This Sunday Leala Cyr Quintet @ East Granby Congregational Church

The Leala Cyr Quintet will perform as part of East Granby Congregational Church’s Friends of Music Series. The concert will be November 17 at 2 pm, in the sanctuary at East Granby Congregational Church, 9 Rainbow Road, East Granby, CT 06026. The lineup will include Leala Cyr, Voice/Trumpet; Jon Fisher, Drums; Matt Dwonszyk, Bass; Dan Liparini, Guitar; Kris Allen, Sax.

Leala Cyr is fast becoming one of the most sought-after jazz vocalists of her generation. A rare “double threat,” Cyr complements her impeccable vocals with a warm, golden tone on the trumpet. As a member of Esperanza Spalding’s “Radio Music and Chamber Music Societies,” she has performed around the world and has appeared on The Late Show, The Tonight Show, The View, The Daily Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live, Austin City Limits, and more.

In February 2019, Cyr released her debut album, First Instinct. A blend of originals and standards, the album showcases her unique talent for vocal improvisation as well as her ingenuity as a songwriter and arranger.

Leala has appeared with her own group at highly regarded venues such as Cornelia Street Café, National Sawdust, Zinc Bar, and Rockwood Music Hall in New York City; Ryles Jazz Club, the Bee Hive, and the Beat Brew Hall in Boston; the Egg in Albany, NY; the Blue Opus in Green Bay, WI; and at the Baby Grand Jazz Series in Hartford, CT.

Her current collaborations range from membership in Jody Redhage Ferber’s group Rose and the Nightingale to an upcoming album with Milton Nascimento, Ricardo Vogt, and Pedro Bernardo.

Over the years, Leala has shared the stage with the likes of Milton Nascimento (in front of 100,000 people at “Rock in Rio”), Terri Lyne Carrington, Ivan Lins, Jamey Haddad, Jeff “Tain” Watts, James Genus, Paul Winter, Guinga, Tia Fuller, Darmon Meader, and Ray Angry.

Highlights from Cyr’s college and high school days include being named DownBeat Magazine’s 2005 “Best Jazz Vocalist” in the college division, receiving the World Tour Scholarship to study at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, and performing with her high school jazz band at the prestigious Essentially Ellington Competition at Lincoln Center in NYC.

A native of Pulaski, WI, Leala now resides on the East Coast, where she is actively involved in a number of music scenes.

For more information about Leala Cyr visit (https://www.lealacyr.com/)

Audience members are encouraged to make a donation to the series. For more information, please visit https://www.egchurch.org or email East Granby Congregational Church’s Music Director, Mary Larew, at marylarew@gmail.com.