Peterborough Jazz Club: Sara Oschlag Quintet

Sara Oschlag (vocals), Alex Garnett (saxophone), James Pearson (piano), Arnie Somogyi (double bass), Darren Beckett (drums)

For our Christmas Concert, we have a special evening with the superb vocalist Sara Oschlag, who many of you will remember was the vocal star in our Big Band concert featuring the Echoes of Ellington big band, when she sang the Duke Ellington/Ella Fitzgerald songbook to great acclaim. Since turning professional 2003, Danish-born jazz singer Sara Oschlag has performed all over the UK as well as in Europe and America leading her own bands and also featuring as guest vocalist. Her influences include Shirley Horn, Betty Carter, Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughan and Eddie Jefferson. Sara has been widely thought of as a great interpreter of songs in the jazz tradition and is also hailed as a musician’s singer due to her wonderful way of using dynamics, texture and rhythm. Her honest stage presence, expressive voice and effortless sense of swing have made her a firm favourite with the jazz audience, establishing her as one of the UK’s premier jazz vocalists. Accompanying Sara is a great band, featuring super saxophonist Alex Garnett with a rhythm section led by top pianist James Pearson, making his first appearance at the Club, with one of the finest double bassists on the scene in Arnie Somogyi and, also making his first appearance at the Club, superb drummer Darren Beckett who has recently returned to the UK after many years working in the New York jazz scene.