Kurt Elling (born November 2, 1967) is an American

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

singer and songwriter. Born in

Chicago, Illinois Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

, and raised in Rockford, Elling became interested in music through his father, who was Kapellmeister at a Lutheran church. He sang in choirs and played musical instruments. He encountered jazz while a student at Gustavus Adolphus College in Minnesota. After college, he enrolled in the

University of Chicago Divinity School The University of Chicago Divinity School is a graduate professional school at the University of Chicago dedicated to the training of academics and clergy across religious boundaries. Formed under Baptist auspices, the school today is without ...

, but he left one credit short of a degree to pursue a career as a jazz vocalist. Elling began to perform around Chicago,

scat singing Originating in vocal jazz, scat singing or scatting is vocal Musical improvisation, improvisation with Non-lexical vocables in music, wordless vocables, Pseudoword#Nonsense syllables, nonsense syllables or without words at all. In scat singing, t ...

and improvising his lyrics. He recorded a demo in the early 1990s and was signed by

Blue Note Blue Note Records is an American jazz record label now owned by Universal Music Group and operated under Capitol Music Group. Established in 1939 by German-Jewish emigrants Alfred Lion and Max Margulis, it derived its name from the blue no ...

. He has been nominated for ten Grammy Awards, winning Best Vocal Jazz Album for '' Dedicated to You'' (2009) and '' Secrets Are the Best Stories ''(2021). Elling often leads the ''

Down Beat ''DownBeat'' (styled in all caps) is an American music magazine devoted to "jazz, blues and beyond", the last word indicating its expansion beyond the jazz realm that it covered exclusively in previous years. The publication was established in 1 ...

'' magazine Critics' Poll. He had a longtime collaboration with pianist Laurence Hobgood, leading a quartet that toured throughout the world.

Early life

Elling was born in Chicago, Illinois on November 2, 1967, the son of Henry and Martha Elling. His interest in music started with his father, who was

Kapellmeister ( , , ), from German (chapel) and (master), literally "master of the chapel choir", designates the leader of an ensemble of musicians. Originally used to refer to somebody in charge of music in a chapel, the term has evolved considerably in i ...

at a Lutheran church. See also: Elling attended elementary school at St. Paul Lutheran School in Rockford, and throughout his early years, he sang in choirs and played violin, French horn, piano, and drums. During his middle school years, Elling remembers watching

Tony Bennett Anthony Dominick Benedetto (August 3, 1926 – July 21, 2023), known professionally as Tony Bennett, was an American jazz and traditional pop singer. He received many accolades, including 20 Grammy Awards, a Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award, ...

and the

Woody Herman Woodrow Charles Herman (May 16, 1913 – October 29, 1987) was an American jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roo ...

band on television and imagining what it would be like to sing with a band. Growing up, Elling sang in the classical style, learning

counterpoint In music theory, counterpoint is the relationship of two or more simultaneous musical lines (also called voices) that are harmonically dependent on each other, yet independent in rhythm and melodic contour. The term originates from the Latin ...

from the

motet In Western classical music, a motet is mainly a vocal musical composition, of highly diverse form and style, from high medieval music to the present. The motet was one of the preeminent polyphonic forms of Renaissance music. According to the Eng ...

s of

Johann Sebastian Bach Johann Sebastian Bach (German: Help:IPA/Standard German, �joːhan zeˈbasti̯an baχ ( – 28 July 1750) was a German composer and musician of the late Baroque music, Baroque period. He is known for his prolific output across a variety ...

. At Rockford Lutheran High School, in Rockford, Illinois, Elling continued to sing in the choir: "When it was undeniably uncool and geeky and all that, to be in the choir, I did it anyway, because it was reliably beautiful, and it was rewarding, and it gave me gifts of experience and friendships." One of these experiences was that of singing the

National Anthem A national anthem is a patriotic musical composition symbolizing and evoking eulogies of the history and traditions of a country or nation. The majority of national anthems are marches or hymns in style. American, Central Asian, and European ...

with the high school madrigal choir, "Joyful Sounds" under the direction of Joyce Kortze in front of his first large crowd of over 40,000 people. Green Mill Cocktail Lounge

Elling attended Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota, where he majored in history and minored in religion. In college, Elling sang in the 70-voice Gustavus Choir, an a cappella choir that performed works from a variety of different composers, allowing him to hone his technical skills. Elling also toured Europe with his college choir. He became interested in jazz at Gustavus Adolphus while listening to

Dave Brubeck David Warren Brubeck (; December 6, 1920 – December 5, 2012) was an American jazz pianist and composer. Often regarded as a foremost exponent of cool jazz, Brubeck's work is characterized by unusual time signatures and superimposing contrasti ...

