Sara Gazarek 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 from Seattle.

Life and career

Gazarek was born in Seattle, Washington and moved to Los Angeles in 2000 to attend the

Thornton School of Music The USC Thornton School of Music is a private music school in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1884 only four years after the University of Southern California, the Thornton School is the oldest continually operating arts institution in Los An ...

at the University of Southern California. In college her teachers included Carmen Bradford,

John Clayton John Clayton may refer to: Arts and entertainment Writing *John Clayton (architect) (died 1861), English architect and writer *John Clayton (sportswriter) (1954–2022), American sportswriter and reporter *John Bell Clayton and Martha Clayton, Joh ...

, and

Tierney Sutton Tierney Sutton (born June 28, 1963) is an American jazz singer. Career Sutton was born in Omaha, Nebraska, but grew up in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She received a bachelor's degree from Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, majoring in Ru ...

. Clayton produced her first album, ''Yours'' (2005). The album was a critical and commercial success with a top ten ranking in the ''Billboard'' Traditional Jazz Charts as well as being the top album download in

iTunes iTunes is a media player, media library, and mobile device management (MDM) utility developed by Apple. It is used to purchase, play, download and organize digital multimedia on personal computers running the macOS and Windows operating s ...

for Jazz in Germany and France. Clayton also produced her second album, ''Return to You'' (2007). She recorded ''Where Time Stands Still'' (2010) with the German band Triosence. In the liner notes for ''Blossom and Bee'' (2012) she cited the influence of

Blossom Dearie Margrethe Blossom Dearie (April 28, 1924 – February 7, 2009) was an American jazz singer and pianist. She had a recognizably light and girlish voice. Profile at AllMusic/ref> Dearie performed regular engagements in London and New York City ov ...

. She produced her album ''Thirsty Ghost''. Gazarek returned to the University of Southern California to accept a job on the faculty of jazz studies. She has also taught at the

Eastman School of Music The Eastman School of Music is the music school of the University of Rochester, a private research university in Rochester, New York, United States. Established in 1921 by celebrated industrialist and philanthropist George Eastman, it was the ...

. Since 2020, Gazarek is a member of säje. She shared in the group's 2024 and 2025

Grammy Award for Best Arrangement, Instrumental and Vocals 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 t ...

Awards and honors

* Outstanding Jazz Vocalist Award, Ella Fitzgerald Foundation * Best Collegiate Vocalist, ''DownBeat'' magazine, 2003 *Grammy nomination for album ''Thirsty Ghost'', 2019

Discography

As leader

* '' Yours'' (Native Language, 2005) * '' Live at the Jazz Bakery'' (Native Language, 2006) * '' Return to You'' (Native Language, 2007) * ''

Blossom & Bee ''Blossom & Bee'' is a studio album by American jazz singer Sara Gazarek released on June 19, 2012, by Palmetto Records. All the tracks are cover versions except "Blossom & Bee", which Gazarek wrote with producer Larry Goldings and Bill DeMain, ...

'' (Palmetto, 2012) * ''Duo'' with Josh Nelson (Core Port, 2015) * ''Dream in the Blue'' with Josh Nelson (Steel Bird, 2016) * '' Thirsty Ghost'' (2019) * ''Vanity'' (2022)

As guest

* Triosence, ''Where Time Stands Still'' (Sony, 2010)

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Gazarek, Sara 1982 births 21st-century American singers 21st-century American women singers American jazz singers American women jazz singers Grammy Award winners Living people Native Language Music artists Palmetto Records artists Place of birth missing (living people) Singers from Seattle USC Thornton School of Music alumni