Kavita Shah has been hailed by Downbeat Magazine as “Best Graduate Jazz Vocalist”, (2012) and was awarded the ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composers Award (2013). She is also a visionary young composer, arranger, and singer. Native New Yorker, Shah is fluent in French, Spanish, Portuguese and French. She also incorporates elements from Indian, Brazilian and Malian musics into her jazz-based repertoire. Lionel Loueke, a Benin-born jazz guitarist, produced her debut CD VISIONS. It combines the sounds and rhythms of West African kora and traditional Indian tablas with jazz quintet. “Visions” was released in the US to great reviews. It features special guests Loueke (guitar and vocals), Steve Wilson(saxophone), flute, and Rogerio Boccato (“percussion”).
