Williams College Department of Music: Song-Writing Master Class with Debbie Deane
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. – The Williams College Department of Music will present a song-writing master class with Debbie Deane for Williams students on Friday, Dec. 5, at 4 p.m. in Brooks-Rogers Recital Hall on the Williams College campus. This free event is open to the public.The master class will be traditional in nature. Our innovative student song-writers are Eric Kang '09, Claire Rindlaub '09, Sam Kapala '09, Aroop Mukharji '09, and Harris Paseltiner '09. They have all been working under the guidance of Bernice Lewis with the help of other faculty including Brad Wells, Robert Bell, Edward Burger, David Kechley, and Gina Coleman from the Dean's Office. Each will perform and work on one of their songs that they have spent all semester developing with Deane.
Born and raised in Brooklyn, New York, the multitalented Deane hails from a musical world without boundaries, where rock-oriented singer-songwriters and top-tier jazz musicians breathe the same creative air. After earning a degree in English Literature from Harvard University, Debbie embarked on her music career, studying jazz intensively at Boston’s Berklee College of Music, honing the piano skills that she continues to display as a singer-songwriter.
With her strong, versatile singing voice and impressive skills on piano, Debbie poured her soul into her originals songs, distilling influences that include Carole King, Aretha Franklin, Joni Mitchell and Steely Dan. She spent the 90’s singing, performing, and being passed from major labels who thought she was “too jazz” or “not jazz enough”, or indies that folded before her album could come out. Her songs have appeared in a number of films and TV shows, including “Party of Five”, Jennifer Love Hewitt’s Atlantic debut Let’s Go Bang, and the Lifetime channel film ‘Patient 14’. In 2005, Deane’s self-titled debut CD featuring Brian Blade, Wayne Krantz, Phil Markowitz, Joshua Redman, and more, was licensed by the German label ESC Records and released in Europe.
The richly rewarding Grove House is her follow-up to Debbie Deane and her debut on RKM Records, a label run by the illustrious jazz saxophonist Ravi Coltrane. Once again, Deane brings warmth, sophistication and rock-n-roll edge to the table, leading a cast of fine musicians as she sings of love, ambivalence and freedom.
