Aug26

Isabel Stover Quintet

Cadenza, 5 Depot Street, Freeport, ME

Accompanied by some of the most creative figures on the Boston scene, Isabel Stover draws the emotive thread between timeless Jazz standards, Brazilian, folk and pop with fresh, new arrangements.

“Elegant.” “An amazing range.” “Continually evolving.” These are just a few of the ways audiences describe Isabel Stover. She uses her richly textured vocals and mastery of phrasing thoughtfully and purposely as a way of delivering an authentic and heartfelt experience, fearlessly deconstructing musical compositions to their emotional core.

At its heart, singing is storytelling with structure. It makes sense, then, that Stover, a vocalist with both a Master’s degree in architecture and credits on a national radio storytelling show, would be skilled at choosing stories to tell and at setting them in the right arrangements.

A consummate professional, Stover is a skilled entertainer and arranger with an ear for unlocking the full potential of jazz and Brazilian standards and beyond. Her debut album, Her Own Sweet World, went to #1 on the charts in the first week of its release.

Stover’s passion for jazz was ignited after landing a spot in the Oakland Jazz Choir, a 30-voice vocal big band in the San Francisco Bay Area, and she began her studies at the California Jazz Conservatory. After moving East to Boston, she continued her education at the New England Conservatory and Berklee School of Music and developed her chops playing professionally amongst New England’s most talented musicians.

Stover delights in building new structures for songs. As a lover of architecture and history, she recalls one of her favorite performances — in the courtyard at Boston Public Library — where the incredible sonic experience created from the music enveloped in the surrounding buildings elevated their breathtaking beauty.

Her carefully crafted repertoire is a collaboration between Stover and her quartet of talented musicians, guitarist Steven Kirby, bassist Mark Poniatowski, pianist Mark Shilansky and drummer Les Harris.