Jazz Review: Vocalist Shawn Monteiro Enthralls Audience

Jazz vocalist Shawnn Monteiro knows how to work an audience. On Saturday, she had the crowd at New Britain's Trinity-on-Main under her spell from the moment she strode onstage, delivering "On Green Dolphin Street" as though it had been written for her alone.

Monteiro, a teacher at Hartt School's Jackie Mc Lean Institute of Jazz, is a gifted scat singer, as she demonstrated within minutes, coaxing the Kent Hewitt Trio into high gear behind her.

But she also paid close attention to lyrics, investing each piece with a great deal of emotion. One moment she'd play the seductress ("Visit Me"); the next she would become the jaded romantic ("I Have the Feeling I've Been Here Before").

"I have a passion for this … to see young people coming to jazz," she enthused, before launching into a lighthearted "If I Were a Bell." Monteiro's voice sounded grittier than in the past, giving a slight blues edge to sultry material like "Shadow of Your Smile." She also explored the low end of her range with enchanting results.

Nowhere was this more effective than when she reproduced trombone plunger effects during her scat solo on "I Didn't Know What Time It Was."

While an increasing number of jazz vocalists look to contemporary pop and rock for inspiration, Monteiro remains a champion of the Great American Songbook.

"There's nothing better," she told her listeners Saturday. "It's who we are!" She made a strong case by fusing personal and universal themes on standards such as "Days of Wine and Roses" and "What Is This Thing Called Love."

Pianist Kent Hewitt displayed the ideal balance of mastery and modesty that have made him one of the state's most prized accompanists. Monteiro encouraged him to solo, which he did eloquently, but he made sure not to shift the focus from the singer for long. Bassist Brian Jenkins and drummer Ben Bilello also balanced technical prowess and restraint in order to properly serve Monteiro's musical poetry.