“New York Voices lives up to its reputation as the most exciting vocal ensemble in current jazz...to collect such quality voices in one group is rare enough, yet the real trick of New York Voices is how well they mesh…”
New York Voices was founded in the mid-1980s at upstate New York’s Ithaca College. Peter Eldridge, an aspiring jazz pianist who came late to singing; Kim Nazarian, who dreamed of a life on Broadway; and Darmon Meader, a saxophonist and self-described “choral geek,” came together in the school’s vocal jazz ensemble. Director Dave Riley included all three of them, as well as Caprice Fox, in a specially curated ensemble he’d been invited to bring on a tour of the European jazz festivals. “It seemed to go over so well that Darmon and I decided to keep it going, try to make something happen professionally,” Eldridge recalls. “Kim and Caprice were part of that original band, and we slowly but surely made the transition to New York City in 1988.” There they met Sara Krieger, who became the fifth member of the band Riley had named “New York Voices.”
One of their debut performances as a quintet was at Preacher’s, a club in Greenwich Village, which launched the beginning of a sizable following and buzz to start attracting the interest of record labels. They signed with GRP in 1989 and quickly made their first recording, New York Voices, a mix of acoustic and electric, traditional and crossover jazz. They then hit the road, touring America in a motor home and making their first international excursions as they worked to build a worldwide audience.
Krieger left the band after their second album (1991’s Hearts of Fire), which began a long, arduous search for a new fifth voice. While that process was underway, Eldridge had what was intended as a one-off songwriting session with Lauren Kinhan; impressed with her soprano vocal, he suggested she audition. “We’d heard maybe 70 auditions and hadn’t found the right fit,” says Eldridge. “Lauren came in and sang ‘God Bless the Child’ for us, and I remember looking at Darmon and going, ‘Oh. Okay.’”
After two more years as a quintet, Fox moved on to other things in 1994. The band had hoped that featuring five voices would stave off comparisons to vocal-jazz powerhouse The Manhattan Transfer (it didn’t), but their increasing self-confidence—and their difficulty in finding Kinhan—led them to decide to continue on as a foursome. They declared their new identity with 1997’s New York Voices Sing the Songs of Paul Simon.
With the dawn of the 21st century, NYV increased its currency in the jazz world via collaborations with institutions such as the Count Basie Orchestra, Paquito D’Rivera, and the Dizzy Gillespie All-Star Big Band. They also launched a jazz education division, inaugurating their Vocal Jazz Camp for aspiring jazz singers in 2008. (A European version of the Camp began in 2016). Each of its members has also established a career as a solo artist and educator: Eldridge is a voice professor at Berklee College of Music; Nazarian is vocal jazz instructor at Ithaca College; Kinhan is an adjunct faculty member at New York University and Queens College.
As a band leader, NYV has released 10 studio albums featuring their signature sound and eclectic musical choices. They follow their passions on choosing repertoire and how to write for the human voice. They special guested on two Grammy award winning projects with The Count Basie Orchestra and Paquito D’Rivera. A contemporary classical record, Visions Within, a Meeting of Minds with the Bob Mintzer Big Band and a soon to be released collaboration with Ivan Lins rounds out the large projects in their catalogue. Too numerous to mention guest artist appearances flesh out a long career of recording, collaborating and being in demand for projects looking for their special sound and refined artistry.
New York Voices recently announced their plan to retire by the end of 2026. In a farewell video, they expressed the following:
“We have some momentous news to share with you that has come to us over time, reflection and huge amounts of affection given to making the decision. New York Voices has decided to hang up our mics and retire our band. Having created and nurtured this musical family for the past 38 years, it has taken us all over the world to stages large and small, and created projects near and dear to us. We are incredibly grateful for the opportunities our voices have afforded us and will be forever indebted to our fans, bands, labels, agents, managers, lawyers, promoters, sound persons, education colleagues, students, friends and families for sharing the adventures with us. It has taken a village to manifest our good fortune and we know it!
While this may come as a shock to many, the four of us want to retire the group on a high note. We are excited to say we will continue working through the end of 2026, which will allow us plenty of time to perform and take one last lap around the planet as the "The Four and Only," as Paquito D'Rivera lovingly calls us. Importantly, you should also know individually we will continue to work as solo artists and educators until our own devised destinies reach their peaks. In that sense, NYV will always be, in some part, still out there. We look forward to making this time very special and savoring every moment.”