Natalie Dietz's High Five

Historical article recovered from a Wayback capture dated 2018-02-24.

Jazz vocalist and rising star Natalie Dietz has made an indelible impression on the Australian jazz scene in such a short time, impressing both audiences and critics alike with her trademark warm, sensual tone and varied vocal abilities.

Accepted into the elite jazz vocal program at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music in 2009, Natalie honed her performing skills under the tutelage of Australian jazz luminaries like Judy Bailey and Mike Nock. She studied voice with jazz vocalists, Kerrie Biddell and Kristin Berardi, as well as composition with jazz pianist Matt McMahon. Prior to this, she received tuition from the Australian Opera title role soprano, Anke Hoeppner, cementing an important foundation in classical voice.

Since graduating with a Bachelor of Music (Jazz Voice Performance) in 2012 at age 25, Natalie has become a regular on the Sydney music circuit. She has performed at renowned jazz venue 505, the Jazzgroove Association, and SIMA at the Sound Lounge. She has already shared the stage with some of Australia’s most distinguished jazz musicians including Matt McMahon, Gerard Masters, Brendan Clarke, Tim Firth, Jonathon Zwartz, Evan Mannell, Jonothon Brown and bassist Waldo Fabian.

Her original compositions are attracting considerable attention among her contemporaries with their complex harmonies combined with strong melodies. She is inspired to blend and create textures with the voice within an ensemble, using wordless melodies as well as lyrics. Her compositions explore the breadth of modern styles, distinguishing her as an innovative and multi-skilled artist.

Recently, Natalie’s approach to jazz singing saw her awarded the Australian Government initiative ‘Artstart’ grant and the Performer’s Trust Foundation grant. In December 2012, she will be using funds from these grants to relocate to New York where she will further her studies in both voice and composition.

She plans to record her debut album in 2013.

A bright new talent on the Australian jazz scene, and “a young woman with much to say” (jazz.org.au), Natalie is a particularly gifted vocalist and composer, and one to watch – and listen – for in the years to come. Stay tuned

“Natalie is a fresh and much-needed voice on the Australian music scene. As a great singer, who has developed a unique compositional style, she is one of the leading lights in a brilliant new wave of original music coming out of Sydney.”

Jazz pianist Gerard Masters

“She writes and already has, not just a semblance of her own distinctive style or stamp, but a clear idea of where she’s heading with it. She has, no doubt about it, a sense of herself and it manifests in a cohesive set of songs, delivered, largely, with wordless eloquence.”

Brad Skye, jazz.org.au

1. WAYNE SHORTER QUARTET - Sydney Opera House, 2010

This was a life experience I’ll never forget. I was sitting in the front row directly in front of the incredible Brian Blade. The repertoire for the concert consisted of various fragments of Shorter’s compositions, blending and weaving into each other, avoiding the traditional full statement of a melody. The intensity of the sound, fascinating use of tonal palates by Shorter and the indistinct soloing format kept me constantly engaged. I did not believe that kind of intense energy could exist on a bandstand until witnessing this concert.

2. TERENCE BLANCHARD - Melbourne International Jazz Festival 2012

This was the first time I’ve seen Terence Blanchard play, and was captivated from start to finish. Terence’s technical virtuosity on the trumpet is astounding. While his sound is cutting edge, his influences reflect a wide and informed span of the history of jazz. Performing a combination of standards and original compositions, all the players of the rhythm section blew me away. Fabian Almazan creates such interesting shapes and textural ideas in his solos, and Kendrick Scott’s time feel is incredible. The range of emotion in Terence’s playing, ranging from beautiful sadness to a screaming intensity created a strong impression on me. The gig was a lesson in itself on how to use dynamics effectively.

3. KRISTIN BERARDI & JAMES SHERLOCK - Café Church, Sydney 2009

This was the best performance I have seen from Kristin, and it moved me very deeply. She has an ability to rouse such a wide range of emotions by manipulating the timbre and dynamics of her voice. The originality in her method of interpreting lyrics to standards is always impressive, and she really shines in this duo format. This was the album launch for their duo record ‘If you were there’. Kristin’s music truly reflects her spirit, emitting pure joy, soulfulness and beauty.

4. SARA SERPA - 505 jazz club Sydney, 2010

This gig made a big impression on me, and inspired me to explore this style of singing and composition. She sings mostly wordless vocals without vibrato with excellent range, technique and dynamics. Her original compositions were excitingly fresh, and she is one of the best vocal improvisers I’ve ever heard. There were a lot of complex melodies which were effectively doubled by guitarist Andre Matos, strengthening the lines and creating interesting textures during improvisations. What I particularly loved is that she utilizes and explores darker tonal palates in her music.

5. ROBERT GLASPER EXPERIMENT - Bennett’s Lane, Melbourne International Jazz Festival 2012

I saw all 3 performances of the experiment when they came to Australia, however this was my favourite, as in a more intimate jazz club setting I was able to hear the soloing with complete clarity. Seeing the experiment live was amazing, and I enjoyed their takes on known tunes ranging from Nirvanas ‘Smells like Teen Spirit’ to Coltrane’s ‘A love Supreme’. Robert sounded fantastic, Derrick Hodge was astoundingly good on bass, and Casey Benjamin has not only a very unique sound on alto, but his use of the vocoder is so effective in creating moods, almost hypnotic. I definitely plan on seeing them live again soon!