisayan. Clamor is supported by singer Tierney Sutton's long-time trio--pianist Christian Jacob; bassist Trey Henry and drummer Ray Brinker--as well as New York saxman Julius Tolentino and a host of others.

Flippin' Out presents songs in English from the Great American Songbook, which bookend the centerpiece of the album--the ambitious “Filipino Suite,” consisting of five segments sung in Tagalog or Bisayan by Clamor, who fuses American jazz trio music with the indigenous sound of her native languages. The suite confirms her ability to sing effectively in these languages as well as English (Clamor graduated from her Los Angeles high school as valedictorian and now holds a Master's Degree). The “Filipino Suite” is a series of five soothing ballads in which the vocals are supported by guitarist Richard Ickard and the stringed instruments of Kulintang, a percussion ensemble. Were the origin of language not identified in the liner notes, it would easy to imagine this suite being performed in a late night lounge in Honolulu, Bombay or Karachi.

Clamor's approach, as well as appearance, suggests a similarity to the way that singer Julie London enthralled an audience with both her breathy, sensual vocals and her photogenic presence. While there is little physical or vocal similarity between these two singers, they both beckon listeners to the boudoir door, with Clamor using a distinct approach via the back door entrance. Clamor reports that her style was influenced by pointers from her friend and mentor, the big-voiced Linda Hopkins.

While English may be a secondary language here, Clamor knows quite a bit about jazz shading, and her version of the opening “My Funny Valentine,” here morphed into “My Funny Brown Pinay,” sets the stage with a funky setting. Her renditions of Kramer/David/Whitney’s “Candy,” a tune usually sung at mid- or up-tempo, as well as the blues-drenched “Sugar in My Bowl,” are slowed down to a crawl, allowing listeners to observe how time stands still. Ray Noble’s “I Hadn't Anyone Till You” and Mario Lanza-associated “Be My Love” are given dramatic readings.

by Michael P. Gladstone, for All About Jazz, October 24, 2007

October 13, 2007

Vocalist Charmaine Clamor Named One of America’s Most Influential Filipino Women, from Roxana Hadadi with Jazz Times

Vocalist Charmaine Clamor, the creator of “jazzipino,” was named one of the 100 Most Influential Women in the United States by the Filipino Women’s Network last week.

Clamor—who falls under the category of “Innovators and Thought Leaders” in the list—is being recognized for having “broken new ground through vibrant, energetic presentations of critical ideas, transforming the way people think in the fields of sports, arts and letters, performing arts or through pop culture.”

The vocalist’s contribution to the jazz world comes in the form “jazzipino,” a musical form that combines the American soul and swing genres with the melodies and language of the Philippines. Clamor’s album “Flippin’ Out” exhibited the new musical form and was sung in English, Tagalog and Bisayan.

Clamor is also the co-founder of the nonprofit organization JazzPhil-USA. She will accept her award in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 25 at the Filipina Women’s Network 5th Annual Filipina Summit.

For more information on Clamor, charmaineclamor.com.

by Roxana Hadadi, for Jazz Times, October 13, 2007

September 17, 2007

"Live Review: CHARMAINE CLAMOR @ IRIDIUM," from Lucy Galliher with Cabaret Exchange

On September 12, 2007, the young and talented Filipino-born singer Charmaine Clamor celebrated the release of her new CD, Flippin’ Out at the Iridium Jazz Club in midtown Manhattan. Featured with her were pianist Jeb Patton, bassist Mike Karn, drummer McClenty Hunter and alto saxophonist Julius Tolentino, who also played on Clamor’s CD.

Charmaine Clamor looked beautiful in a long sleeveless brown dress, and sang with pure, pleasing, solid notes. The set opened with “My Funny Brown Pinay,” which is Rodgers and Hart’s tune “My Funny Valentine,” with original lyrics by Charmaine. Jeb Patton served as musical director, having had a lot of experience playing with the Heath Brothers. He directed the band to establish a jumpy rhythm to start, solidifying it into a smooth swing.

“With or Without You” is the Irish rock band U2’s song, arranged for Charmaine with a repeated bassline, brushes for the drums, and no piano. The funky bassline was a perfect foil for Charmaine’s emotions, and the audience got to experience the professionalism of these musicians.

Charmaine brought up Julius on alto sax to play on the selection, “Candy.” One could sense that Julius’ love for the sax began with Charlie Parker - his solos rang out with double-time embellishments around the simple melody.

“I Will Never Forget You” and “I’ll be Loving You” were both Filipino songs that were Jazzed-up by Clamor. The former had a percussive intro that Charmaine scatted over, getting the band to do a bit of call and response. The latter tune was a waltz that both Julius and Jeb tore into with modernized changes. Charmaine mixed in her native language of Tagalog with English, making for an interesting combination that she nicknamed “Jazzipino.”

Ellington’s “It Don’t Mean a Thing” was my favorite song of the set. Hunter set up a groove on the drums, and put a fire under the soloists. Charmaine’s choice of notes and her natural sense of swing made this tune a rousing success.

Charmaine invited her husband, Michael Konik up to sing with her on the numbers, “Stars fell on Alabama” and “Route 66.” Michael and Charmaine met through a vocal harmony ensemble called “Crescendo,” and had only been married for 72 hours at the time of this gig! Everybody shared in their good fortune, and a bottle of champagne was brought onstage for the happy couple.

by Lucy Galliher, for Cabaret Exchange, September 17, 2007

September 16, 2007

"Chanteuse Embraces Two Worlds," from Robert Young with Boston Herald

Maybe it was the Ella Fitzgerald, Tony Bennett and Mario Lanza albums Charmaine Clamor heard at home as a young girl. Or maybe it was the traditional love songs of her native Philippines she sang as a child. Or just maybe it was the American pop she belted out at weddings or along with the karaoke machine.

Whatever it was, Filipino-American singer Clamor - who makes her Boston debut tomorrow at the new Beehive in the South End - has turned her unique cultural and musical upbringing into a jazz-meets-world music style she calls jazzipino.

“After my parents and I migrated to the United States, I embraced everything about the culture of America,” Clamor said, “its food and definitely its music.”

