Chiara Izzi, vocals.
Michael Potter, piano.
Alan Jones, bass.

$20 cover charge; byob.
For a reservation, call the shop at 415-586-3733.

Chiara Izzi arrived in New York City from Italy in 2014, three years after Quincy Jones awarded her first prize in the 2011 Montreux Jazz Festival Vocal Competition. 

Chiara has said of Quincy Jones, “Having him as the judge…was the luckiest moment of my life. As a young singer, his whispered words, ‘Sister, you are very, very talented,’ made me feel like I belonged. His invitation to move to the U.S. to refine my craft opened my mind to bigger possibilities, encouraging me to take that leap; a leap that was anything but easy, coming from a small town where it’s hard to even think of making a living through music or art. 

Her career has blossomed in America, and she’s well regarded as a refined interpreter of jazz traditions and contemporary styles, as well as a composer with rich influences. Her acclaimed albums include Live in Bremen (2022), praised by DownBeat as “immediate and unfiltered,” Across the Sea (2019) with pianist Kevin Hays, and her debut Motifs (2013). 

With a voice that flows effortlessly between swing, Brazilian influences, and romantic ballads, Chiara reimagines classic Italian songs and jazz standards with elegance and soul, alongside her original compositions and innovative songwriting experiments, on a musical journey where jazz meets lyrical beauty. 

In an All About Jazz review, Michael Bailey praised Chiara as “a force of nature,” while in Jazz Times Travis Rogers described her as “a talent to be heard, admired and anticipated.” 

How that talent has evolved and blossomed since Chiara moved to New York is apparent on her latest releases: Live In Bremen (Dot Time Records/2022), which embodies a classical richness enhanced by Izzi’s stylistic method of blending her lyrics and languages; and  Across The Sea (Jando/2019), a cooperative project with pianist Kevin Hays, who says about Chiara, “There was a sense of sincerity and honesty — a lack of artifice. She has an inner strength that I think is rare.” 

Delivering a vocal that carries a warm, Mediterranean quality, Izzi acknowledges that experiencing music in a highly inspiring place like New York City brings out her best assets as a storyteller, musician, and human being.

“It’s very important for me to make music as a peacemaker, to work creating bridges between different worlds, to put different cultures in communication starting from the music,” says Chiara.