Sony will also present a Masterclass at Trollwood Performing Arts School on Tuesday, September 15 at 7:00 PM and a Masterclass at Fargo North High School at 2:00 PM.
Sony Holland is a singer who knows her way around the standards. With a style that is both sophisticated and emotionally direct, her interpretations of the Great American Songbook show a deep respect and love for the material while adding an unmistakable spark of personality. Ms. Holland was born in Pelican Rapids, Minnesota, and went to High School at Fargo North and spent her summers at Trollwood Performing Arts School. She studied voice at Concordia College. It was while spending a year in Paris, France that she caught the jazz bug and found her musical raison d’etre.
For the past six years Sony has made San Francisco her base. In a city legendary for its jazz lore, she started out singing on the streets of Fisherman’s Wharf and soon became a favorite at the Bay Area’s top jazz venues and festivals. Her popularity has carried over to Asia where she has made three extended performance tours. She has also performed at the world’s premier jazz rooms, including the Blue Note in New York City, Catalina’s in Los Angeles and Yoshi’s Jazz Club in Oakland and San Francisco.
Ms. Holland’s three CDs have helped to spread her music globally. Dr. Mike Metheny, the programmer for RadioIo, (one of the internets most popular jazz radio sites) says, "She delivers passion and elegance through every phrase... The voice is warm... full, and engaging. Sony is becoming a favorite request from our world wide listening audience..." Yet seeing her perform live one immediately knows that the best is yet to come. Perhaps this spark initiates from her roots as a street performer. One gets the sense that she has a deep appreciation for the privilege of being on stage… and she sings with a clarity and authenticity that is impossible not to enjoy.
Ms. Holland has frequently donated her talents to benefit concerts for a variety of causes including AIDS relief and Leukemia research for which she has appeared with diverse celebrities such as Rita Moreno, Jane Russell, Latoya London, Tuck & Patti, Carole Cook, Mary Wilson, Petula Clark, Paul Williams and many others.
Sony’s recent shows have featured new material that expands on her repertoire of standards to include compositions by Rufus Waingwright, Bob Dylan, Carla Bruni, Elton John and her husband, Jerry Holland. The couple met in Nashville on a blind date. At the time Jerry was a staff-songwriter for Warner/Chappell Publishing. He wrote the #1 Billboard Country Hit “Friends” by Atlantic artist John Michael Montgomery. Holland’s songs have also been recorded by Reba McEntire and others. Sony’s current CD, OUT OF THIS WORLD 2009, includes three of Mr. Holland’s original compositions, ITS AN UNDERSTATEMENT, I’LL LEAD THE WAY AND BY THE SEA.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3SduZKzfJw
