Jazz songstress hits all the right notes

The problem with jazz singing is that almost no two listeners can agree on exactly what it is. Fans of supercharged scat tend to dismiss vocalists who emphasize long-toned balladry; listeners who insist upon the importance of lyrical storytelling have less regard for performers who use the words primarily as vehicles for musical mobility.

All of which makes the singing of Denise Donatelli especially fascinating to hear, since her style has the capacity to employ the positive aspects (and eliminate the negative) of all those elements.

The first quality that was apparent Wednesday night at Charlie O’s in Valley Glen was the rich timbre of Donatelli’s voice, which has the clarity and flexibility to sing almost any imaginable genre -- from pop/blues to operatic aria.

Given that potential vocal firepower, however, she used it at the service of the songs, rather than as a tool for sheer virtuosic display.

Her rendering of the Jule Styne/Sammy Cahn World War II hit, “I Fall in Love Too Easily,” for example, brought the song to life with a subtle blend of lyricism and musicality. Occasionally enhancing the melody with subtle paraphrases, varying the timbre of her warm tone to emphasize the lyrics, she produced a classic example of communicative jazz ballad singing.

More rhythmic tunes -- Ted Fiorito’s “When Lights Are Low” and Nacio Herb Brown’s “You Stepped Out of a Dream” (both with lyrics by Gus Kahn) -- displayed Donatelli’s capacity to invest her phrasing with a buoyant rhythmic swing without losing touch with basic melodies. She romped easily through the musically serpentine twists and turns of Milton Nascimento’s “Make This City Ours Tonight.” And her airy, floating-over-the-rhythm rendering of Matt Dennis’ “Angel Eyes” in 6/4 meter revealed why she is a singer jazz musicians love to love.

Donatelli was accompanied by a trio of players -- pianist Jeff Colella, bassist Tom Warrington and drummer Steve Houghton -- who demonstrated that affection with the kind of subtle, musically interactive support that jazz singers love to love.