Yvette Norwood-Tiger is an Award-winning jazz vocalist, international touring artist, songwriter, Recording Academy voting member, and founder/director of the Palm Beach International Jazz Festival (www.pbijf.org) A Detroit, Michigan native who hails from a family of musicians, Yvette performs with vocally clean and pure interpretations, while emphasizing intonation and storytelling. Her vocal styling and textures are often compared to that of Ella Fitzgerald and Billie Holiday. In addition to jazz standards, her repertoire includes the Great American Songbook, bebop, and Latin jazz (and performing jazz songs in other languages). In addition to her original jazz compositions, her recordings feature music from great composers such as Cole Porter, Duke Ellington, the Gershwins, John Coltrane, Dexter Gordon, and others. Yvette's CD, LOVE IS, stayed on JAZZWEEK'S charts for over sixteen weeks. Yvette's newest CD, AUTUMN SUN, is a grand tribute to the forefathers of bebop, including Wayne Shorter, Dizzy Gillespie, Thelonious Monk, and others.
Federico Britos There is no greater proof of the universality of jazz and classical music than that which embodies the career and life work of Federico Britos. A titan of the violin, he is as equally adept within the world of jazz as he is in the classical realm, and has built a solid reputation throughout the Southern Hemisphere of the Americas. Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Federico began playing violin at age five. When he was eleven years old, the Rumanian violinist George Boulanger premiered one of Federicos' musical pieces "Capricho Uruguayo". His talent was obvious to many mature musicians who all agreed that he was a gifted musician, capable of playing classical and jazz as well.
Sr. Britos has served as principal chair, soloist, and Concertmaster with some of the great symphony orchestras of Uruguay, Venezuela, Peru, Cuba, and United States (Miami). Federico has toured extensively throughout the Americas and Europe performing with some of Latin America's greatest musicians, such as Astor Piazzolla, Horacio Salgan, Bola de Nieve, Israel Lopez "Cachao", Joao Gilberto, Dorival Caimi, Vinicio de Moraes; He would also share his outstanding talent with Dizzy Gillespie, Dexter Gordon, Duke Ellington, Nat King Cole, Woody Herman, Benny Goodman, Bucky Pizzarelli, Charlie Haden, Ken Peplowski, Eddie Higgins and Charlie Byrd. He has toured Europe with the Hot Club USA and Franck Vignola.
As a composer, Federico has written and recorded many works for orchestra, chamber ensemble, ballet and dance, and has composed music for films, TV and theater. He has performed at many Jazz Festivals: Montreux; San Francisco; Int'l. Jazz Fest in Espoo, Finland; Bern and Basile (Switzerland); North Carolina; New Bern Jazz Fest; Miami Jazz; Puerto Rico Jazz Fest; Summit Jazz (Denver, Colorado); A Celebration of American Fiddle Music (Troy, NY); Django Reinhardt Festival at Birdland Jazz Club in NYC; Miami Beach World Music Fest, and played as special guest in The Grappelli Legacy at Carnegie Hall.
Maestro Britos performed in the Concert Hall of Kennedy Center in Washington in a program called "AMERICANOS", along with Cachao, Nestor Torres, Jose Feliciano, Gloria Estefan and Paquito D'Rivera, produced by James Edward Olmos. He recorded with Cachao on the Grammy award-winner, and "Cuba Linda" was also nominated for the Grammy. He recorded with bassist Charlie Haden, touring with Haden, promoting his CD "Nocturne", Grammy awarded this year. Federico's "Jazz-Ta" was recorded under the label Mini-Records "The First Danzon" with the group "Danzon by Six". Both productions were recorded under the superb musical direction of Federico Britos.
