Harmony And Hijinks With Duchess

In this week’s episode we talk about Johnny Mercer’s “Strip Polka.” It’s about Queenie, a stripper with a heart of gold and features tenor saxophonist, Jeff Lederer.    

In this week’s episode we talk about “Ev’ry Time We Say Goodbye” by Cole Porter.  We talk about discovering the verse and rediscovering this song, interpretation as a group in a ballad and sing the praises of Cole Porter for the second time this season.    

We discuss the Ray Charles' classic, Hallelujah I Love Her So. 

We discuss Duke Ellington's "Creole Love Call" arranged for us by Wycliffe Gordon.

We catch up with Janis Seigel, founding member of the Manhattan Transfer. 

What do James Bond's Goldfinger and Melissa's rendition of Where Would You Be Without Me have in common? All will be revealed as we continue our song-by-song exploration of Laughing at Life, with this episode's chat about the Stylianou vehicle Where Would You Be Without Me. 

Is Amy Cervini "unsentimental?" What influence did Blossom Dearie have on Amy's career? And what do we think of Cole Porter? All this and more is revealed as we continue our song-by-song exploration of Laughing at Life, with this episode's chat about Give Him The Oo La La.

We continue our song-by-song exploration of our newly-released album, Laughing at Life, with this episode's chat about Stars Fell on Alabama. We talk about special guest Wycliffe Gordon and discuss the arrangement by Oded Lev-Ari. 

We continue our song-by-song exploration of our newly-released album, Laughing at Life, with this episode's chat about the Everybody Loves My Baby. We talk about the Boswell Sisters version, our own original lyrics, and special guest Anat Cohen on clarine

We continue our song-by-song exploration of our newly-released album, Laughing at Life, with this episode's chat about the title track made famous by Ruth Etting in 1930. Our producer/arranger, Oded Lev-Ari, talks about his concept for the arrangement and some of the tricks he used including inspiration from a thesaurus, Count Basie and Duchess’ own phrasing.

In this episode of "Harmony and Hijinks," the ladies of the vocal trio Duchess interview Grammy-winning vocalist Cecile McLorin Salvant. We discuss Cecile's journey as a singer, the Thelonious Monk competition and how, according to Cecile herself, she never wins anything. We also talk about the relationship between Cecile's visual art and her music, as well as feminism and her band, and Cecile answers the Duchess questionnaire. Then, we open some fan mail asking about one of our favorite subjects, food, which leads to reminiscing about our favorite tour meals. The episode closes with a new segment called “I’ll Drink to That,” in which we concoct (and drink, of course!) a favorite cocktail, the Aperol Spritz. 

We're continuing our song-by-song exploration of our newly-released album, Laughing at Life, with this episode's chat about "On the Sunny Side of the Street," penned in 1930 by Jimmy McHugh, with lyrics by Dorothy Fields. Our producer/arranger, Oded Lev-Ari, shares how the Three Cohens' collective improvisations inspired his arrangement, as well as why he opted not to include the song's original verse for the Duchess rendition of this jazz standard.

The ladies of Duchess (Amy Cervini, Hilary Gardner, Melissa Stylianou) are joined by arranger/producer Oded Lev-Ari to discuss their sophomore release "Laughing at Life." This episode features the first track on the album "Swing Brother Swing" by Clarence Williams, Lewis Raymond and Walter Bishop.

In this episode of "Harmony and Hijinks," the ladies of the vocal trio Duchess interview Grammy-nominated vocalist, Jane Monheit. They discuss a recent performance at Birdland Jazz Club in New York City, Cole Porter, chasing and arranging songs, bullies, and using your “music words.”  The gals also open some Fan Mail about ancestry and Andrews Sisters and talk about the genius of Jacques Pepin.  Links: Jane Monehit: http://www.janemonheitonline.com Somebody Loves Me, Live at Birdland (from The Songbook Sessions: Ella Fitzgerald) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wllCYKp-sIY Ill Wind (from The Songbook Sessions: Ella Fitzgerald) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6_OaynVWzQQ More than Words by Extreme https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UrIiLvg58SY Jacques Pepin (Chicken and Celery Gratin) http://cooking.nytimes.com/recipes/11353-jacques-pepins-basic-roast-chicken  

In this inaugural episode of "Harmony and Hijinks," the ladies of the vocal trio Duchess discuss their path to harmony—musical and otherwise—and set out on an exploration of the idea of harmony across disciplines and practices. The individual members of the trio interview each other, and complete the "Duchess Questionnaire.” True to form, harmony and hijinks ensue.