That’s obvious from how the Great American Songbook influences some of the material on her new CD, “Flippin’ Out.” What’s just as obvious is how the singer proudly struts her Filipino roots.

“When I was creating the album, I wasn’t very concerned about whether or not I was staying in the jazz world,” said Clamor, who was raised five hours north of Manila in the small town of Subic-Zambales before emigrating to California in the early ’90s.

“Flippin’ Out,” the singer’s third album, features Clamor’s burnished contralto on straight readings of several jazz tunes with occasional Filipino lyrics. She also delivers a surprising cover of U2’s “With or Without You,” supported by vocalist Tierney Sutton’s trio.

But there’s also the five-song “Filipino Suite, in which Clamor digs into the sweetly melodic torch songs and ballads known respectively as kundiman and harana.

The real attention-getter, though, is right at the top of the album: “My Funny Brown Pinay.”

Based on “My Funny Valentine,” Clamor’s lyrics are proud and unapologetic. She sings it as a Pinay herself: a Filipina woman who grew up in a country where white skin and pointy noses were considered the ideal.

Thus these lyrics: “Take a look at my skin/It’s brown/Take a look at my nose/It’s flat/I’m singing for all of my sisters growing up/Thinking they don’t look right/’Cause they ain’t white/Scrubbing with papaya soap to make it right/I think you’re all out of sight.”

“(The song) is quite personal for me,” Clamor said. “I’ve been getting e-mails from all over, not just from Filipino women, but from women in general. The lyrics, especially to women of color, are inspiring to them.”

For Clamor, inspiration continues to come from both her native and adopted countries.

“My hope with this album,” she said, “is to fuse my pride in my birth culture as a Filipino with my pride in being an American.”

Mission accomplished.

Charmaine Clamor, at the Beehive, tomorrow. Call 617-423-0069.

by Robert Young, for Boston Herald, September 16, 2007

September 13, 2007

"One of the Finest Singers to Come Around in a Long Time," from Jerry D'Souza with ALL ABOUT JAZZ

Charmaine Clamor spins a web of magic every time she sings. Her expressive voice lets the words breathe and throb as she captures the essence of the lyrics and brings them to life. It matters little whether she is singing jazz, blues, pop, or songs from her native Philippines, she takes each one and makes them her own.

Jazz is central to the theme of Flippin' Out. Her rendition of “I Hadn't Anyone 'Til You” is just stunning. She sets the mood impeccably, drawing from the well of emotion to build a remarkable song of love. Julius Tolentino on alto sax adds to the impact with his warm breathy tone, a charming turn of phrase coming in on a quote of “Mona Lisa.”

Clamor sings in Tagalog and Bisayan, two Filipino languages, on the five-song “Filipino Suite,” which opens with the medley, “Panahon Na/Hindi Kita Malimot.” The first is a lively chant dancing on the kulintang (a row of drums and gongs), with Clamor singing breezily. The mood changes as she slips into “Hindi Kita Malimot,” a torch song lit by her husky voice. The approach has mellowed but the deep grain of feeling is constantly present. The frame is perfect for Clamor, and she continues to kindle the flame on “Usahay” and “Minamahal Kita,” two radiant ballads. The suite closes with the lilting “Dahil Sa’Yo.” Clamor is in her nook, extending the range of her voice and finding fine support from Tolentino. But the most telling mark is the way in which she brings in jazz harmony with her phrasing and through the arrangements.

The band is stripped down to a trio, with Christian Jacob adding some deep blues runs on the piano as Clamor’s huskiness stirs the heat on “Sugar in My Bowl.” She coos, cajoles, taunts, tempts, and is delightfully salacious.

Clamor is one of the finest singers to come around in a long time.

by Jerry D'Souza, for ALL ABOUT JAZZ, September 13, 2007

September 12, 2007

"Practicing Jazzipino," from Zan Stweart with Newark Star-Ledger

Singer Charmaine Clamor, a native of the Philippines who lives in Los Angeles, has developed a new and unique vocal style. She calls it Jazzipino, a style that mixes aspects of jazz and blues with the melodies, languages and instruments of traditional Filipino music.

Clamor has documented this fresh avenue on her just-out "Flippin' Out" CD (FreeHam), and is in our area to celebrate its release.

She appears tonight at 8 and 10 at the Iridium Jazz Club, 1650 Broadway at 51st Street, New York. $25 music charge, $10 minimum. Call (212) 582-2121 or visit www.iridiumjazzclub.com. She also appears Friday and Saturday, 9 p.m.-1:30 a.m., at Cecil's Jazz Club, 364 Valley Road, West Orange. $15 music charge, one-drink minimum. Call (973) 736-4800 or visit www.cecilsjazzclub.com. Sterling Jersey saxophonist Julius Tolentino guests on all performances.

by Zan Stweart, for Newark Star-Ledger, September 12, 2007

September 11, 2007

"Good News from Fil-Am Singer Charmaine Clamor," from Rene Villaroman with Asian Journal

LOS ANGELES -- The good news about FilAm jazz singer Charmaine Clamor is that her second CD, "Flippin' Out", is the first CD by a Filipino to place in the World Music Chart and the traditional Jazz Chart. The bad news is..., well, there is no bad news.

“Two charts in the same month with the same album, and yesterday, August 31, “Flippin’ Out” is the number three CD on the World Chart,” Ted Benito, Charmaine’s manager, told Asian Journal after her sold-out back-to-back concerts on August 31st and September 1st at Catalina Bar & Grill in Hollywood.

“I am just so thrilled and let me just say that this is not possible without my team; Ted Benito, my manager, Freeham Records, everyone else on the team, my supporters; I’m just so thrilled. I am excited. Yeah,” Charmaine said.

“Flippin’ Out” was produced to address a need, says Charmaine. “I didn’t do the album for it to succeed,” she said. “It was a need on my part,” the 35-year-old chanteuse revealed. “It’s always a dream to bring the music of our country, the Philippines, and I have always had this dream that our languages would be enjoyed by the world the way we enjoy Portuguese, French and Italian. Why not Tagalog? Why not Visayan? Why not Ilocano?” she asked. “Our languages are beautiful, and I’m just so happy that the response has been tremendous,” she gushed.

