Jazz singer and songwriter Lisa B (Lisa Bernstein) performs standards and originals, often interwoven with her spoken poetry. Critics have pointed to her focus on innovation (“an originator,” “daring and deft”) as well as to her gifts of interpretation (“mesmerizing, ” “a beautiful voice,” “makes lyrics sound like truth”).
Poetry and jazz have always been a part of Lisa B’s life. Her mother wrote poetry, and her father was a serious aficionado of avant-garde jazz who counted among his friends a number of well-known jazz musicians. Jackie McLean was a close family friend, and Lisa B remembers sitting on Elvin Jones’ lap at a party at their family home.
As a child, Lisa B studied classical piano and was steeped in jazz – in particular, her parents’ favorites Carmen McRae and John Coltrane – as well as R&B and musical theater. But as an adult, her first forays into live performance were public readings of her own poetry.
As her poems began appearing in important literary journals, and a book of her work was published by the prestigious Wesleyan University Press, Lisa B found that standing up alone before an audience with just her own words was powerful training in performance. Dedicating herself to the art of jazz singing – while still incorporating poetry into her shows – was a natural progression.
So it’s no surprise that Lisa B lists as her key musical influences not only Coltrane and McRae, but also the bedrock of the Great American Songbook; vocal jazz pioneers Sheila Jordan, Jeanne Lee, and Lambert, Hendricks & Ross; melders of jazz, poetry, and soul Gil Scott-Heron and Jill Scott; and two who show us how to testify in both music and verse, Aretha Franklin and Allen Ginsberg.
The Fenix is an music supper club. Dinner is served daily at the venue. When you purchase your ticket on our website or the Ticketleap.com site, a reservation is automtically made for you.
When requesting seating for a party larger than your ticket purchase, please inform guest who would like to be seated with you to include in the comment section they would like to be seated with your party. We will try an accommodate your request.
There is a $15.00 per person minimum at the Fenix during the shows.