Canceled: Cécile McLorin Salvant's 'Ogresse'

Vocalist, composer and three-time GRAMMY winner Salvant presents Ogresse, her new 90-minute song cycle created in collaboration with arranger and conductor Darcy James Argue that the Wall Street Journal calls “a stunningly original epic that draws on myriad musical genres.” JazzTimes calls it “a daring and genre-defying departure” for Salvant – a “grand synthesis” of her interests in musical theater, mythology and visual art, while touching on French jazz, bluegrass, Baroque music and other influences.

Since her emergence a decade ago, Salvant has tapped into a line of classic jazz vocalists: Bessie Smith, Betty Carter, Abbey Lincoln. Her voice is startlingly expressive and rich, with a capacious lower register that brings to mind Sarah Vaughan. Now, at age 30, Salvant has blossomed into an artist and composer with her own unique vision. The evidence is to be found in Ogresse, her new 90-minute song cycle, which she brings to SFJAZZ for a performance that should prove as stunning as her debut here in 2013.

It is a collaboration with Darcy James Argue, the conductor and bandleader, who has arranged Salvant’s songs for a small orchestra including banjo, organ, marimba, melodica, oboe, tuba and string quartet. You can expect Salvant to sing her dark songs with a sly wink. On stage, she is the picture of theatricality and mischief, tapping into the jazz tradition on multiple levels, unearthing the humor, the pain, the joy and the surprise in everything she sings.