Charmaine sang all the songs in the “Flippin’ Out” album during the Catalina Bar concerts, opening with the CD’s signature “My Funny Brown Pinay”, in which she laid out all the rhymes and reasons behind the creation of a new jazz genre that she had dubbed “Jazzipino”. “Jazzipino is taking the soul of traditional jazz and reinterpreting it in a uniquely Filipino way,” she explains. But Charmaine not only sang it her way, her rendition was an accurate definition of her Filipino-ness. The intro was in Tagalog lyrics that she wrote herself, and buoyed by a scintillating accompaniment of a Kulintang ensemble. Abe Lagrimas, 24, a ukulele player of prodigious talent, provided back up to Charmaine’s take on the kundiman, “Minamahal Kita”. He also played the drums. Christian Jacob’s piano artistry is evident in the entire collection of 12 songs. Trey Henry was cool on bass; and Julius Tolentino’s alto saxophone is inventive and flawless. Richard Ickard’s and Zaxariades’ guitar works are captivating, and the lively Gustavo Garcia shines at percussions. The Pakaraguian Kulintang Ensemble provides an indigenous flavor to the Filipino songs in the collection.

“Look at my nose,” she told the audience, “it is flat; look at my skin, it is brown, my hair is black,” she expressed. Charmaine not only had embraced her ethnicity, she had also divested herself of most Western influences that she had accumulated while growing up in the Philippines. “I’ve spent the first 16 years of life in the Philippines,” she explained.

The reason behind some failed attempts by a few Filipino artists to break into a global market is a tendency to mimic Western performers, say some observers. Thus there are a great number of copy cat performers in the Philippines. But they are addressing just a small market. Lately, however, Filipino artists have begun to embrace their uniqueness and went back to the roots of ancient Filipino music. “Don’t be surprised if you hear a few clangs here and there when my new CD comes out,” Black Eyed Peas member Apl. D. Ap, had told Asian Journal recently. “We’ve recorded some indigenous Filipino musical instruments, including the “kulintang”, Apl. D. Ap. revealed.

“I am covered,” Charmaine noted, before she sang “With or Without You”, a ballad made popular by U2. “I am a Filipino jazz singer about to sing an Irish song, at a concert in Catalina Bar & Grill, a place owned by a bunch of Romanians.”

“Flippin’ Out” has achieved unprecedented worldwide attention because it has the audacity to break out of the Filipino mold, recognizing that Filipino music is inherently beautiful and has the potential to be accepted globally, in the same vein that Filipinos have embraced the indigenous music of Brazilian Sergio Mendez, the Swedish group ABBA, and American jazz pianist and composer David Benoit, to name a few.

“Panahon na,” Charmaine told Asian Journal. “It’s our time. Filipinos are creeping up to the mainstream, not only in music, but in every aspect of the art world, and I’m so thrilled to be a part of it,” she added.

by Rene Villaroman, for Asian Journal, September 11, 2007

September 03, 2007

"Flippin' Out is a Mold-Shattering Breakthrough That Will Be Claimed a Classic," from A. Scott Galloway with Urban Network

I was proud to tell you about this lady two years ago and now even prouder to present her awesome sophomore CD, Flippin' Out. The title is a take off on her Philippine roots but more importantly, the album marks further proof that Clamor will be the first great Filipina jazz singer (she dubs her music "jazzipino"). The seriousness of this lady's gifts is proven on track #1, a "flip" of the standard "My Funny Valentine" (personalized as "My Funny Brown Pinay") that she sings to herself as opposed to a lover, claiming pride in her natural looks and beauty, singing sections in her native tongue, then revisits the chorus at the 5 and a half minute mark with a power that will rock you to your core. Mid-way through the CD is an entrancing six-song suite of songs that explore tender touchstones of her heritage (including work with the Filipino percussion ensemble Kulintang and Hawaiian ukulele master Abe Lagrimas Jr.). She also soars on gems that range from the torch classic "I Hadn't Anyone `Til You" (f/ Julius Tolentino on sax) and a version of "Be My Love" based on a Keith Jarrett piano solo to U2's "With or Without You" then back to the Tin Pan Alley standard "Candy" spiked with an intro lifted from `80s punk band Bow Wow Wow's "I Want Candy!" Kitschy title aside, Flippin' Out is a mold-shattering breakthrough that will be claimed a classic in years to come.

by A. Scott Galloway, for Urban Network, September 03, 2007

September 01, 2007

"Taking Chances," from George Harris with JazzWeekly

On her sophomore release, singer Charmaine Clamor has put out an intriguing concept by mixing the Great American Songbook with the Great Filipino Songbook. Here, backed by Tierney Sutton’s trio of Christian Jacob (p) Trey Henry (b) and Ray Brinker (b), she gives cleverly crafted and arranged takes on the likes of “Candy” and”I Hadn’t Anyone ‘Til You.” From there, Ms. Clamor takes us on a tour of the Filipino mindset, with “My Funny Valentine” being transformed into an island girl. Likewise, the “Filipino Suite” which includes ukuleles, percussion, and various Filipino vocals, is a Quixotic venture, mixing Filipino rhythms and instrumentation that fits more into a travelogue than jazz release. It is a bold move, and since there is nothing for me to compare it to, I cant tell if it is good or bad Filipino music. Her voice is alluring throughout either way. This lady sure takes chances, which is always good for an artist and her audience.

by George Harris, for JazzWeekly, September 01, 2007

August 27, 2007

"Tasty Music!" from Duncan Christy with Delta SKY Magazine

"Tearing up the jazz club scene recently has been Charmaine Clamor (pictured here), whose new recording Flippin' Out (FreeHam) is a fluid nod both to her jazz chops and to her Filipino heritage. It's quite a recording, as she moves effortlessly between the ultrasensuous and the ultrarhythmic, between smoke and fire. One wonders what she'll sing next."

by Duncan Christy, for Delta SKY Magazine, August 27, 2007

August 26, 2007

"Jazz Fans Are Clamoring for Charmaine," from Rene Villaroman with Asian Journal

LOS ANGELES -- FilAm jazz vocalist Charmaine Clamor, who has combined American jazz with indigenous Filipino instruments and the song structure of the traditional kundiman (Filipino torch song) into a fusion called "jazzipino", is set to wow jazz cognoscenti in two back-to-back concerts at Hollywood's Catalina Bar & Grill on August 31st and September 1st.

