BIO
Stage, screen and TV actor and vocalist, Susan Krebs, decided a few years ago to devote herself fully to singing, and the jazz world is a better place for it. Krebs’ voice is rich and pure with an enticingly dusky patina. Blessedly free of affectation, she rivals Karrin Allyson and Diana Krall in her ability to climb inside a lyric and make it seem as if she’s lived there her entire life... ~Christopher Louden JAZZ TIMES
Born and raised in Baltimore, Susan grew up in a home filled with the sounds of Bach, Beethoven, Gilbert & Sullivan, Broadway Musicals and the blues of Bessie, Billie and Ella. Graduating from Hollins University, Susan went on to New York City – studying acting with Uta Hagen, appearing in Off-Broadway plays and musicals, TV commercials and performing with the improvisational theater company, War Babies. She then relocated to Los Angeles, making it her new home – delighted that she could garden and hike – and that there were greater work opportunities. Over the years, she has appeared in dozens of TV shows (Shameless and Mad Men, most recently), Films (Million Dollar Baby, 28 Days), Animation, Radio & TV Commercials, and Theater, including her own solo musical revue, LUNAR I; the all-women’s improvisational company, the Wims; and the contemporary opera, A String of Pearls, both in L.A. and at Carnegie Hall’s Weill Theater.
Throughout Susan’s career as an actor and improviser, she was also performing as a jazz vocalist, and studied with the great jazz singers, Sue Raney and Sheila Jordan. Then, seeking clarity and artistic direction during a four month "middle years" retreat in Jackson Hole, Wyoming, Susan’s sense of herself as a "jazz gardener" came into being - which she explains is "about the art of becoming - whether working with plants or music or with oneself - to dig down, to cultivate, to encourage growth, to thrive and flourish, and eventually to let go and begin the cycle anew."
She returned to L.A. with the intent of devoting herself fully to the art of jazz singing in order to tell her tale through song.
Following the 1999 release of her debut album, Jazz Gardener, came What Am I Here For? in 2002. Both projects were created with her group of superb L.A. based musicians, including her longtime drummer/producer, Jerry Kalaf, and the saxophonist extraordinaire, Gary Foster. Susan performs regularly throughout Southern California, including such venues as: L.A. County Museum of Art, Jazz Bakery, Vitello's and Cafe 322. She also hosts and performs regularly with the Susan Krebs Band in her jazz salon, ThemeScene.
Susan Krebs has nothing but fondness for our feathered friends—and expresses her joyous affection magnificently throughout this fascinating concept project... irresistible offerings from a formidable jazz artist...~Jonathan Widran/AMG
Susan’s ongoing project is the critically acclaimed multi-media concert JAZZ AVIARY – a celebration of Birds and the universal music we share - conceived and performed by Susan in collaboration with the Soaring Sextet, with Musical Direction by Rich Eames. Susan explains her longtime fascination with birds: "I remember as a kid, lying stretched out in a hammock between two grand sycamores, watching the birds, listening to the birds - digging the birds! With JAZZ AVIARY, I want to express the wonder and awe that birds arouse as well as raise awareness for their beauty and preservation."
Latest Release:
Everything Must Change, the newest recording from Susan and her longtime collaborators, Rich Eames and Jerry Kalaf, is a departure from their enthusiastically received Jazz Aviary concept recording (2007). Joined by the deeply simpatico Ryan McGillicuddy and Chuck Manning, the Susan Krebs Band made music together one recent summer: “We had some seriously good fun!” says Susan. “I chose tunes which I’d been living with for a while, musically mulling in my garden and on long walks - tunes which resonate with me in a very personal way, with the title tune. Everything Must Change, guiding the feel of the album and reflecting the tenor of the times we live in.” The collaborative nature of the project can be heard throughout the recording. “Mostly, it felt that the music just arrived, ya know?,” says Susan. There is an immediacy and an intimacy to this recording which reflect the spirited sessions which make up Everything Must Change. The final track on the album, “Are Ya Havin’ Any Fun?” leaves no doubt about the grand summer fun these folks had: “It’s our feel-good single for challenging and changing times!”, offers Susan.
Everything Must Change is an opportunity to hear Krebs in a small ensemble setting, delightfully organic, fully interactive, focused and engaged. Her vocal delivery is spot on, and invokes the modern jazz language with masterful control, truly a journey worth exploring, that offers a uplifting outcome.
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