In a week
which saw the passing of Barbara Cook and Glen Campbell, music lovers around
the country were saddened to learn of the death of “Australia’s first lady of
jazz singing”, Janet Seidel, who died quietly in her sleep this week with close
family by her side. Janet was diagnosed with ovarian cancer late last year, but
typically, chose to keep the information private and continued to give concerts
around the country with her trio.
Raised on
the family dairy farm at Mt. Compass in South Australia, Janet commenced
playing piano at an early age, and in high school played leading roles in
several musical productions.After
graduating from the University of Adelaide as Bachelor of Music, she was a high
school music teacher for some years as well as a regular performer in many
Adelaide venues.
In 1982 she
went overseas and spent six months performing extensively in London, Stockholm
and the Greek Islands, receiving numerous offers of regular work all around
Europe.
Preferring
to return home she formed a jazz trio in Adelaide with her brother, David, an
experienced and accomplished bassist, and jazz drummer, Billy Ross. They worked
steadily at upmarket venues around Adelaide until she moved to Sydney in 1985.
During the
next few years in Sydney, Janet worked consistently playing in 5 star hotel
cocktail lounges, interspersed with trips to Europe as well as performing all
over the USA as pianist for the Four Kinsmen. She also undertook solo work in
London and Paris.
In recent
years Janet and her brother David have embarked on various recording projects
and established an independent recording label, La Brava Music, collaborating with many of the country’s top jazz
musicians to produce a string of top-selling albums including the
internationally acclaimed series, The Art
of Lounge.
When they
appeared at The School of Arts Café in Queanbeyan in 2000, The Janet Seidel
Trio were already well established as one of the country’s foremost jazz
ensembles. However for their inaugural season at The School of Arts Café, Janet
together with David, and guitarist, Chuck Morgan, created their first cabaret
show. It was called “Doris and Me”, paying
tribute to one of Janet’s earliest
musical influences, and to whom Janet’s voice had often been likened, Doris
Day.
“Doris
and Me”, was an immediate success, and a whole new audience in cabaret rooms around the world discovered the Janet Seidel Trio. Janet had written a
charming, witty script, which detailed similarities between her own career
trajectory and that of Day’s. Janet proved to be a captivating story-teller and
Day’s repertoire fitted her warm vocal style and sunny personality like a glove.
Accompanying herself on piano, and backed by the elegant musicianship of David and
Chuck, Janet entranced audiences with her ability to make each person in the
room feel that her story was just for them.
“Doris and Me” spawned a best-selling CD of the same name,
and provided the template for a whole series of cabarets and CD’s by the trio, celebrating
the repertoires of Blossom Dearie, Peggy Lee, Cole Porter, Johnny Mercer, Ella
Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and only this year, George and Ira Gershwin.
In addition
to appearing in cabaret venues and festivals around Australia, The Janet Seidel
Trio undertook regular international tours, headlining, and drawing rave
reviews in London’s famed Ronnie Scott’s
Jazz Club and in venues in the US, Europe, the Middle East, south-east Asia and
particularly in Japan.
Janet and
her trio had also built a large and loyal audience in Canberra over the years
through their regular performances at the Canberra Southern Cross Club, The
School of Arts Café, The National Press Club, The Street Theatre and the
National Gallery of Australia.
Bill
Stephens OAM