Ms. Clamor, who was introduced to L.A. jazz fans in the 2nd Filipino American Jazz Festival held at Catalina Bar last year, will release her second CD by Freeham Records entitled Flippin’ Out. One of the songs from this CD, “Minamahal Kita”, has already attained regular airplay on radio station KCRW (L.A.) and music critics from New York to L.A., and from Canada to Australia have predicted that Clamor and Flippin’ Out as the next breakthrough jazz and world music artist.

Clamor’s second CD contains songs like “Candy”, “Be My Love”, “I Hadn’t Anyone ‘Til You”, and a riveting rendition of U2’s “With or Without You”, showcases a new world music genre that Ms. Clamor has dubbed “jazzipino”.

“Her music is a perfect bridge of two cultures, done with passion that can be heard in a voice that should be experienced in every jazz venue across the nation, if not the world,” comments John Book in Music for America. “Clamor is an asset to jazz music, and a contributor to the continued traditions of women in jazz,” Book added.

The Los Angeles Times’ Don Heckman said: “When Charmaine Clamor’s warm, luscious contralto slips into a seductive rhythm or purrs through tender lyrics, there’s no doubt that a first-rate jazz talent is present. Her debut album (Searching for the Soul) announced the arrival of an impressive new vocal artist.”

Charmaine was born in Subic, in Zambales province, Philippines, and started singing at age three, entertaining passengers in buses traveling to Manila—whether the liked it or not. She was raised in a home filled with beautiful kundiman, the traditional Filipino torch song. She was steeped in Ella Fitzgerald and Mario Lanza-- their songs being played constantly on radio and the turntable--Ms. Clamor was simultaneously immersed in two different but complimentary musical cultures. She loved Filipino music and American music equally, and dreamed of one day blending her two passions.

At 16, she and her family immigrated to the United States, and she graduated valedictorian in high school, and subsequently earned a Master’s degree in physical therapy. But music remained her life’s calling.

Flippin’ Out, a groundbreaking albums (out September 1, 2007 at Catalina Bar & Grill in Hollywood, and at Iridium in New York City on September 12th), opens with “My Funny Brown Pinay”, a startling re-invention of the familiar Rodgers & Hart tune, “My Funny Valentine”. Clamor transformed a classic love song into an anthem of native pride. Brought up in a culture that often vainly attempts to mimic its colonial Spanish and American conquerors, she celebrates her brown skin and flat nose, nudging a well-known L.A. writer to jokingly describe Ms. Clamor as “Sarah Vaughn trapped in the body of a supermodel.”

Her timeless performance of “I Hadn’t Anyone ‘til You” is her way of telling her fans that the torch singer they adore isn’t going anywhere. Ms. Clamor is backed by renowned musicians Christian Jacob on piano, Trey Henry on bass, Ray Brinker on drums—and FilAms Julius Tolentino, alto sax, Abe Lagrimas, Jr., ukulele, and Gustavo Garcia, percussion—Richard Ickard, guitar, Zaxariades guitar, percussion, vocals, and Pakaraguian Kulintang Ensemble.

The centerpiece of “Flippin’ Out” is the Filipino Suite, five tracks in Tagalog and Visayan, that features the kulintang, a percussion ensemble of Philippine tribal drums and gongs that have been played for centuries in the Philippines, and the ukulele, played by Hawaii-based prodigy, Abe Lagrimas, Jr., a featured artist in last year’s Fil-Am Jazzfest.

Charmaine concludes her Flippin’ Out CD with the first song she remembers hearing in her childhood home: Mario Lanza’s “Be My Love” in Tagalog and English.

Filipinos are not new to jazz music. This American music genre arrived in the Philippines in late 19th Century and took hold in the 1920’s, during an era of American occupation. Filipinos in and outside of the Philippines would take their love of jazz with them, and while not gaining a headway at the forefront, early Filipino jazz musicians have contributed to jazz’s popularity during the 20th century. During the last 40 years, jazz musicians like Gabe Baltazar, Nohelani Cipriano, Bobby Gonzalez and Matt Catingub have made an impact in this music genre. Even today, in its latest incarnation as “smooth jazz”, Filipinos are slowly gaining acceptance and commercial success, not just in the Philippines but also in America.

by Rene Villaroman, for Asian Journal, August 26, 2007

August 13, 2007

"One of the Most Exciting Performers to Come Around in Years," from Grady Harp, Top 10 Reviewer with Amazon.com

Charmaine Clamor is one of the brightest new stars on the jazz vocalist horizon. She is simply the most gifted, unique performer this listener has encountered in a long time. Not only is her well-trained voice luscious and beautiful in tone and range, but she also knows how to explore the heritages of jazz and her cultural background of the Philippines and marries all this with a sensuous communication that is irresistible.

Clamor mixes old standards such as `My Funny Valentine', `I Hadn't Anyone `Til You', `Candy' and `Be My Love' with some traditional Filipino folk music on this fine album FLIPPIN' OUT (double entendre intended!). The `standards' she imbues with her own brand of soul, substituting some words for Tagalog words, making these renditions purely her own: for instance, My Funny Valentine becomes My Funny Brown Pinay - Clamor's way of trumpeting the importance of her native land and country creating a language she terms `jazzipino'. Now, in some artist's hands these could be corny, but Charmaine Clamor is such a class act and has such enormous talent as both singer and stylist that she makes this work, so much so that she is bound to have imitators soon.

The instrumental backup on this CD is excellent: Christian Jacob, piano, Trey Harris, bass, Ray Brinker, drums, Julius Tolentino, alto sax, Ace Lagrimas, Jr., ukulele, Gustavo Garcia, percussion, Richard Ickard, guitar, Zaxariades, guitar/percussion/vocals, and the Pakaraguian Kulintang Ensemble on the folk songs in the spectacular `Filipino Suite'. The songs from the Filipino Suite will be new to many and they are some of the most beautiful new additions to the international repertoire.

