“Jazz vocalist Denise Donatelli is a breath of fresh air in a market seemingly saturated with female singers. Her debut recording is a stunning effort. Donatelli has a warm, sensuous voice and doesn’t resort to histrionics to get her message across.”

A late bloomer due to her focusing on parenthood and an earlier career with CNN, vocalist Denise Donatelli has continued to develop with a depth of feeling and a broad musical palette open to exploring many styles of jazz. Her fourth CD (and third for Savant) finds her again with pianist/music directorGeoff Keezer and guitarist Peter Sprague, with a supporting cast that varies from track to track. Donatelliputs a new twist on the standard “All or Nothing at All,” buoyed by Keezer’s catchy, Afro-Peruvian arrangement, and potent solos by Keezer and acoustic guitarist Ramon Stagnaro. The other standard, “Too Late Now,” is a lush duet by Donatelli with Keezer as her sole accompanist, where the vocalist’s adept phrasing and use of space conveys its lyric perfectly. Two songs were penned by jazz veterans. The scoring of Wayne Shorter’s “A Promise (Someplace Called Where)” (with a lyric by Dianne Reeves) utilizes strings and soprano saxophonist Tim Garland to provide an intricate backing for the singer.Donald Brown’s “Ange” is a demanding, Brazilian-flavored work which Donatelli performs flawlessly as if it had long been part of her repertoire. From there, Donatelli expands her scope to contemporary jazz, pop, and works by singer/songwriters. She shows her playful side in the light-hearted “Another Day,” scatting along with Sprague’s guitar, followed by Keezer’s spry solo, and takes flight in her hip, Brazilian-tinged rendition of Joe Sample’s “Soul Shadows.” Donatelli captures the essence of “When I Looked Again,” a collaborative effort by Christian McBride and Sting that was recorded by them but unissued, with effective overdubbed harmony vocals judiciously used in Keezer’s arrangement. With so many jazz vocalists competing for attention, Denise Donatelli easily stands out from the pack with her versatile, creative repertoire and strong voice

“Denise Donatelli – With a warm, embracing voice, a solid sense of swing and an intuitive gift for interpretation, Donatelli has all the right stuff for engaging jazz vocalizing.”

~ Don Heckman, International Review of Music

“One of the jazz vocal world’s most eminently listenable talents, Donatelli still doesn’t quite get the attention her superb interpretive talents deserve.”

~ Don Heckman, Picks of the Week: August 11-16, International Review of Music

“Denise Donatelli is definitely up for another Grammy consideration for this superb CD of her stylish, right-in-the-middle-of-perfect vocals on this fully polished and professional CD simply titled SOUL SHADOWS – and a more perfect title would be hard to find. The first song on the CD (of ten varied and fascinatingly blended stylistic variations) sets the tone for this beautiful and gifted artist – ‘All or Nothing at All’ – describes her current stature in the jazz world. Donatelli elects to incorporate her voice within the context of her ensemble – she keeps the backgrounds small and is graced with the presence of Music Director/accompanist Geoffrey Keezer who continues to allow the singer to be enmeshed in the total effect of the music and the lyrics.

Of the many superb cuts on this CD among the best are `All or Nothing At All’ – a mystical Afro-Peruvian arrangement with potent solos by Keezer and acoustic guitarist Ramon Stagnaro, ‘Soul Shadows’ ,`Ocean’, the mesmerizing `Postcards and Messages’, `Two late Now’ – a rich duet by Donatelli with Keezer as her sole accompanist, and, well, all of them! Denise Donatelli owns a magnificent voice with a very wide range and is so at home in every style she approaches that she both excites and soothes with every note she sings. She is as fine as they come – beautiful, talented, and a committed artist on every level.”

“Denise Donatelli owns a magnificent voice with a very wide range and is so at home in every style she approaches that she both excites and soothes with every note she sings. She is definitely in her shining hour!”

“With her silky voice, rhythmically supple phrasing and emotionally incisive interpretation of familiar lyrics, Denise Donatelli would stand out on any city’s jazz scene.”

~ Andrew Gilbert, San Jose Mercury News

“I raved about Denise Donatelli in Financial Mail (July, 2009). She now has a new CD out on Savant named When Lights are Low, which has garnered two Grammy nominations for Best Jazz Vocal Album and Best Instrumental Arrangement Accompanying Vocalist(s) for Geoffrey Keezer´s arrangement of “Don´t Explain”. Donatelli and Keezer fit together like two pieces of a jigsaw puzzle.”

~ Don Albert, NewsTime

~ Josef Woodard, News-press correspondent

Denise Donatelli and Geoffrey Keezer

“Donatelli is quickly becoming one of today’s top jazz vocalists. …one of those voices that will age well like a fine vintage wine. The packed audience at the Douglas Beach House responded with a warm welcome. By the time the evening drew to a close, the sophisticated jazz audience was mesmerized – gave her and her band a standing ovation. She is certainly a jazz singer we are going to hear a lot more from for decades to come.”