Daniela Spalletta
“A silken voice with remarkable fluidity and range”
Michael Barris, DownBeat
“Daniela Spalletta wows the audience with the crystal-clear tone of her upper register.”
Keanna Faircloth, WBGO
Daniela displayed a lovely, lyrical, multi-octave voice and some excellent scatting
Sheila Horn Mason, Jazz Police
“This singer, composer, arranger is one of those vocalists who have found original lines using multiple materials and referring to a vast universe of sound, ranging from the world of Euro culture to pop, from minimalism to music from other continents”
Maurizio Franco, Jazzit
“Her vocal field is certainly to be placed in the contemporary conceptions of research, but with a breadth and a breadth so wide as to make us fly with the memory of the senses also to our great classical European background, with a swinging sparkle of sound phrases with precious and unique modulations, of great value”
Bruno Pollacci, Anima Jazz
“An all-round expressive maturity: quality of timbre, extension, improvisation attitude, personality, both in moving pieces and in ballads. A new, beautiful reality of Italian jazz.”
Vincenzo Fugaldi, Jazzitalia
Biography
A singer, composer, arranger and lyricist, born in Sicily, Daniela Spalletta was introduced to the music since she was a child. At the age of 14, she began to study Jazz and Lyric singing. In the 2001 she obtained a Baccalaureate and the following year she enrolled at the College of Philosophy at the University of Catania attending at the same time the Lyric Singing at the Musical Institute “Vincenzo Bellini ” in Caltanissetta. She also studied Jazz and Baroque Music with: Giovanni Mazzarino, Rosalba Bentivoglio, Salvatore Bonafede, Vito Giordano, Angela Bucci, Michael Aspinall, etc.
During her training, she attended several MasterClass with Steve Swallow, Maria Pia De Vito, Cinzia Spata, Huw Warren, Adam Nussbaum, Dino Govoni, Nedelka Prescod, Dennis Montgomery III, etc. In December 2012, she graduated in Jazz Singing with the highest marks and honorable mention at the Conservatory “Vincenzo Bellini ” of Palermo. In the 2012 and in 2014, she appeared in the prestigious Italian magazine “Musica Jazz ” by Luca Conti, in the Top Jazz of the emergent Artists. From 2017 to 2019 she ranks respectively in the fourth, third and second place of the Jazzit Awards Readers Poll, by the Italian magazine JAZZIT, in the category “Female Italian Voice”.
RECORDINGS, PROJECTS, PUBLICATIONS
2013 / 2015
In 2013, she wrote the lyrics for the album “Willow: a Jazz Suite”, a philological work about Steve Swallowmusic; Steve Swallow was also the bassist player for this album, in which Cinzia Roncelli, Adam Nussbaum, Giovanni Mazzarino, Riccardo Fioravanti, Stefano Bagnoli played too. In 2013 she recorded her first cd as a leader, titled “D/Birth”, released for the Italian Label Alfa Music, with the “Urban Fabula” trio, saxophonist Max Ionata and Hermes String Quartet. The italian magazine “JAZZIT” rewarded the cd and placed it in the “100 Greatest Album 2015”; in 2016, the album won the “SoundCheck Airplay Music Awards2015/2016”, by the radio programme “SoundCheck Radio 24”, hosted by Gegè Telesforo, as “Best Italian Jazz”.
2016 / 2020
On April 2016 she is special guest in the album “Shemà” by pianist Donatello D’attoma, published by Alfa Music. On June 2016, the live cd “Janis“, dedicated to Janis Joplin, has been released, as an annex to the italian magazine “l’Espresso”, for the cd series “Jazz Italiano Live” by Midj, in which Daniela Spalletta is vocalist and arranger of the tunes she sang. In 2017 the album “Sikania” was released by Jazzy Records, with music by italian pianist Giovanni Mazzarino and lyrics by Daniela Spalletta in Sicilian language. In 2018 she is special guest in various album: “Juiu” , by saxophonist Claudio Giambruno (Alfa Music); “Melodyterranean” by vibraphonist Giuseppe Mazzamuto (Da Vinci Publishing Classic Jazz); “Ajee”, by the drummer Jacek Kohan (Audio Cave Label). In 2020 she is featured artist in the Gegè Telesforo Album “La Religione dell’ Universo”, in which she also co-arranged the title track of the album.
