Dot Wilder Jazz

As a student and then a grad (circa, 1998, Bach of Music, Jazz Studies Degree, Emphasis on Jazz Vocals, summa cum laude) of the acclaimed Univ of North Florida Jazz School in Jacksonville, Florida, I’ve played with many, many different jazz instrumentalists, all who have each given me, musically, something to add to my current style of jazz singing. Each one that I played with gave me something musically that, by osmosis and constant study and shedding, added to my jazz language.

In fact, to challenge me musically, I often prefer to play with different musicians all the time. I like the unexpected musically and always prefer to have my music spontaneous and non-rehearsed. This can create beautiful, creative music and occasionally "train-wrecks". My fav thing to occur is to create a choice of notes, naturally, that I’ve never come up with. My mantra is " Never a song sung the same way twice."

PROMO INFO: Jazz singer Dot Wilder has developed a unique style of jazz vocals. Her influences include Ella Fitzgerald, Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, and Abbey Lincoln, but her innovative sound and style have taken jazz to a new level. She and the artists with whom she performs have developed a wide range of expressions which include an imaginative method of infusing fresh new ideas into traditional and contemporary styles. Occasionally she inserts her own original material.

Surprisingly, Dots performances appeal to a wide age range due to the timeless music performed, youth of the band members, and the universal appeal of jazz.

Dot Wilder has been receiving awards, acclaim, and recognition for her talent and performances. Dot,1995 & 1997, was winner of the DOWNBEAT Magazine Student Award, Outstanding performance of a Jazz Vocalist. Dot and her group performed at the internationally acclaimed, Jacksonville Jazz Festival, 2000 & 2004. GTMO Bay Jazz Fest, 9/03 & the GTMO Bay New Years Eve, 2003 (Guantanamo Bay, Cuba). Dot and her group performed at the New Years Eve Millennium Celebration ,Jazz Concert Series, 1999 ,2001, Jacksonville Landing & Summer Jazz Concert Series, Sea Walk Pavilion, 2002. Dot and her band also opened for the Rippingtons, Feb 1998, at the Florida Theatre. Performed at the Jazz in the Park series in St. Simons Island, Ga. Dot and her band did a concert in Pensacola sponsored by the Jazz Society of Pensacola, April, 1998. Dot, in association with Jazz in July, 98, in Amherst, Mass, opened, along with three other selected jazz vocalists, for the Billy Taylor Trio at the Fine Arts Center at UMASS. Dot and her quintet performed, May, 2005, at the Savannah Grande in Gainesville, sponsored by the Gainesville Friends of Jazz. She and her group have had extended bookings at such jazz-oriented clubs as The Brick, Simons, A Wine Bar, Gallery Eclectic Bistro, Café on the Square, Travinis, The Atlantic, Mackenzies, Mossfire Grill, Stogies Jazz & Blues Club and Café Cortesse.
Dot Wilders distinct style has been heard at such venues as The Florida Theatre, Metropolitan Park, Sea Walk Pavilion, St. Simons Island Lighthouse, Ford Plantation, Epping Forest Country Club, Jacksonville Golf & Country Club, Jacksonville Landing, UNF Boathouse and UNF Theater. She has also been heard at the Adagio Jazz Club, Savannah, Ga.; Jazz Corner , Hilton Head, S.C.;King & Prince Hotel, St. Simons Island, Ga.; Jekyll Island Club Hotel, Jekyll Island, Ga.; Chef & Clef , Charleston, S.C.;Cranwell , Lee, Mass., the Winterbourne Club , Orange Park, Fl. ; Travinis in Ponte Vedra, Fla.;Café Cortesse.. in St. Augustine, Fla and, the Ritz-Carlton in Amelia Island, Florida.