Alma Zygier is ready to surprise and improvise
Alma Zygier has been surrounded by music her whole life. And while she admits it's 'not the norm' for a 23-year-old to hold such a love of jazz, she wouldn't have it any other way. The AJN spoke to the soulful singer about her upcoming gig at the Melbourne Jazz Festival.
Ella Fitzgerald. Billie Holiday. Louis Armstrong. You could say the greats of jazz.
Perhaps add Alma Zygier to the list, who counts herself exceptionally lucky that she was surrounded by music as a child.
“I got to see a lot of music and experience not just what was on the radio at the time, but all sorts of different stuff, lots of live stuff,” she told The AJN.
I used to love listening to Ella Fitzgerald on YouTube. I fell in love with all of that music in that world.
Zygier describes the likes of Memphis Minnie and Bessie Smith as “gorgeous singers” saying it was easy to appreciate their melodic voices and warm tunes; the kind of music that makes you feel something rather than just aimlessly bop along to the lyrics.
Explaining that she didn’t know what else to do when she finished school, she went to jazz school at Monash University, but soon dropped out, realising it wasn’t for her. But then, things became real, with her first ever gig at Shir Madness, which her parents brought to Melbourne.
“It was definitely nepotism that I got the gig, my parents were booking it,” she laughed. “But from this, the amazing Jewish community started supporting me. The community was actually very instrumental in where I am today.”
Over the past few years, Zygier has seen a slight shift in the way young people appreciate music, saying that more and more of the younger generation are coming to her gigs.
“It’s nice to have a diverse audience,” she said.
And soon, she’ll be back on stage as part of the Melbourne International Jazz Festival.
While she has spent much of Melbourne’s most recent lockdown living it up in relatively-free Brisbane, she’s very excited to be back on stage in her hometown.
It’s all opening up and it seems like spirits have lifted astronomically which is wonderful. I can’t wait to be part of it again. I really missed it.
As to what people can expect at the show, Zygier says it’s a whole new range.
“The show has evolved and evolved, and then evolved again,” she explained. “It’s not just early blues and jazz now, it’s all sorts of things.”
While she describes it as a “weird, eclectic journey” she hopes audiences will be pleasantly surprised with songs that they recognise and songs that they don’t.
“There’ll be something in it for a lot of different people.”
The Melbourne International Jazz Festival runs December 2-5. Alma Zygier will be performing on Sunday, December 5 at Malvern Town Hall. For tickets: melbournejazz.com