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Sinne Eeg (sée-neh/ée)

Born in Lemvig, Denmark, jazz singer Sinne Eeg graduated from the Music Conservatory of West Jutland in 2003, and subsequently studied with American jazz singers Janet Lawson and Jay Clayton in New York City. “I learned a lot from studying music intensively at the music conservatory,” she explained. “But I think a lot of my musicality comes from my childhood and teenage years where I was exposed to so much music and great music teachers. Jazz was a big part of my upbringing. I played in several local big bands (alto saxophone) when I was a teenager, and I learned a lot about the structures and phrasing of the music.”

During her musical upbringing, Eeg gravitated toward singers with lower, richer voices, like Julie London, Sarah Vaughan, Carmen McRae, Cassandra Wilson and Dianne Reeves. “Of course I studied all the great traditional jazz singers like Billie, Ella, Carmen, Anita and Sarah at the conservatory,” she said. “But it was also nice to have someone contemporary to look up to like Cassandra and Dianne, who respected the tradition of jazz singing but also had a fresh approach to it.” She recalled a seminal gig as a professional singer that helped launch her career. “It was a three-month engagement in Shanghai. They flew the whole band over from Denmark to play at The House Of Blues And Jazz six nights a week. During those three months I learned so much about performing in front of an audience and working with a band.”