 Photo by Andrea Canter
Vocalist
Connie Evingson has been an enduring presence on the Twin Cities’
jazz scene for more than two decades. Her visibility and virtuosity
as one of the founding members of Moore By Four helped spur a solo
career that has encompassed such diverse projects as the music of
Peggy Lee, the Beatles, and Django Reinhart. With the success of
Gypsy in My Soul (2004, Minnehaha Music), much of what we have
heard from Connie in the past year reflects the growing popularity of
hot club music and such area bands as the Clearwater, Parisota, and
Twin Cities Hot Clubs. Remaining true to her eclectic tastes, Connie
recently completed work in two recording studios on either side of
the Atlantic—with the Hot Club of Sweden and back home with David
Frishberg. The Jazz Police caught up with Connie as she was preparing
for two March performances at the Dakota, with Irv Williams (March
15) and as part of a showcase of McKnight Fellowship recipients
(March 26th).
(Click here for more about March shows.)
JP.
We’ve read elsewhere that you earned a degree at the University of
Minnesota in music and anthropology.
Connie.
Actually, my degree from the U of M is in Speech-Communications.
I know another website says I have a degree in Anthropolgy and in
Music, but I don't know how the interviewer got that -- I'm guessing
he picked up Anthropology from my Some Cats Know CD (the song
"Anthropology" is on that CD)…Anyway, the truth is, I
started out as a Music major, but there was no jazz at the U of M,
and the only alternatives presented were Classical Performance or
Music Education -- I wasn't interested in either of those
options. I
was interested in producing arts programming for public
television, which is why I changed my major to Speech-Communications.
 Photo by Andrea Canter JP.
How did the project with the Hot Club of Sweden come about?
Connie.
I sang with a group from Sweden (Uppsala Swingtime Sextet) at
the Dakota last September. One of the members of the group gave my
CDs to a label owner and festival presenter in Sweden, who hired me
to perform at a festival in Uppsala at the end of January. The
Hot Club of Sweden is on his label, and he connected me with
them.
JP. Obviously it is a different band, but
how will this new recording differ from Gypsy in My Soul?
Connie.
This CD is similar to Gypsy in My Soul in that it features
some tunes that are typical in the hot club genre ("After You've
Gone," "If I Had You") and some tunes that are not
typical of the genre, but work well in the style (Abbey
Lincoln's tune, "Throw it Away,” “Windmills of Your Mind”
by Michel Legrand). The core instrumentation is 2 guitars and
bass, with accordion and clarinet as solo instruments on some tracks
-- similar to "Gypsy" -- but there is also sax on a couple
of tracks. This record contains an original song written by
Andreas Oberg (one of the guitarists in the group), a beautiful tune
called “Autumn in Kokkola.” He asked me to write some
lyrics for the tune, and it's so beautiful, I gladly complied.
The song is about a seaside town in Finland and their annual
end-of-summer ritual of lighting bonfires and torches all along the
shore -- their “festival of lights.”
 Connie with Dave Frishberg, Photo by Andrea Canter Connie.
I've been a fan and admirer of Dave Frishberg for years. I met him
some time ago at one of his gigs here in the Twin Cities. Also,
Dave Karr, who I work with a lot, is a longtime friend of Frishberg.
They knew each other and played together when they both attended the
U of M. I've wanted to do a Frishberg collection for a long
time, and thought that having Dave Karr on the date with Frishberg
would really be a gas -- and it was. They really admire and are
inspired by each other, so it was a great time in the studio.
It was very difficult to choose the tunes -- there were so many I
wanted to do. I started out with a wish list of 24 songs,
knowing I'd have to narrow it down. We ended up with 14
songs. [Click here for a Jazz Police interview with David Frishberg]
JP. You are going to perform soon with Irv Williams at
the Dakota [March 15th]. Is this the first time you’ve
worked with Irv? What are you planning for this performance?
Connie.
I've worked with Irv (he's on my Some Cats Know CD)
but it's been awhile, which is why we're doing the gig. It's a
Wednesday night, so it will be casual and intimate -- Irv, Peter
Schimke on piano, Terry Burns on bass, and me. Irv knows
just about every tune ever written, so I plan to just call songs I
like to sing that he likes to play. I'm really looking
forward to it -- he has such a great sound, and is just plain fun to
be around.
JP.
Tell us about the upcoming event with Voice Trek. Have you worked
with them before? 
Connie.
I think we've been on the same program somewhere, sometime
throughout the years ... we've certainly known each other for a long
time. We were both recipients of the McKnight Fellowship for
Performing Musicians for 2005-06, and that's what this evening at the
Dakota is about -- to celebrate and acknowledge the fact that this is
the first time two of the four awards were given to jazz artists.
We'll alternate sets: Voice Trek will perform selections from their
repertoire, including tunes from their great new a cappella CD, and
I'll sing tunes from my repertoire with my band (Tanner Taylor on
piano, Terry Burns on bass, Dave Karr on sax).
JP.
You seem to be getting involved with a very diverse group of
projects. Are you still part of Moore By Four? What else is in the
works, or what else are you hoping to do in the coming year or two?
Connie.
Producing and releasing these two new CDs is the first order of
business this year -- Stockholm Sweetnin' (with the Hot Club
of Sweden) will be released this spring, and the Frishberg project in
the fall. I'm traveling to Sweden in April to sing at a
festival and at Fasching, the main jazz club in Stockholm. I
may going back to Japan in the fall, and possibly to Barcelona for a
festival in November. And yes, I do still sing with Moore By Four,
mostly concerts and special events.
For
more information about Connie Evingson and upcoming recordings, visit
her website at
www.connieevingson.com
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Twin Cities, MN 
Thursday, 08 January 2009
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