Artist description APOGEE is an eight-member vocal jazz group comprised of five female and three male voices.

Music Style Jazz

Musical Influences The Real Group, New York Voices, Take 6, Manhattan Transfer, The Ritz

Artist History Apogee is unique. Named for the highest note in a musical phrase, this jazz vocal group is the only one of its kind in Winnipeg. Many of its members are alumni of the University of Manitoba’s Vocal-Ease ensemble. Of its eight singers, five are music educators within Manitoba's public and private schools. Apogee is a member of the Manitoba Choral Association, and has enjoyed leading workshops and headlining concerts for various MCA events. The past two years have seen Apogee perform sold-out shows at the West End Cultural Centre and the Prairie Theatre Exchange, both receiving rave reviews. Most recently, Apogee was featured as part of the Winnipeg Jazz Orchestra’s concert series, hosted by CBC’s Ross Porter, and in April of 2003, Apogee performed at the opening ceremonies of the World Curling Championships.

Group Members Jodie Borle, P.J. Buchan, Liane Ouimet, Simone Gendron, Paul Graham, Tina Klein, Ian Mikita, Kristel Peters

Instruments 8 Voices, Piano, String Bass, Drums

Albums demo

Press Reviews By Chris Smith (Winnipeg Free Press 2002) Eight singers, a rhythm section, a trumpeter and a tenor saxophone player made for a crowded stage at times Friday night. It also made for some beautiful music as the eight voices of Apogee blended together in a mixed bag of songs from Annie Ross’s Twisted to Neil Young’s Only Love Can Break Your Heart. The five women and three men of Apogee have a musical rapport and camaraderie that take their performances a step higher. Even with Neil Young and Cyndi Lauper (Time After Time) thrown in, Apogee’s repertoire leans to jazz standards, those classic songs like The More I See You and They Can’t Take That Away From Me that lend themselves so beautifully to vocal-heavy or a cappella renditions. Liane Collet, one of three soprano voices in the group, took the lead on a great version of God Bless The Child early in the show. Many of the tunes were performed unaccompanied, like Twisted where the vocalists captured the spirit of the Lambert, Hendricks and Ross sound with shared solos, great ensemble singing and lots of scatting. On other songs, the singers were backed by pianist Jonathan Alexiuk, drummer Kelly Marques and bassist Cristien Lyons, aided at times by trumpeter Richard Gillis and saxophonist Tyler Yip. An a cappella version of the gorgeous song Morning included equally gorgeous soloing by Jodie Borle, who also took the lead on A Thousand Things. Borle has a strong, beautiful voice that makes her solos really stand out. Simone Gendron did double duty on Wait and See — a great singing solo and a couple of whistling solos. Jason Sapinsky is a big man with a big voice, which he used to great effect as the featured singer on Lonesome Road. Tina Klein took the spotlight on They Can’t Take That Away From Me, the classic from the Great American Songbook that featured great ensemble work as well. That, of course, is where a vocal group this size shines; its ability to carry all aspects of a song, unaccompanied by instruments and to trade off the solo spots seamlessly in what is, indeed, a group performance. As pretty as the ballads can be in the hands of Apogee, which includes Kristel Peters, Dan Peasgood and Paul Graham, it was the boisterous Traffic Jam that was the show-stopper Friday as the singers and band really cooked

Location Winnipeg, Manitoba - Canada

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