But words fail when attempting to introduce music lovers to the new experience Charmaine Clamor offers here. She is beautiful, gifted, sensitive, seductive, and one of the most exciting performers to come around in years. This CD is a must for all music lovers of all genres. It is simply terrific!

by Grady Harp, Top 10 Reviewer, for Amazon.com, August 13, 2007

August 08, 2007

A "Stupefying and Daring Performance," from Dr. Ana Isabel Ordonez with JazzReview.com

With Flippin' Out singer Charmaine Clamor delivers an awesome musical patchwork of jazz, blues and Filipino folk music. Here you have a winner album filled with a plummy swinging touch and a graceful articulation of Contemporary jazz and jazz vocal categories. The mood of this work oozes glowingly and say-so via her often catchy vocalizations throughout these blended pieces of art. Moreover, the blues element gives evidence in more of an implicit rhythmic endeavor; hence, it is a jazz CD. Clamor harvests the boon of bright band mates here. On “Sa Ugoy Ng Duyan”, the vocalist renders an analogue thread with guitarist Richard Ickard. In this piece the singer exults in ample breathing and out-like scatting which is amazing and light-hearted. She reaches immaculate highs and potent ways of expressing lyrics.

Throughout the whole twelve tracks this listenable experience is truly enjoyable. The songs are based on themes from Clamor’s emotional roots, yet the arrangements are criminally jazzy. Her utterances are very lustful with many musical silhouettes, voluptuously curling the notes and pawning them with a gentle lure and tremulous extensions expressed in “I Hadn’t Anyone ‘Till You” and “I Need a Lot of Love”. The wiggling, shifting, and waves in Clamor’s singing are personalized, giving each note its own special feature and meaning. Charmaine Clamor’s performance is stupefying and daring and makes a profound and lasting impression on the listener’s mind.

by Dr. Ana Isabel Ordonez, for JazzReview.com, August 08, 2007

August 06, 2007

Flippin' Out lauded at O's, from D. Oscar Groomes with O's Place Jazz Newsletter

She's the first Filipina that we've come across on the jazz scene and she makes a strong, positive statement. Charmaine has a wonderfully rich, deep voice. She sings some jazz, blues and traditional Filipino folk. We preferred the jazz and blues. She does an excellent job singing the blues on "Sugar In My Bowl" and "With Or Without You" reminded us of Cassandra Wilson. But Clamor has her own vocal signature. The band behind her is strong including Christian Jacob (p), Trey Henry (b) and Ray Brinker (d). Julius Tolentino complements Clamor nicely on alto sax on "I Hadn't Anyone 'Til You" and several others.

by D. Oscar Groomes, for O's Place Jazz Newsletter, August 06, 2007

July 30, 2007

Flippin' Out Reviewed in Cover Story, from Myrna Daniels with LA JAZZ SCENE

Clamor's debut album, Searching for the Soul, was well received by music critics. Success has made Clamor confident and even more ambitious. Her second CD, Flippin' Out, is a daring and innovative gift to the world. She sings in English and Tagalog, a first for the jazz world. She has always dreamed of combining American jazz and blues with traditional Filipino folk music, creating a new hybrid she calls "jazzipino." If anyone can pull off this radical idea, it will be Clamor.

I listened to the CD with no expectations. Even though I didn't understand the lyrics sung in Tagalog, I found the album to be evocative, interesting, and compelling on many levels. Clamor's rich alto voice carries a deep resonance that finds its way into every corner of the room. Every note falls perfectly in place as she rises and falls with the tides of her melodies. The musicians are excellent: Christian Jacob (piano), Trey Henry (bass), and Ray Brinker (drums) are the core trio. Wonderful guest artists are added throughout the material: Julius Tolentino (sax), Abe Lagrimas (ukulele), Gustavo Garcia (percussion), Richard Ickard (guitar), Zaxariades (guitar and vocals), and the Pakaraguian Kulintang Ensemble.

Clamor gives each tune a special touch, from the slow and seductive "Candy" (with Tolentino's sax spicing up the song), to a slow reading of "With or Without You," the popular tune by U2. "Sugar in My Bowl" allows Clamor to become more overtly sexy in her delivery, and she handles it easily. The Filipino Suite is the real surprise: All the tunes are absolutely new (to me), yet so wonderful to hear. Clamor's voice is gorgeous on a lullaby, "Sa Ugoy Ng Duyan," with just a veil of accompaniment from Ickard and Garcia. A sax and ukulele together? Sure, why not? It works like a charm on "Dahil Sa' Yo." There's plenty to admire in Clamor's pretty experiment. This very proud Filipina is using this opportunity to bring exposure to sentimental Filipino music as she moves forward in the jazz world.

by Myrna Daniels, for LA JAZZ SCENE, July 30, 2007

June 29, 2007

Clamor is an Asset to Jazz, and a Contributor to the Continued Traditions of Women in Jazz, from John Book with Music for America

Filipinos. Jazz. A lot of people may find it difficult to know of any Filipinos who have made an impact in jazz in the last 40 years, but one can refer to such people as Gabe Baltazar, Nohelani Cypriano, Bobby Gonzalez and Matt Catingub. Most people may not know this, but the roots of what we now know as jazz touched the Phillipines in the late 19th century, and truly established itself in the 1920's. Filipinos in and outside of the country would take their love of jazz with them, and while not in the forefront, the truth is that they have contributed to the legacy of jazz throughout the 20th century. In the United States there have been countless hits and misses, especially in Hawai'i where being local but playing music other than traditional Hawaiian can make you an outcast from the start. Fortunately for people like Gabe Baltazar, he played with some of the best jazz musicians of the East and West Coasts, came close to becoming a major player in the jazz world with an album that was scheduled for release on Impulse but canceled. For years, what some would call "Pinoy Jazz" has always bubbled under but never managed to crack the mainstream. Charmaine Clamor is someone who wants to change the existing perceptions, and as someone who claims to be the first Filipina to gain success on American jazz radio, she is off to a great start. Her second album, jokingly titled Flippin' Out (FreeHam), is no laughing matter and in fact one false smirk could get you a few stink eye from this Pinay.

