Sandy Cressman

nce in a while, an artist is born with an inexplicable connection to a culture far from the artist’s origins. Such is the case with Sandy Cressman. Born in New York City, Cressman began her recording career with the highly acclaimed vocal trio Pastiche, with whom she recorded three CDs, “That’s R&Bebop” (Pony/Canyon/Nova) “Remember That” (BluePrint), and “Pastiche”(Summit).

Sandy’s connection with Brazilian music was first sparked when she first heard the music of Ivan Lins while in college as a vocal jazz major San Jose State University. Sandy began exploring the music of of Ivan Lins, Djavan, Milton Nascimento, Dori Caymmi, Toninho Horta, Elis Regina, Gal Costa, Jobim and other and began to study Portuguese. In 1999, she released “Homenagem Brasileira”, produced by Marcos Silva, a critically acclaimed tribute to the great composers and performers of Brazilian Jazz. In 2005, Sandy released “Brasil-Sempre no Coração”. She has since collaborated with many important contemporary Brazilian musicians, including Jovino Santos Neto, Weber Iago Dani & Debora Gurgel and SpokFrevo.

 In Fall 2016, Sandy will release her new CD, “Entre Amigos”, which will include original compositions she has written with Brazilian Jazz musicians from around the world.

Cressman has performed at festivals and concert venues in the U.S, the UK, France, Austria, Switzerland and Germany, and in 2015, was a featured guest on the MainStage of Carnaval in Recife, Brazil. Cressman also collaborates regularly with Latin Jazz guitarist and composer Ray Obiedo, in their group “Mistura Fina”, which combines Brazilian, Latin and Caribbean jazz. She is also an in demand studio vocalist, performing guest vocals on recordings of artists such as Pete Escovedo, Ray Obiedo, Jai Uttal, Andy Narell and more. Sandy is an Adjunct Professor at the California Jazz Conservatory, an Artist in Residence at the Nueva School, and teaches workshops in Vocal Jazz, Brazilian Music, and the vocal technique she created, ConnectedVoice.