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Melissa Tham - Falling In Love Again (2015)

Posted By: DjangoTiger
Melissa Tham - Falling In Love Again (2015)

Melissa Tham - Falling In Love Again (2015)
MP3 CBR 320 kbps | 12 Tracks | 65:57 | 153 MB
Genre: Jazz, Vocal Jazz | Label: Jazznote Records

Jazz might be a niche genre but that hasn't stopped a new breed of local musicians from dabbling in it. From a sultry jazz diva who used to be a bookworm to an energetic funk quintet that will play its biggest-ever show in London and a musical prodigy who went from best-kept secret to regional star, a new generation of jazz-influenced musicians is adding diversity to the scene.

WINNING the Sing Jazz Emerging Jazz Vocalist of the Year award this year isn't what Melissa Tham would call her biggest accomplishment. Her greatest achievement was taking the plunge and applying herself completely to becoming a professional musician upon finishing secondary school.

"You should have seen me in secondary school," she says. "I was a very shy bookworm . . . so making the untraditional decision to do a diploma course despite knowing that others would question it, was a huge thing for me."

It looks like the decision paid off in spades. Tham has built a solid reputation in the "live" scene from playing regularly; and her debut album, Falling in Love Again, will be released in early May on Jeremy Monteiro's Jazznotes Records label. Recorded in Germany, the album features jazz standards as well as two originals, including the title track with lyrics penned by Tham.

The road that led Tham to music wasn't an altogether smooth one. Having been signed up for piano lessons by her father when she was five, it wasn't until her teenage years when she decided to go for it, thanks to Ms Wong, a particularly inspirational piano teacher. She says: "Ms Wong's teaching style inspired me to want to do more on the piano, maybe even teach it myself."

Tham fell in love with swing music while getting her diploma at Lasalle College of the Arts, where some of her jazz school friends introduced her to the scene. She says: "I love the way the bass player plays quarter notes, and the way the drummer uses his brushes instead of his sticks. You get this feeling when swing is played - it's like you're skipping or falling without ever hitting the ground."

Tham made the transition from playing the piano to singing when she was asked to stand in for someone who'd taken ill, and sing in the lounge at the Meritus Negara Hotel, which is now the Pan-Pacific Hotel. "I was very shy, and didn't know if it would work out, but I really enjoyed it. That was when I knew I wanted to sing too," she adds.

Apart from performing on stage and at gigs, she also teaches singing at local jazz clubs including the Singapore Polytechnic Jazz Club and the NTU Jazz and Blues club to supplement her income. "I didn't decide to become a jazz singer for the money," she laughs. "You have to be realistic and make sure you have the means to sustain the kind of lifestyle you want." (By Avanti Nim)

Tracklist:

01. A Sleeping Bee (4:59)
02. Falling In Love Again (6:00)
03. Just Squeeze Me (7:14)
04. Deep Purple (5:29)
05. Someone To Light Up My Life (5:01)
06. My Ideal (5:00)
07. Lucky Green Blues (4:33)
08. My Ship (6:04)
09. At Long Last Love (4:50)
10. Alone In Paris (5:37)
11. Swing With Me (5:49)
12. Yesterday (5:15)