The album begins with her own revision of "My Funny Valentine", called "My Funny Brown Pinay". Her voice is silky, strong, and bold, and she sings with a lot of authority in this track to where it becomes a defining statement of who she is as a woman, a Filipina, an American, an artist, and a jazz singer. She moves back and forth between singing and spoken word, where she talks about how yes, she does have a flat nose and brown skin, and when she sings a few lines in Tagalog it is very chilling.

The next four songs are more traditional in nature, or at least one may assume it is. "Candy" sounds like it could drift off into something very cute with references to the old song "I Want Candy", but instead her love of the candy is much more mature and (perhaps for her) much sweeter than most people know. The same can be said for "I Need A Lot Of Love", which is seductive to the point of being able to melt in her hands. Her cover of U2's "With Or Without You" is very eerie with an emphasis on the "without you" in the title. Most people either stay true to the original arrangement or spice it up with a happy vibe, but with Clamor she takes it to a dark part of her soul to where it sounds too revealing. It sounds as if it hurts, and she lets you know this line by line.

The middle of the album begins with a five-song "Filipino Suite", where songs are performed traditionally and with a jazzy touch, including one piece from Clamor herself. This section features the great 'ukulele playing of Abe Lagrimas, Jr., and it's great to hear him continue the traditions maintained by Herb Ohta, Don Baduria, Peter Moon, and more recently Jake Shimabukuro. Even in her native tongue, her jazz still sounds beautiful and one can easily see her doing a full project with other Filipino musicians in the near future.

Flippin' Out is a woman who is proud of her upbringing in the Phillipines, and proud to call the United States her home. The music is a perfect bridge of two cultures, and in truth two musical cultures that she cares for the most, done with a passion that can be heard in a voice that should be heard in every jazz venue across the nation, if not the world. Clamor is an asset to jazz music, and a contributor to the continued traditions of women in jazz.

(Flippin' Out is scheduled for release on September 1st. You can reserve a copy through CDBaby.)

by John Book, for Music for America, June 29, 2007

June 23, 2007

ALL ABOUT JAZZ Reviews "Flippin' Out", from Glenn Astarita with ALL ABOUT JAZZ

Charmaine Effectively Integrates Filipino Melodies Into the Jazz Vernacular

Filipina diva Charmaine Clamor grew up listening to Ella Fitzgerald and Mario Lanza and moved to southern California at the age of sixteen. Against spare and tasteful arrangements led by pianist Christian Jacob, Clamor ventures into jazz, world and blues territories while occasionally toggling between American and her native tongue, and she effectively integrates Filipino folk melodies into the jazz vernacular. She conveys a pleasing intimacy on the lullaby-like "Sa Ugoy Ng Duyan," spiced-up by Richard Ickard's gentle acoustic guitar, then shows a bit of spunk during the up-tempo Latin groove of "I Need A Lot Of Love.

by Glenn Astarita, for ALL ABOUT JAZZ, June 23, 2007

June 16, 2007

JazzTrenzz Reviews Flippin' Out, from Karl Stober with EJAZZNEWS

"Take a look at my skin...it's brown!" and from those first words of the first spin I knew this artist was someone who jazz would embrace. Charmaine Clamor will catch you as she did me with her 2007 release from FreeHam called "Flippin' Out", a multi-genre, multi-directional emotional spin. "Flippin' Out" takes you by surprise and draws you in quickly...

Clamor never telegraphs her vocal moods throughout this project. Attitudes in any form jump out at you without notice or reason. She just exhibits pure untarnished talent from within the depths of her interpretations. Strategically placed pauses and tempo changes make "Flippin' Out" a listen with intense anticipation. This is a fantastic new ride so please get a ticket for this trip!

A sultry mystique jumps out at you when one pushes play on "Candy". Clamor's drips vocal intimacy from start to finish. Her interpretation is a unique blend of moods still however getting the traditional feel of this tune across. "Candy" under the sensitivity of Clamor, spins an even deeper definition of sensuality...

The music behind the vocal talent is a major part of the success of Clamor's performance too. The percussion throughout sets the tone for this project and travels side by side with the vocals on this journey. That compressed partnership makes this project complete and concise along with the others in studio...

This Filipina jazz singer exhibits a very pure talent. The ability to express much more than just a tune is unique. Clamor sings to times, feelings, and purpose! A superb performance from and multi talented gem! As Clamor states in one spin "Do you want some sugar in your bowl" I say to her...You just did Charmaine and it's just sweet enough!

by Karl Stober, for EJAZZNEWS, June 16, 2007

June 16, 2007

Celebrity Cafe: Flippin' Out CD Review, from Sari Kent with TheCelebrityCafe.com

Charmaine Clamor's debut album, "Flippin' Out," is an amalgamation of a handful of varying musical genres such as jazz, R & B, blues and soul that blossom into a style that is music to listeners' ears.

On "My Funny Brown Pinay" Clamor emotes about how many of her peers didn't feel like they fit into society because of the color of their skin. Clamor sends a message of empowerment to her fellow ladies that they are in fact gorgeous with such lyrics as, "Take a look at my skin, its brown. Go ahead and look at my nose. It's flat. I'm singin' for all my sisters growin' up thinkin' they don't look right, cuz they ain't white. Scrubbin' with the fire soap to make it light. Girl, I think you're out of sight. You are beautiful." Metered piano and percussion play along with Clamor's unhurried pace. It is very relaxing. It brings home her directive that no matter what your shade, you are an effulgent creature inside and out.

On "I Hadn't Anyone 'til You" there is devil-may-care guitar, laid-back piano play, and sultry percussion accompanying Clamor's striking vocals. She sings about her hypothesis that she would be unattached in this world until her man came into her life and showed her how wrong she was: "I hadn't anyone 'til you. I was the lonely one, 'til you. I used to lie awake and wonder if there could be someone in this wide world just meant for me. Now I see I had to save my love for you. I never gave my love 'til you." Sultry saxophone comes into the song later on and it adds an alluring tone as Clamor continues about how she has at long last found love when she though it was impossible.

On "Candy" Clamor picks up the pace a tad with upbeat piano and guitar work in the intro. Yet, her voice perpetuates a cool, sybaritic vibe as she croons: "I want candy. I want candy. I want candy. I call my sugar candy. Because I'm sweet on candy and candy's sweet on me. He understands me. My understanding candy. And candy's always handy when I need sympathy." The rhythm gets much slower following the catchy intro as saxophone enters the song giving it that unmistakable smooth jazz stamp. Clamor's sensual voice adds an even more sugary tone to the lyrics that make up this engaging love song.