Dexter Gordon Dexter Gordon (February 27, 1923 – April 25, 1990) was an American jazz tenor saxophonist, composer, and bandleader. He was among the most influential early bebop musicians. Gordon's height was , so he was also known as "Long Tall Dexter" an ...

Herbie Hancock Herbert Jeffrey Hancock (born April 12, 1940) is an American jazz musician, bandleader, and composer. He started his career with trumpeter Donald Byrd's group. Hancock soon joined the Miles Davis Quintet, where he helped to redefine the role of ...

, and

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April25, 1917June15, 1996) was an American singer, songwriter and composer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phra ...

. After graduating from Gustavus Adolphus in 1989, Elling enrolled in graduate school at the

where he studied for his master's degree in

philosophy of religion Philosophy of religion is "the philosophical examination of the central themes and concepts involved in religious traditions". Philosophical discussions on such topics date from ancient times, and appear in the earliest known Text (literary theo ...

. He thought about continuing work in academia or working for the

World Council of Churches The World Council of Churches (WCC) is a worldwide Christian inter-church organization founded in 1948 to work for the cause of ecumenism. Its full members today include the Assyrian Church of the East, most jurisdictions of the Eastern Orthodo ...

when he graduated. He began playing jazz gigs once a week during graduate school, with one of his first shows at Milt Trenier's, a basement club in Chicago (now defunct). He earned little money at these gigs, but Karl Johnson, the house pianist, was his mentor and teacher. Elling recalls, "By day I was reading Kant and Schleiermacher, trying to get a handle on that, and at night I was sitting-in in clubs, and, of course, you can't do both and be effective. Eventually Saturday night won out over Sunday morning." He remained a graduate student until January 1992, when he left school one credit short of graduation. In Chicago, Elling worked as a bartender and as a mover. He sang at weddings in addition to clubs. At this time, he began singing in a scat style and improvising his own lyrics. Elling began listening to the vocalese of jazz singer Mark Murphy, who exposed him to the poetry of

Jack Kerouac Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac (; March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969), known as Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Of French-Canadian ...

. The minimalism and emotion of

Chet Baker Chesney Henry "Chet" Baker Jr. (December 23, 1929 – May 13, 1988) was an American jazz trumpeter and vocalist. He is known for major innovations in cool jazz that led him to be nicknamed the "Prince of Cool". Baker earned much attention and ...

's music was also influential.

Career

While living in Chicago in 1995, Elling decided he was ready to record. He had met pianist Laurence Hobgood through Ed Petersen, who played the Green Mill on Monday nights. Elling convinced Hobgood that he was ready to go into the studio, and they came out with nine solid songs. Following the advice of pianist Fred Simon, the cassette recording was sent to Bill Traut, a manager in Los Angeles, who eventually gave it to Bruce Lundvall of

. In 1995, Elling signed with Blue Note, and the songs on the demo became the Grammy nominated label debut, '' Close Your Eyes'' (1995). The album features Edward Petersen and

Von Freeman Earle Lavon "Von" Freeman Sr. (October 3, 1923 – August 11, 2012) was an American hard bop jazz tenor saxophonist. Biography Born in Chicago, Illinois, Freeman was exposed as a young child to jazz. His father, George, a city policeman, was a ...

on tenor saxophone, Dave Onderdonk on guitar, Laurence Hobgood on piano, Eric Hochberg and Rob Amster on double bass, and

Paul Wertico Paul Wertico (born January 5, 1953, in Chicago, Illinois) is an American drummer. He gained recognition as a member of the Pat Metheny Group from 1983 until 2001, leaving the group to spend more time with his family and to pursue other musical i ...

on drums. On his second Blue Note album, ‘’ The Messenger’’ (1997), Elling included a distinctive rendition of “Nature Boy,” the jazz standard written by eden ahbez and popularized by Nat King Cole. Arranged with pianist Laurence Hobgood, Elling’s version features his signature vocalese style, blending poetic lyricism with improvisational scat singing. The track, praised for its fresh interpretation, became a fan favorite and a staple in his live performances, including a notable 2008 performance with the Sydney Symphony Orchestra and a 2001 set at the Newport Jazz Festival. Kurt Elling2

In 1999, Elling became a National Trustee for the

National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences National Academy of Recording Arts & Sciences, Inc. (NARAS), doing business as The Recording Academy, is an American Learned society, learned academy of musicians, producers, recording engineers, and other musical professionals. It is widely kno ...