AWARDS, COMPETITIONS
2008 / 2014
She took part in several international Competitions: In June 2008, she was ranked third in the National Victoria Rotary Jazz Award Competition, directed by F. Cafiso (Vittoria, RG). In July 2009 she won a scholarship as best student at the Festival “Piazza Jazz“, directed by Giovanni Mazzarino (Piazza Armerina EN). In January 2012 she won the Enzo Randisi Award(Palermo); in April 2013 she was the winner of the Premio Nationale delle Arti of Turin with the “No Game 5et” of the Conservatory “V.Bellini” Conservatory in Palermo; in June she was finalist of the International Massimo Urbani Award (MC); in July she was finalist of the Jazz Live Award – Fara Music Festival(RI); of the Conad Jazz Contest, with her project “D/Birth” selected among more than 200 groups and of the Baronissi Jazz (SA); in August 2014 she was finalist at the Barga Jazz Contest with the group “Kids Garden”; in September she is finalist at the “Scrivere in Jazz” Award (SS); in October she wins the “Lucca Jazz Donna” Award, with her project “D/Birth”, together with Urban Fabula and at the same time the “LJD Ambassador” Award; in December she wins the Corrado Maranci Award (Syracuse).
2015 / 2019
In January 2015 she was a finalist in the “Premio Enzo Randisi – Stardust Edition“, with the No Game 5et. In May 2015, she won the “Premio Claudio Abbado” – Jazz Section, held in Rome, at the Conservatorio “Santa Cecilia”. In July 2015 she won a “Full Tuition” scholarship for the Master at the Berklee College of Music in Valencia, in addition to the opening concert of the Umbria Jazz Winter 2015 in Orvieto. In August 2015 she wins the Tony Scott Jazz Award (Campofelice di Roccella – PA). In July 2016 she won the Multiculturita Europe Contest (Capurso, BA), with her project D/Birth, together with Urban Fabula. In 2017 she is among the winners of the Siae Prize “Sillumina 2016” – New Works Category– Music Section, for the production of the album “Sikania” published by Jazzy Records, together with the pianist Giovanni Mazzarino; also in 2017 she is among the winners, together with the pianist Donatello D’Attoma, of the Siae Prize “Sillumina 2016” – National Live Category – Music Section, for the promotion of the tour “D/Birth” – Shemà”. In November 2019, among more than 600 singers from all over the world, she ranked second in the “Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition“, performing at NJPAC (Newark, NJ) in front of a jury composed by Christian McBride, Dee Dee Bridgewater, Jane Monheit, Monifa Brown, Matt Pierson. In December 2019 she is among the winners of the BANDO AIR, conceived by Midj and Siae, in collaboration with the Italian Embassies around the world, which offers her the opportunity to live an artistic residence abroad.
She played in several Festival in Europe, such as: Rendez vous de L’Erdre (Nantes), Suona Italiano – IIC in Nice (Nice), NJPAC (Newark, NJ), TEDxCatania, Jazzit Fest, Teatro di Verdura (Palermo), Atelier Musicale (Milan), Jazz al Piccolo (Milan), Dionisiache – Calatafimi Segesta Festival (Segesta), Umbria Jazz (Perugia), Nettuno Suona Jazz (Messina), Crema Jazz Art Festival, Modica Jazz Fest (RG), Iseo Jazz (BS), Piazza Jazz (EN), Musica Futura (PE) Django World Music Festival (Malta),Casa del Jazz (Roma), Vittoria Jazz Festival (RG), Blue Brass Jazz Club (Palermo), Count Basie Jazz Club (Genova), Piacenza Jazz Club, Biella Jazz Club, Bari in Jazz, Messina Sea Jazz Festival (ME), Vittoria Jazz (RG) and many others.
She played, recorded and collaborated with many important musicians, such as: Giovanni Mazzarino, Urban Fabula, Gegè Telsforo, Enrico Intra, Max Ionata, Fabrizio Bosso, Riccardo Fioravanti, Seamus Blake, Dario Deidda, Domenico Sanna, Nicky Nicolai, Monica Mancini, Gregg Field, Dino Rubino, Daniele Di Bonaventura, Alessandro Paternesi, Gabriele Evangelista, Israel Varela, Alessandro Marzi, Andrea Beneventano, Rosalba Bentivoglio, Chiara Civello, Alberto Fidone, Seby Burgio, Peppe Tringali, Giuseppe Bassi, Nicola Angelucci, Marco Vaggi, Vito Giordano, Orazio Maugeri, Fabrizio Giambanco, Aldo Vigorito and many others.
She is an Educator, teaching Vocal Jazz in several Conservatories in Italy, including the I.S.S.M. “Arturo Toscanini” (Ribera, AG), the Conservatory “Fausto Torrefranca” (Vibo Valentia) and the Conservatory “G. Tartini” (Trieste).
