Frances Madden

Following on from her sell-out album launch last year at Foundry616, the club is delighted to host the hugely talented Frances Madden, who has quickly become one of Sydney’s most exciting and in-demand ‘popular jazz’ artists.

Described by ABC Classic FM’s Mal Stanley as ‘one to watch’, Frances is a sophisticated and classy vocalist, pianist and original songwriter.

Frances’ original songs, whether up-tempo swing, blues or ballads, have a natural fresh quality and universal charm that connects with her growing audience. Her distinctive interpretation of classics and jazz standards often goes beyond genre, reinforcing both her unique sound and a broad ‘adult contemporary’ appeal.

Frances regularly performs with her band at Sydney’s leading jazz venues - this is her second performance at Foundry616. Her band includes some of Australia’s finest up-and-coming young jazz musicians including 2014 Wangaratta Festival finalist Peter Koopman on guitar, James Heazlewood-Dale on double bass and Tim Geldens on drums. They attracted and thrilled a large crowd at the recent Manly Jazz Festival.

Frances grew up listening to Diana Krall, Norah Jones, Eva Cassidy and Ella Fitzgerald who she acknowledges amongst her influences. She studied classical piano while at school, later moving to contemporary music and jazz, and taking up singing after she finished. She then completed a Degree in Music Performance at the Australian Institute of Music. Since graduating at the end of 2010, Frances has established herself as a viable professional performing artist.

About the Album if this were a dream

A couple of years into her music career, Frances began to write her own material and attract attention including that of the legendary James Morrison . . . we were so impressed with Frances and her music that we invited her to record an album in the studio. She has a wonderful feeling for jazz and blues standards but what makes her a real stand-out are her original songs and unique style.

The result is her first studio album ‘if this were a dream’ which contains eight original tracks and five classic covers. The album was produced by music industry veteran John Spence (The Wiggles, Sydney Olympics), arranged by Frances herself and recorded by Tod Deeley (James Morrison, Sydney Opera House) at James Morrison Studios in Sydney.

The music is an entertaining mix of lively swing and slower tempo tunes in the jazz and jazz pop genre, as well as some blues, some Bacharach and several beautiful ballads written by Frances. It’s delivered with engaging harmonies, some masterful guitar and bass playing from a couple of Sydney’s finest young jazz players. There are some clever piano solos by Frances as well as some old hands on sax and trumpet.

The album is an independent release. It is distributed by WJO in Australia and (from 5 December 2014) is available at most major stores including JB HiFi. It will also be available on all major local and international digital platforms including iTunes, and Google Play.

Frances’ band includes some of Australia’s finest up-and-coming young musicians:

Peter Koopman (guitar)

James Heazlewood-Dale (double bass)

Timothy Geldens (drums)

Michael Avgenicos (saxophone) 

Borbala Bodonyi (backing vocals) 

Matthew Collins (trumpet and flugelhorn)

Shivon Coelho (backing vocals)

Go to www.francesmadden.com for more information.