, and in 2003 he was elected vice-chair and served two terms. In 2006, Elling performed on the television program '' Legends of Jazz'', in the episode "The Jazz Singers". Elling sang "She's Funny That Way" and performed a duet with

Al Jarreau Alwin Lopez Jarreau (March 12, 1940 – February 12, 2017) was an American singer and songwriter. His 1981 album '' Breakin' Away'' spent two years on the ''Billboard'' 200 and is considered one of the finest examples of the Los Angeles pop and ...

on " Take Five". The recording was released on CD and DVD. In August of the same year, Elling signed a contract with

Concord Jazz Concord Jazz is a record company and label founded in 1973 by Carl Jefferson, the former owner of Jefferson Motors Lincoln Mercury dealership in Concord, California. The label was named after the city in the East San Francisco Bay area, and the ...

, and his first album with the label, '' Nightmoves'', was released in 2007. The follow-up, '' Dedicated to You: Kurt Elling Sings the Music of Coltrane and Hartman'' (2009), is a tribute to the 1963 recording '' John Coltrane and Johnny Hartman'', widely recognized as one of the all-time finest jazz vocal albums. The album arose out of a 2005 concert commissioned by the Chicago Jazz Festival, showcasing the Coltrane-Hartman material. Later, Elling and pianist Laurence Hobgood rearranged the music, culminating in a performance in the Allen Room at the

Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts (also simply known as Lincoln Center) is a complex of buildings in the Lincoln Square neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan. It has thirty indoor and outdoor facilities and is host to 5 ...

in New York. The concert was recorded in January 2009 and the album was released in June. Elling is a baritone with a four-octave range, and a writer and performer of vocalese, writing and performing words over improvised jazz solos. In 2007, 2012 and 2020, Circumstantial Productions published three editions of ''Lyrics: Kurt Elling'', collections of Elling's vocalese lyrics edited by Richard Connolly.

Collaborators

Elling has performed and recorded with David Amram,

Randy Bachman Randolph Charles Bachman ( ; born September 27, 1943) is a Canadian guitarist, singer, and songwriter. He was a founding member of the bands The Guess Who and Bachman–Turner Overdrive. He was the writer and singer of several hit rock songs, ...

, Bob Belden, Joanne Brackeen, Oscar Brown Jr., Jodie Christian,

Billy Corgan William Patrick Corgan Jr. (born March 17, 1967) is an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, and professional wrestling promoter. He is best known as the co-founder, lead guitarist, primary songwriter, singer, and only constant member of alter ...

, Orbert Davis, George Freeman,

Buddy Guy George "Buddy" Guy (born July 30, 1936) is an American blues guitarist and singer. He is an exponent of Chicago blues who has influenced generations of guitarists including Eric Clapton, Jimi Hendrix, Jimmy Page, Keith Richards, Stevie Ray Vaug ...

, Jon Hendricks, Charlie Hunter,

Bob Mintzer Robert Alan Mintzer (born January 27, 1953) is an American jazz saxophonist, composer, arranger, and big band leader. Early life Mintzer was born and raised in a Jewish family in New Rochelle, New York, on January 27, 1953. He attended the Inte ...

Brad Mehldau Bradford Alexander Mehldau (; born August 23, 1970) is an American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger. Mehldau studied music at The New School, touring and recording while still a student. He was a member of saxophonist Joshua Redman's quar ...

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, John Pizzarelli, and Bob Sheppard. Until November 2013, Elling's band included musical director Laurence Hobgood on piano, John McLean on guitar, Clark Sommers on bass, and drummer Kendrick Scott. Howard Reich's wrote in his November 6, 2013 column "My kind of Jazz" in the ''Chicago Tribune'', that Elling and Hobgood would be going separate ways. Hobgood linked to that article from his website. Elling's website announced the change on November 12, 2013. The band included a rotating series of pianists until October 2015 when Gary Versace became Kurt Elling's first-call pianist and was added to the Band page on Elling's website. Then in August 2016, Stu Mindeman took over as piano chair and Versace's page was moved to Extended Family. In 2016 he was a member of Branford Marsalis's quartet. He toured with the band and performed on the album ''Upward Spiral'', which was nominated for a Grammy Award. Marsalis co-produced Elling's album ''

The Questions The Questions were a Scottish pop band, active during the late 1970s and early 1980s. History The Questions formed in the summer of 1977 at St. Augustine's High School in Edinburgh, and performed their first gig in December of that year a ...

