VILNIUS MAMA JAZZ 2026 I Cécile McLorin Salvant (US)

CÉCILE MCLORIN SALVANT (US)

Cécile McLorin Salvant - vocal
Sullivan Fortner - piano
Yasushi Nakamura - bass
Kyle Poole - drums

This year's Vilnius Mama Jazz festival will feature one of the most renowned jazz singers in the world today, multiple Grammy Award nominee and winner Cécile McLorin Salvant from the United States.

As one of the most creative performers in contemporary jazz, Salvant has an undeniably unique approach to vocals, treating singing as a form of storytelling that transcends stylistic boundaries. In her work, the composer and vocalist combines elements of blues, theater, vaudeville, baroque repertoire, folk traditions, and contemporary jazz to create highly personal performances. Critics often compare her to such legendary jazz singers as Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, and Sarah Vaughan.

The performer first gained international attention after winning the prestigious Thelonious Monk Jazz Competition in 2010. Since then, she has become one of the most prominent vocalists of her generation, nominated for six Grammy Awards. One to Love, Dreams and Daggers, and The Window are releases that have not only earned Grammy Awards for Best Jazz Vocal Album, but have also been praised by both audiences and music professionals. In 2020, she was awarded the MacArthur Fellowship and the Doris Duke Artist Award.

Her work is known for its unique curatorial perspective: along with original compositions, Salvant often revives forgotten repertoire, infusing songs with vivid characters, unexpected twists and turns, and subtle humor.

Born in Miami to a French mother and Haitian father, Salvant began her musical career as a child, learning to play the piano and singing in choirs, before going on to study classical vocals. During her years in France, she earned a bachelor's degree in French law while also studying baroque music and jazz at the Darius Milhaud Conservatory of Music in Aix-en-Provence. All of these experiences later shaped her broad cultural creative horizons. 

Her latest albums further illustrate the breadth of Salvant's musical imagination. The albums Ghost Song and Mélusine expand her repertoire in different languages and traditions, while the 2025 album Oh Snap reveals a more intimate and experimental side to her artistry. These short songs, written and initially recorded at home using studio effects, draw on a variety of influences, from pop and grunge to folk and classical music, reflecting the eclectic musical landscape of her youth.

Salvant's performances move seamlessly from one era and style to another, from vaudeville and early blues to contemporary compositions and theater songs. Her concerts often take the form of carefully crafted narratives that combine humor, irony, melancholy, and tenderness. 

In addition to her stage and recording studio work, Salvant is also active in other areas of the arts. Her visual art works are exhibited at the Picture Room gallery in Brooklyn, New York, and she continues to create ambitious interdisciplinary projects such as Ogresse. It is a musical fairy tale for an ensemble of thirteen musicians that combines history, mythology, and biography. This work is the basis for a feature-length animated film, which Salvant herself will direct. 

The singer will perform in Vilnius with her long-time collaborators. The group's pianist, Sullivan Fortner, a five-time Grammy nominee and three-time Grammy winner, was a regular member of the famous trumpeter Roy Hargrove's band from 2010 to 2017, and his playing can be heard on recordings by Paul Simon and other well-known musicians. Born in Tokyo, double bassist Yasushi Nakamura moved to the United States at the age of 9 and considers both cities his home. This musician has accumulated a huge discography, which includes many famous jazz musicians, including Emmet Cohen, Christian Sands, Amina Figarova, Shamie Royston, Jon Irabagon, Rudy Royston, Vincent Herring, Ulysses Owners Jr. and others. Kyle Poole, known as a young drumming prodigy, amazes audiences wherever his drums take him. A graduate of the renowned Juilliard School of Music, the drummer actively performs not only in jazz, but also in pop music.

How will Cécile McLorin Salvant delight Lithuanian audiences? We will leave the answer to this question for the evening of the concert. One thing is clear – this artist is coming to Vilnius at the peak of her creativity.

The festival is funded by the Lithuanian Council for Culture and Vilnius City Municipality.

Photos by Ebru Yildiz