Review: HARMONY FOR THE HOLIDAY WITH DUCHESS Is a Delight at Birdland

Christmas is the season of hope – hoping for joy, harmony, and goodwill. Easier said than done.  But harmony – vocal harmony that sounds good – will be an easy thing to find if you seek out the sounds of Duchess. This accomplished vocal trio’s tight harmonies can be heavenly, hot and “holiday happy.”  Amy Cervini, Hilary Gardner, and Melissa Stylianou are the three “thrushes” (to use an old term for female vocalists popular in the era of music they often draw upon for material).  They brought their brio and bright-eyed presence to a show called Harmony for the Holiday with Duchess, featuring Christmas songs, winter songs, and some not-at-all-holiday-connected songs to Birdland’s downstairs space for one night (Thursday, December 19th). And their act brought cozy comfort and joy, humor and high spirits, the Christmas spirit and spunk to a very full audience. 

Like the plain evidence of a long trail of footsteps in the snow, it would be clear even to those new to the delights of Duchess that they’ve been down these musical paths before.  The polish and command of the material and arrangements they’ve recorded and performed live over the years are apparent. But there’s no impression of being on “automatic pilot” due to frequent flyer miles logged as their blending voices soar and float. Energy and smiles abound.  However, Duchess devotees or detectives could point out the selections that have been in their live performances and recordings (one of which is a recording of a live performance) and physical copies of that and two other albums by the trio were for sale at the show.  (Their six-track EP from 2018,  Harmony for the Holidays, is a digital-only release.)  The terrific band for the Birdland set included musicians they’ve worked with for years on their recordings and gigs: Jesse Lewis on electric guitar (great solos!), Michael Cabe on piano, Matt Aronoff on bass, and Jared Schonig on drums. Followers would recognize much of the repertoire (holiday-related and not) from past performances, these audio issues, and Hilary Gardner’s solo Christmas album. (These vocalists each have their own solo careers dating back to before the formation of Duchess about a decade ago for what was planned as one one-night gig.)

These swinging “sisters in song” saluted the season (secular, sans sacred stuff) with a ringing endorsement of the sound of “Silver Bells” and a tip of the hat to the gift-giving guy from the North Pole (while wearing hats similar to the one Mr. Claus wears, as they addressed “Santa Baby”).  Actual siblings who deftly harmonized in decades past are acknowledged role models, so they bask in the memorable merry musical glow of The Boswell Sisters and The Andrews Sisters, with the latter’s perky embrace of a Hawaiian Christmas greeting, "Mele Kalikimaka," (the romp was quite the delight!) and the lilting “Christmas Island.”  

In the patter, a running bit was the desire/need to include non-Christmas songs, leaning on the fact that Amy Cervini and her family don’t celebrate that holiday, being Jewish, stating that her young son wanted Chanukah represented in the set. (The wish gets granted.) Most of their spiffy and sparkling specialty arrangements are by her husband, Oded Lev-Ari.  And early on, without being an actual grousing Grinch Christmas party-pooper, she expressed relief about the inclusion of Duchess standbys unrelated to any time of the year, so the program took a vacation from Christmas to feature favorite fare such as the mega-zingy “Everybody Loves My Baby” and “On the Sunny Side of the Street.”  With virtually every musical mood being very much on the sunny side, I was waiting for something not quite as sweet as candy canes. I wasn’t wishing necessarily for one of those gloomy tunes with a tale of being apart from one’s significant other, or some other significant misery, so the bittersweet mood and insecure stance of “What Are You Doing New Year’s Eve?” was welcome.  I think it would have been a more impactful change of mood had it not been positioned earlier.  (It appeared so very close to the end of a show that felt like the smooth glide of a sleigh ride in invigoratingly brisk weather, at a sometimes brisk pace.)  

Each of the women got one selection to sing all by herself, allowing the audience to appreciate their individual voices, but that also happened in small but effective doses as many solo lines were taken in the group numbers.  When, in a group song that immediately followed her own full solo piece, one Duchess diva  accidentally came in too early for a solo line in a tricky trio arrangement, there was no drama.  Instead, there was quick-thinking comedy to brush off this small but notable “oops!” when one of the others, barely missing a beat, turned to her and SANG a comment (“You just sang a solo!”), as if there’s been an attempt to take over the show. This showed their camaraderie and pluck, while the audience got to share an unplanned fun moment. 

What makes a Christmas show special even when scheduled just six days before Christmas and some audience members may have had their fill of the warhorses it’s filled with? In the case of Duchess, the delectable and disarming harmonies, artful arrangements, and strong instrumental side-trips refresh the old relics, replacing the rust and dust with glitter and a sprinkling of pretty snowflakes. Likewise, an item from The Great American Songbook that so many singers grab hold of might not always grab the audience overly familiar with it, especially if it is the opening number providing that all-important first impression. Guess what happened here. The program began with the three ladies having a go at what seems to be the go-to choice for  entertainers to ingratiate themselves with the live audience, telegraphing that there’s nothing they’d rather do than sing for the folks.  The number in question is “I Love Being Here with You” and for so many, many singers it has been the peppy pick to do the trick.  I’ll list just some of them in a moment to make the point.  Duchess has used this song for their live sets, and their bounce and beaming positive vibes make the statement believable. Making their version special are the additional words penned by Hilary Gardner. In the past, she put in references to the singers themselves and their love for NYC, where they are based. For this set, she has a flurry of lined rhymes referencing Santa’s lap, presents to wrap, eggnog, dreidls, Auld Lang Syne, Rudolph’s nose, etc.   

Now here’s the promised list of singers who have loved having “I Love Being Here with You” as their ice-breaker (no winter weather pun intended): Ella Fitzgerald, Diana Krall, Marilyn Maye, Mary Stallings, Chris Connor, Linda Purl, Nancy King, The Dizzy Queens, and Queen Latifah, to name a few. And, of course Peggy Lee, who introduced it, and also co-wrote it. The sheet music and credits on recordings and reviews name a certain Bill Schluger, sometimes listed as Bob Schluger, as her collaborator, but that was actually a pseudonym for Dave Cavanaugh, producer and executive at Capitol Records.

Duchess dazzles.

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See other Birdland offerings at the venue’s website calendar www.birdlandjazz.com

The group’s website is here:  www.duchesstrio.com

Photo Credit: Shervin Lainez

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