'' and performed on three songs.

Personal life

In 1996, Elling married dancer Jennifer Carney. Their daughter Luiza was born in 2005. In the same year, the Ellings purchased a condominium from

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

Hyde Park, Chicago Hyde Park is a neighborhood on the South Side, Chicago, South Side of Chicago, Illinois, located on and near the shore of Lake Michigan south of Chicago Loop, the Loop. It is one of the city's 77 community areas of Chicago, community areas. ...

. The Ellings moved to New York in 2008.

Discography

As leader

* ''Coming of Age'' (Self Adhesive Records, 1991) * '' Close Your Eyes'' (

, 1995) * '' The Messenger'' (Blue Note, 1997) * '' This Time It's Love'' (Blue Note, 1998) * '' Live in Chicago'' (Blue Note, 2000) * '' Flirting with Twilight'' (Blue Note, 2001) * '' Man in the Air'' (Blue Note, 2003) * '' Nightmoves'' (

, 2007) * '' Dedicated to You: Kurt Elling Sings the Music of Coltrane and Hartman'' (Concord, 2009) * '' The Gate'' (Concord, 2011) * '' 1619 Broadway – The Brill Building Project'' (Concord, 2012) * ''Passion World'' (Concord, 2015) * ''The Beautiful Day: Kurt Elling Sings Christmas'' (

Okeh OKeh Records () is an American record label founded by the Otto Heinemann Phonograph Corporation, a phonograph supplier established in 1916, which branched out into phonograph records in 1918. The name originally was spelled "OkeH" from the init ...

, 2016) * ''

'' (Okeh, 2018) * ''Secrets Are the Best Stories'' ( Edition, 2020) * ''Wildflowers, Vol. 1'' (with Sullivan Fortner) (Edition, 2024) * ''Wildflowers, Vol. 2'' (with Sullivan Fortner) (Edition, 2024) With SuperBlue (with Charlie Hunter) * ''SuperBlue'' (Edition, 2021) * ''SuperBlue: The London Sessions (Live)'' P(Edition, 2022) * ''SuperBlue: The Iridescent Spree'' (Edition, 2023) * ''SuperBlue: Guilty Pleasures'' (featuring Nate Smith) P(Edition, 2023)

As guest

With Laurence Hobgood * ''Left to My Own Devices...'' (Naim, 2000) * ''Crazy World'' (Naim, 2005) * ''When the Heart Dances'' (Naim, 2009) * ''Christmas'' (Circumstantial Productions, 2013) With

* ''Live at MCG'' (2004) * ''Old School, New Lessons'' (2006) * ''Swing Out'' (2008) With others * Bob Belden – ''Shades of Blue'' (Blue Note, 1996) *

The Manhattan Transfer The Manhattan Transfer was an American vocal group founded in 1969 in New York City, performing music genres like a cappella, Brazilian jazz, Swing music, swing, vocalese, rhythm and blues, Pop music, pop, and standards. They have won eleven G ...

– ''Swing'' (Atlantic, 1997) * Yellowjackets – '' Club Nocturne'' (1998) * Joanne Brackeen – '' Pink Elephant Magic'' (Arkadia Jazz, 1999) * Charlie Hunter – ''Songs from the Analog Playground'' (2001) * George Freeman – ''At Long Last George'' (2001) * Jackie Allen – ''The Men in My Life'' (2003) * Jon Weber – ''Simple Complex'' (2004) *

Fred Hersch Fred Hersch (born October 21, 1955) is an American jazz pianist, composer, and a 17-time Grammy nominée. He was the first person to play weeklong engagements as a solo pianist at the Village Vanguard in New York City. He has recorded more than ...

– ''Leaves of Grass'' (2005) *

Till Brönner Till Brönner (; born 6 May 1971 in Viersen, West Germany) is a German jazz trumpeter, Flugelhorn, flügelhorn player, singer, composer, producer and photographer. History From 1989–1991, Brönner was a member of the Peter Herbolzheimer Rhyt ...