Charmaine Clamor's "Flippin' Out" is a record that is filled with fresh tracks that typify jazz, R & B and blues all in one superb grouping. Fans of all of these types of music will be flipping out over this album, which sets Clamor up as a force to be reckoned with in several musical genres.

by Sari Kent, for TheCelebrityCafe.com, June 16, 2007

December 07, 2006

Classy Jazz, via the Philippines from Don Heckman with Los Angeles Times, Calendar Section E10

When Charmaine Clamor's warm, luscious contralto slips into a rhythmically seductive version of "I'm in the Mood for Love" or purrs through the tender lyrics of "The Very Thought of You," there's no doubt that a first-rate jazz talent is present. Her first album, "Searching for the Soul" (2005), announced the arrival of an impressive new vocal artist who worked her magic with material including Duke Ellington's "Come Sunday," Percy Mayfield's "Please Send Me Someone to Love," Rodgers and Hart's "My Romance" and Gordon and Warren's "You'll Never Know."

What is surprising about her singing, with its very real sense of jazz authenticity, is the fact that Clamor is a Filipina, born in the provincial town of Subic-Zambales. Her first contact with anything remotely jazz-related came while she played piano to accompany her mother's vocalizing on kundiman (Filipino torch songs). It didn't take long, however, before she was on her way to becoming the first Filipina jazz singer with a recording heard on more than 100 radio stations across the U.S.

On Saturday and Sunday, Clamor will be one of the headliners in the second annual Filipino-American Jazz Festival at Catalina Bar & Grill. If jazz and the Philippines seem an unlikely combination, think again.

The music has built a considerable following in the islands since the post-World War II swing music days. And Clamor is among a growing number of Filipino jazz artists who have begun to attract international attention. Among those who will appear at the festival: keyboardist-composer Emil Mijares (known as the "grandfather of Philippine jazz"), singers Mon David and Sandra Viray, alto saxophonist Julius Tolentino and jazz ukulele player Abe Lagrimas.

by Don Heckman, for Los Angeles Times, Calendar Section E10, December 07, 2006

November 01, 2006

Charmaine Clamor: All Jazzed Up from Elaine Santore with Filipinas Magazine

Charmaine Clamor is a busy woman. Her latest album, "Searching for the Soul," has garnered rave reviews, making her the first Filipina to break into the American jazz scene. She also sings with the acclaimed five-part jazz vocal group Crescendo and is a founding member of JazzPhil-USA. Her music career unofficially began at three months old. "According to my mom I used to sing along with the Marcos propaganda song 'Mabuhay,' that was played repeatedly on the radio," says Clamor. By age three she started singing for fellow passengers on the bus ride from her native Subic, Zambales to Manila. She later provided piano accompaniment while her mother sang kundiman (romantic Filipino songs). Clamor also sang in ther school's choir. At 16, Clamor moved to Los Angeles; she resides in Hollywood. Clamor's goal is to make Filipino culture more accessible to the mainstream by incorporating kundiman with jazz. She started JazzPhil-USA in hopes of discovering new talent and building awareness of Filipino jazz artists in the community. Clamor is currently recording a new album with a selection of Filipino songs fused with jazz.

by Elaine Santore, for Filipinas Magazine, November 01, 2006

October 18, 2006

The Sultry Voice of Charmaine Clamor, from Matrayi Joneja with Seattle International Examiner

Charmaine Clamor walks onto the stage with the kind of glamour and elegance exuded only by the big stars. She walks with simplicity and ease as if she had long been waiting for this moment to come, and now that the time has come, she will perform the part perfectly, as planned. She has realized her dream. She knows she has come a long way. Yes, she knows simplicity. She is the perfect picture of an immigrant who has emerged a winner after years of hard work and labor. Undoubtedly, she is talented and her talent has helped her through these years of struggle.

Tonight she is setting the stage on fire with her performance. Charmaine Clamor has a plan.

She takes the moment away from us and etches it forever in our memory with her warm, full-mouth smile and glittering eyes. Tonight she plans to take us away to a dreamland with her beautiful, enchanting voice.

Known in jazz circles for her "sultry alto voice," she is celebrating the launch of her debut solo CD, "Searching for the Soul" on Free-ham records.

This is the night of Charmaine Clamor's first performance at the Triple Door in Seattle. In the dead of the night, a girl coming from the small town of Subic-Zambales in the Philippines takes on the stage. Dressed for the occasion in a shimmery sky-blue gown, glossy heels and with a lean and tall silhoutte, she is very much the star they predicted she would be.

Her voice hits you with a sharpness and brashness that doesn't match her fragile and soft persona. Her high alto voice reverberates in your ears as her renditions of love songs leave you tender and consumed. You can feel her charming you into her world of beautiful Filipino music, which she clarifies later on, is called Gundiman.

Her heart, it seems, is still in Philippines. Charmaine talks fondly about her life in Subic-Zambales, which is "four hours bus ride" from the capital city of Manila and has a population of not more than 70,000 people.

Her love for music began at the ripe young age of three, when she would ride on the bus with her mother and entertain the passengers with her songs and performance. The Clamor household was always filled with sounds of music. Coming from a musically talented family, she began appreciating jazz and Gundiman music from a very early age. She cultivated her talent by further studying classical piano.

She also loves listening to Aretha Franklin — the queen of soul music, Marvin Gaye, India arie; contemporary artists like Dianne Reeves, Cassandra Wilson and old timers like Sarah Vaughn, Ella Fitzgerald, Shirley Horn and Betty Carter.

Charmaine herself is gifted with a voice that on command turns from sweet and seductive to strong and gutsy. She is one of the few Filipinos who have managed to break into the world of jazz music. She recently launched "Searching for the Soul" which has peaked at the number one position on the CMJ jazz charts in several markets. She is also the alto voice of the jazz harmony ensemble Crescendo, based in Los Angeles.

But Charmaine insists that her true story is that of struggle, determination and hard work.

