Dena DeRose Trio

Saturday, August 13, 2011 | Magnolia San Jose Rep Stage | 6pm

In 2000, Terry Teachout of The New York Times wrote, "Dena DeRose sings Jazz as if she had been at it her whole life long, and then some."  Known for her bluesy yet distinctive interpretations of the American songbook as well as original compositions, she studied classical piano throughout her childhood, until entering the world of Jazz through the performance of Basie tunes in her junior high stage band. At 17, she began lessons with Doug Beardsley, the only Jazz teacher in hometown Binghamton. By college, she was performing, taking on students, and practicing profusely.  To feed her insatiable Jazz appetite, she would slip away to New York City to hear idols Hank Jones, Mulgrew Miller, and Kenny Barron.

Seldom is a music career not fraught with challenges, and Dena's is no exception - her Jazz fervor led to a case of carpal-tunnel syndrome, and was aggravated by arthritis severe enough to require surgery, forcing her to give up the piano. With her spirit and livelihood both in jeopardy, someone dared her to get up and sing in a club one night. She did it, liked it, and so did the audience. Dena found not only her ticket out of the physical predicament, but, two years later recovered enough to add piano back into the act, and also discovered that the singing had helped her add lyricism and melody to her piano lines.

Dena has nine CDs as a leader to her credit, the most recent of which is Dena DeRose - Live at Jazz Standard Volume 1 & 2.  In addition to Cadence magazine awards for her recordings, she was selected by Downbeat's Critic's Poll as 2002, 2003 and 2006's "Artist Deserving Wider Recognition", and ‘All About Jazz’ awarded her "Jazz Artist of the Year" in 2003 and 2006, and "Best Jazz Album of 2007".

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