– ''Rio'' (2008) * John Pizzarelli – '' Rockin' in Rhythm: A Tribute to Duke Ellington'' (2010) * The Claudia Quintet – ''What Is the Beautiful?'' (Cuneiform, 2011) *

– ''Rhythm Sessions'' (Concord, 2012) * Kate McGarry – ''Girl Talk'' (2012) * Aki Yashiro – ''Live in New York'' (2013) * Renee Fleming – ''Christmas in New York'' (2014) * Harold Mabern – '' Afro Blue'' (Smoke Sessions, 2015) * Branford Marsalis – ''

Upward Spiral ''The Rise and Fall of the Great Powers: Economic Change and Military Conflict from 1500 to 2000'', by Paul Kennedy, first published in 1987, explores the politics and economics of the Great Powers from 1500 to 1980 and the reason for their decl ...

'' (Marsalis Music/Okeh, 2016) *

– '' Finding Gabriel'' (Nonesuch, 2019)

Awards and nominations

Elling has won the ''

'' Critics Poll thirteen times, from 2000–2012, and the

Readers Poll seven times and the ''

JazzTimes ''JazzTimes'' was an American print magazine devoted to jazz. Published 10 times a year, it was founded in Washington, D.C., in 1970 by Ira Sabin as the newsletter ''Radio Free Jazz'' to complement his record store. Coverage After a decade ...

'' Readers' Poll eight times, all in the Male Vocalist of the Year category. He has also received the Jazz Journalists Association Male Singer of the Year award eight times. In 2010 he was awarded the Edison/Jazz World award for '' The Gate''. The Edison is the Dutch equivalent of a Grammy. In 2012 he was honored as the first Jazz Ambassador at the Silesian Jazz Festival in Poland, and he also won the German Echo Jazz award and the Scottish Jazz Award – International category. In 2013 he was named International Jazz Artist of the Year in the Jazz FM Awards (UK).

Grammy Awards

The

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards, stylized as GRAMMY, and often referred to as The Grammys, are awards presented by The Recording Academy of the United States to recognize outstanding achievements in music. They are regarded by many as the most prestigious ...

s are awarded annually by the

of the United States. On January 31, 2010, Elling won his first Grammy Award in the category of Best Jazz Vocal Album for the album '' Dedicated to You: Kurt Elling Sings the Music of Coltrane and Hartman'' on the Concord Jazz label. , - , , 1995 , '' Close Your Eyes'' , Best Jazz Vocal Performance , , - , , 1997 , '' The Messenger'' , Best Jazz Vocal Performance , , - , , 1998 , '' This Time it's Love'' , Best Jazz Vocal Performance , , - , , 2000 , '' Live in Chicago'' , Best Jazz Vocal Album , , - , rowspan="2", 2001 , '' Flirting with Twilight'' , Best Jazz Vocal Album , , - , "Easy Living" , Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying a Vocalist , , - , , 2003 , '' Man in the Air'' , Best Jazz Vocal Album , , - , , 2007 , '' Nightmoves'' , Best Jazz Vocal Album , , - , , 2009 , '' Dedicated to You'' , Best Jazz Vocal Album , , - , , 2012 , '' The Gate'' , Best Jazz Vocal Album , , - , , 2013 , '' 1619 Broadway – The Brill Building Project'' , Best Jazz Vocal Album , , - , 2016 , ''Upward Spiral'' , Best Jazz Vocal Album , , - , 2021 , ''Secrets are the Best Stories'' (featuring

Danilo Pérez Danilo Pérez (born December 29, 1966) is a Panamanian pianist, composer, educator, and a social activist. His music is a blend of Panamanian roots with elements of Latin American folk music, jazz, European impressionism, African, and other mu ...

) , Best Jazz Vocal Album , , - , 2022 , ''SuperBlue'' , Best Jazz Vocal Album , , - , 2024 , ''SuperBlue: The Iridescent Spree'' , Best Alternative Jazz Album , , - , 2025 , ''Wildflowers, Vol.1'' , Best Jazz Vocal Album ,

Publications

* *

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Elling, Kurt 1967 births American jazz singers Gustavus Adolphus College alumni Living people Okeh Records artists Concord Records artists Blue Note Records artists Grammy Award winners Vocalese singers Singers from Chicago Musicians from Rockford, Illinois American baritones University of Chicago Divinity School alumni Jazz musicians from Illinois American male jazz musicians Edition Records artists