| Nancy J. Frank Productions Ltd. |
Nancy DiFelice
May 26 , 2010
It has been said that Nancy has been singing for as long as she has been talking. Born in
Toronto, she now calls Brantford home. Like a lot of singers, her first solo appearances were
in the realms of church music. Classically trained in piano and voice at the Conservatory of
Music in Toronto, she abandoned her classical studies at age 16 to pursue a journey of
eclectic musical diversity that eventually ended at York University in the prestigious jazz
program. From a folk music trio to hard hitting rock to the glitter of show bands Nancy has
embraced it all. “But I had always loved jazz. I remember my
father had brought home an album by flutist Jeremy Steig (I still have the album) and I would
lay on the carpet in the dining room with headphones on listening to the album over and over
again – especially the track Lover Man. It was so haunting and beautiful. I was thirteen at the
time.”
In her late twenties, the allure of life on the road had lost it’s sparkle and Nancy returned to
pursue her studies of music. She studied firstly with Darwin Aiken who was Canada’s
premier symphonic piano teacher and Charles Jordan who taught voice production to the
likes
of Susan Clark, Lorne Green and William Shatner. It was during this time that jazz singers
such as Ella Fitgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Lena Horne and Blossom Dearie became great
inspirations for her vocal style. Her skill in jazz vocals became firmly established at York
University in the jazz performance program under the direction of John Gittens and Bob
Witmer whose emphasis in performance training was not structured according to traditional
patterns. Her accomplishments include TV appearances, GLOBAL NEWS at Noon, radio
commercials – Japan Camera, Air Canada and as a background singer for many artists. She
is a gifted vocalist who has performed nation-wide. Nancy along with husband Frank, wrote
and produced the “Official Sesquicentennial Song” for the City of Brantford. Together they
also produced a well received recording of jazz standards entitled “It Might As Well Be
Spring”. She has also co-produced a five part series for TV entitled “Moments to Remember”.
Nancy with husband Frank are celebrating 13 years of “Brantford Downtown Jazz” in the
great city of Brantford. She is also a founding member of the Brantford International Jazz
Festival.
| Sanderson Centre for the Performing Arts 88 Dalhousie Brantford, Ontario Tickets: $27.00 To reserve tickets call: 1.800.265.0710 or 519.758.8090 or email us at: bdjazz@rogers.com |
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