The Fay Victor Ensemble profile picture

The Fay Victor Ensemble

Keep it busy, keep it moving

About Me

The Fay Victor Ensemble is a voice-guitar-bass-drum unit performing original material that in many cases provide structure for free improvisational flight; each member contributing equally to proceedings. No divas walking around here. That’s the idea.
The Ensemble’s first recording entitled “CARTWHEELS THROUGH THE COSMOS,” was released in January 2007 on the ArtistShare label. It is an ambitious and adventurous project that oversteps and redefines the boundaries of what a jazz-singer is. It combines the thoughtfulness of observant lyric-writing, the excitement of improvising, and the structure of solid composing, captivating the listener with cinematic, story-driven pieces.

To Purchase CARTWHEELS: click here
FREE DOWNLOAD of a track from the new record at allaboutjazz.com! click right here
What the PRESS have been saying:
"Complex, ambitious record (A-)" --Tom Hull, Village Voice
"Cartwheels Through the Cosmos is that rarity amongst contemporary vocal jazz releases: an album that doesn’t rely on a tired repertoire and looks, instead, for innovation in every corner...Her fearless exploration of a myriad of musical nexus points makes Cartwheels Through the Cosmos an album for those who normally stay away from vocal jazz. --John Kelman, allaboutjazz.com
"...actually stretches the definition of jazz vocals" --JazzWise, UK
"Victor is the traffic director of a group methodology that surges into the interstellar regions of sound." --Glenn Astarita, allaboutjazz.com
"Taking jazz singing forward with a unique form of expression, Fay Victor delivers with authority. She reaches out with open arms to celebrate the freedom that comes with singing what you feel." --Jim Santella, Cadence
"It's a borderless, cacophonous, in-your-face experiment in tone poetry and free-form expression. It's tough. It's gutsy. It's brilliant." --Christopher Loudon, JazzTimes
Fay formed the Fay Victor Ensemble to find herself.


Anders Nilsson/electric guitar - A bandleader in his own right, Anders joined the Fay Victor Ensemble on a whim.


Ken Filiano/double bass - Noted for his accomplishments in jazz, spontaneous improvisation and classical music, Ken joined the Fay Victor Ensemble after he got caught out in the rain.


Michael "TA" Thompson/drummer - Michael Thompson is an anomaly. Michael joined the Fay Victor Ensemble on the way to the airport.


OPEN your voice and find your SOUND!
Fay has been an active vocal coach & teacher for over 10 years and is available for group and private lessons, workshops, clinics and masterclasses. Need more info on rates & availability? Drop a line at [email protected]

My Interests

Music:

Member Since: 3/4/2006
Band Website: fayvictor.com
Band Members: Fay Victor/voice, Anders Nilsson/electric guitar, Ken Filiano/doublebass, Michael TA Thompson/drums
Influences: The Ohio Players, Frank Zappa, Rick James, Charles Mingus, Captain Beefheart, Cathy Berberian, Derek Bailey, Earth, Wind & Fire, Miles Davis, The Jimmy Castor Bunch, Stephanie Mills, Jackhammers and Roosters, Betty Carter, Thelonious Monk, Prince, Howlin Wolf, Herbie Nichols, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Boy George, Robert Johnson, Duke Ellington, Parliament & Funkadelic, Mose Allison, Curtis Mayfield, John Cage, the Bee Gees, Sonny Rollins, Billy Idol, The Mighty Sparrow, Memphis Slim, Ornette Coleman, 1970s Natalie Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, the MC5, Jackie McLean, Jimi Hendrix, Lonnie Johnson, Randy Newman, Carmen McCrae, The Meters, Albert Ayler, Anita ODay, Al Green, Charles Ives and Gladys Knight.
Sounds Like: Well, like the Ohio Players, Frank Zappa, Rick James, Charles Mingus, Captain Beefheart, Cathy Berberian, Earth, Wind & Fire, Miles Davis, The Jimmy Castor Bunch, Jackhammers and Roosters, Betty Carter, Thelonious Monk, Prince, Howlin Wolf, Herbie Nichols, Sister Rosetta Tharpe, Boy George, Duke Ellington, Parliament & Funkadelic, Mose Allison, John Cage, the Bee Gees, Sonny Rollins, Billy Idol, The Mighty Sparrow, Memphis Slim, Ornette Coleman, 1970s Natalie Cole, Ella Fitzgerald, the MC5, Jackie McLean, Jimi Hendrix, Lonnie Johnson, Carmen McCrae, The Meters, Albert Ayler, Anita ODay, Al Green, Charles Ives and Gladys Knight.

Here is a snippet of a Doors' tune, People are Strange...


Record Label: ArtistShare
Type of Label: Indie

My Blog

Serendipity

In this crazy business I'm in called music sometimes I get thrown smack dab in the middle of things.  Every gig is a chance anyway, a new chance to experience something different.  Every ven...
Posted by The Fay Victor Ensemble on Sat, 10 May 2008 10:33:00 PST

Interesting Bits & Pieces

Some cool people/things that's inspired me and kept me going in the last few weeks and I want to share it with you.  1. MUSICIAN starring Ken VandermarkIf you're a jazzer, involved in avant-gard...
Posted by The Fay Victor Ensemble on Wed, 24 Oct 2007 06:26:00 PST

The Jazz Foundation of America Gala...

Hey listeners outhere... I performed at the 6th Annual Jazz Foundation of America fundraising event held at the Apollo Theatre on May 17th.  I did "Strange Fruit" with the Duke Ellington Orc...
Posted by The Fay Victor Ensemble on Tue, 22 May 2007 04:37:00 PST

The CD Release Happening

To all that wanna hear... The CD release party at Galapagos on January 25th was GREAT.  It was a COOOOOOOOLD night, my goodness!  But the vibe, the audience, the band and the music warmed my...
Posted by The Fay Victor Ensemble on Thu, 08 Feb 2007 04:28:00 PST

"CARTWHEELS" RELEASED...

Hi Everyone: Happy NEW YEAR! I want you all to know that the Fay Victor Ensemble's new release, "Cartwheels through the Cosmos"  has been released on January 2nd, 2007 on the Artistshare label an...
Posted by The Fay Victor Ensemble on Fri, 05 Jan 2007 05:20:00 PST

New CD + other news...

Over the last few months, I've been mentioning that I'll be releasing a CD without saying much else about it. With the release around the corner it's time to say more... The new release is an all orig...
Posted by The Fay Victor Ensemble on Thu, 14 Sep 2006 05:18:00 PST

marketing

To all who wanna listen, Early on, I realized something:  discovering and singing jazz made me happy. It lightened my spirit.  It was an expression that came out of something I didn't know a...
Posted by The Fay Victor Ensemble on Sat, 20 May 2006 12:58:00 PST