She immigrated to the United States with her parents. While studying in graduate school, she continued to hone her singing abilities and taking lessons. She received a master's degree in physical therapy in 1998. And currently, she is a licensed physical therapist. Passionately pursuing her love for singing, she began edging her way inside the jazz ghetto, singing with the five-member Crescendo.

Charmaine continues to work her way through the various aspects of singing — handling her business, practicing every day and taking vocal lessons, marketing herself better, building more connections in the world of business and taking time out to experiment with various music styles. She finds inspiration in the fact that all the hard work doesn't go to waste ultimately and is worth the return.

Charmaine remains as grounded as ever, appreciating the sacrifice and struggle her parents went through to help her chase her dream.

She has performed at the House of Blues, The Hop, Pasadena Civic Auditorium, Los Angeles Convention Center, Glendale Civic Auditorium and Cerritos Performing Arts Center, among others. She has worked with numerous well-known mainstream artists, including Jeffery Osborne and James Ingram, and legendary Filipino artists including Gary Valenciano, Banig and Timmy Cruz.

She is also one of the founding members of Jazz-Phil-USA, an LA-based nonprofit organization that promotes Filipino-American jazz artists in the United States.

Charmaine is ambitious about her next album and excitedly tells me more about it. She has long wished to release an album with Gundiman music — Filipino love songs, dressed in a new combination of beats and sounds. She wants to combine Gundiman songs with jazz music and create a sort of harmonious fusion between the two — a quest never undertaken before. But for determined and passionate dreamers like Charmaine, such dreams could well turn into a reality. She dreams them and then weaves them into reality.

by Matrayi Joneja, for Seattle International Examiner, October 18, 2006

April 01, 2006

CD Reviews: Searching for the Soul (FreeHam 2005) from Fritz the Nite Owl with Smooth Jazz WJZA 103.5FM/104.3FM, Columbus, OH

Charmaine is a contralto, singing in the lowest ranges of female vocalizing. This register adds enormous warmth, intimacy, sensuality to all of her selections and makes this one of the very best "Jazz for Slow-Dancin' Romancin' for the Wee-Hours" CDs ever recorded. "Soulful" is how one of the many callers described her when I debuted her on my show.

Her selection and interpretation of tunes is impeccable. You'll fall in love with whomever you're with as she purrs her way through "The Nearness of You," backed only by acoustic piano. You'll re-experience "love found, love lost" with Since I Fell For You," featuring easy slides into her upper ranges and a quartet setting with some smoky, sexy sax by Glen Garrett.

My highlight however is "You'll Never Know," the timeless, Oscar-winning love song sung by Alice Faye in 1943's Hello Frisco, Hello. 'Tis a pity that elegant, classy, sophisticated, memorably melodic songs like this no longer have a chance with the tineared, PC-obsessive voters who select the Oscar-winning songs of today.

by Fritz the Nite Owl, for Smooth Jazz WJZA 103.5FM/104.3FM, Columbus, OH, April 01, 2006

March 01, 2006

LA JAZZ SCENE Raves for "Searching for the Soul" from Jim Santella with LA JAZZ SCENE

Reviewer, Jim Santella, writes, "With her deep, contralto voice, Charmaine Clamor interprets standards with the kind of sincere feeling that sends a message along the straight and narrow without detour. You're left with no doubts. She's forthright, convincing and talented.

by Jim Santella, for LA JAZZ SCENE, March 01, 2006

January 02, 2006

CD Reviews: Searching for the Soul (FreeHam 2005) from George Harris with ALL ABOUT JAZZ

Blessed with a "bedroom eyes" voice, Charmaine Clamor has put out a lovely and eclectic collection of musical pieces. With the support of the likes of Dave Tull (drums) and Kim Richmond (alto), she lends her warm voice and gentle vibrato lusciously on the likes of "My Romance" and a particularly reflective "Come Sunday." Clamor is able to come one strong and gutsy as she holds her anguished notes on "Please Send Me Someone to Love." With simply the support of Andy Howe on piano and a tender reading of "The Nearness of You," Clamor proves she is able to handle the standards with aplomb. The jewels of Clamor's Searching for the Soul, however, are the originals - particularly "You and I" and "Remember," both written by guitarist Zaxariades. Clamor is crisp and optimistic on the former, which is light and cheerful. On the latter, a lovely tune in the mode of Gilberto/Jobim, she is sweet and seductive, with the gentle guitar and flute providing a perfect backdrop. Charmaine Clamor could shake the world with originals like these.

by George Harris, for ALL ABOUT JAZZ, January 02, 2006

December 01, 2005

CD Reviews: Searching for the Soul (FreeHam 2005) from Scott Galloway with Urban Network, Vol 16 Number 10

Ms. Clamor is a lovely Filipina making her debut splash in the pop jazz arena after several years as a member of the jazz harmony ensemble Crescendo. Not since Pauline Wilson of the Christian jazz fusion band Seawind has a vocalist of Island origin so naturally embraces the soulful elegance of the African American art form (ironically, that band's bassist Ken Wild is a member of the ensemble.) She mixes a clarity and smoothness of diction comparable to Marilyn McCoo with the sultriness of say Toni Braxton with the classy cabaret jazz chops of Diana Krall - all filtered through a rangy instrument spiced with a dreamy vibrato honed in the folk music of her own culture. She focuses mainly on Great American Songbook classics such as "My Romance," a medley of "The Very Thought of You/Tenderly" and "The Nearness of You," but it is her show-stopping and emotive rendition of "Neither One of Us (Wants To Be The First To Say Goodbye)" that truly tears your heart out (singular and swingin' enough that I'm sure Glady's would love it). This 13-song solo debut launches the career of a special new voice and perspective on the jazz scene.

by Scott Galloway, for Urban Network, Vol 16 Number 10, December 01, 2005

November 26, 2005

JAZZ NEWS Raves for "Searching for the Soul" from Ron Sagye La Rue with JAZZ NEWS

Jazz singers beware- There's a new jazz singer on the scene. And she's ready! What I really like about Charmaine is that she can be whisper-soft, grippingly forceful, early, romantic and soulful. Charmaine's vocalism is amazing. This album should be nominated for a Grammy... and win!

by Ron Sagye La Rue, for JAZZ NEWS, November 26, 2005