The quintet will perform at the Iowa City Jazz Festival on July 3. Portraits of members of the Mina Jazz Quintet. Thurman went on to be a two-time winner of the ASCAP Herb Alpert Young Jazz Composers Award, a recipient of a Fulbright Scholars Cultural Ambassador Grant and has released multiple full-length albums. “I wanted to figure out what that sound was and be 10 feet tall with my horn like Dexter," she said. She said when she heard Gordon, she heard someone with "confidence, wit, sophistication (and) freedom. She said his “imagination and improvisation” rid her of her insecurities about playing the instrument. Thurman attended a listening class and was introduced to Gordon. I didn’t know or see any artists that I could identify myself with at that young age.” I also never saw a woman play the instrument. All I could think of was the instrument being big, bulky, loud and low, everything opposite of what I loved about the alto. “I knew I was going to be made fun of by students. “I was mortified because I was a petite person and the image of me carrying a big tenor saxophone case was a bit scary,” she said. She’d receive a scholarship to the program if she agreed, something her mother encouraged. Thurman said she had tried playing the alto saxophone and loved it, but was asked to play tenor sax at a neighborhood jazz camp. She credits composer and saxophonist Dexter Gordon as being the “biggest” inspiration for playing the instrument. Thurman plays the bass clarinet, flute and piccolo. The tenor saxophonist told the Press-Citizen in an email that she previously visited Iowa to perform at the Hancher Auditorium with Marsalis and the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra. The musician has shared the stage with Buster Williams, Patti LaBelle, Alicia Keys, Erykah Badu and more. #Iowa city jazz festival fullNew York City native Camille Thurman is a composer, multi-instrumentalist and vocalist who became the first woman in 30 years to tour and perform full time with the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis. She will perform at the Iowa City Jazz Festival on July 3. “That's really the goal for me and of course for the audience to feel some of that joy that I feel when I play.A portrait of Camille Thurman. “I played a gig the other night with a few of my friends and my cheeks hurt at the end of the night because I was smiling so much,” she said. Miller described the trio’s sound as “melody-driven and storytelling.” While they take their musicianship seriously, they also have fun. “And I always say, if I'm playing music that inspires me with musicians that inspire me, I'm happy and I feel really fortunate that I get to do that.” “I feel like I've been very fortunate to have so many incredible opportunities,” she said. Though she’s performed at famous venues like Royal Albert Hall and the Hollywood Bowl, Miller said some of the most powerful moments in her career have been smaller shows, recalling an outdoor performance with her brother amid the COVID-19 pandemic. “I feel like during that period, it was like, ‘We're a band,’ and we just shared a vision of music and friendship,” she said. Miller said the three were all on the same page, and Condos encouraged them to pursue making a record. She called upon Condos for assistance, and the duo were rehearsing music when Bellerose joined in. The trio formed about eight years ago when Miller had a gig and needed a bassist.
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