Biography
Laurel Massé joined the Manhattan Transfer as one of its founding voices, and though wider recognition has remained modest in later decades, she has maintained a resilient presence as a skilled jazz vocalist. Her grandfather performed as lead baritone alongside Fred Waring's Pennsylvanians across four decades, and her mother pursued a career in opera. As a child she studied piano; as a teenager she played cello while living in Paris; and during the 1960s she taught herself guitar. She performed regularly in church choirs and with rock & roll groups at her high school. While employed as a waitress in Manhattan she encountered Tim Hauser, then driving a cab, and the pair formed the Manhattan Transfer in 1972 alongside Janis Siegel and Alan Paul. Because of her broad vocal range, Massé welcomed the ensemble's expansive mix of styles that moved from swing through rock and pop into bebop. She remained with the quartet for seven years, participating during the period when its popularity first surged.
A near-fatal automobile collision in 1979 abruptly halted that trajectory. Massé withdrew from the Manhattan Transfer and devoted two years to recovery. Once restored to full health she issued three strong jazz recordings on the Pausa label in the mid-1980s. Toward the end of the decade she relocated to the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York, after which her musical activities stayed largely out of public view for some time. She resurfaced in the mid-1990s with programs devoted to spiritual repertoire that featured Celtic material and classical pieces, frequently presented a cappella. Following the release of Feather & Bone in 2000, an album that captured this direction, she returned her focus to jazz. Massé now presents a monthly jazz program on WAMC, appears in occasional concerts, and devotes most of her professional energy to teaching.
A near-fatal automobile collision in 1979 abruptly halted that trajectory. Massé withdrew from the Manhattan Transfer and devoted two years to recovery. Once restored to full health she issued three strong jazz recordings on the Pausa label in the mid-1980s. Toward the end of the decade she relocated to the Adirondack Mountains of upstate New York, after which her musical activities stayed largely out of public view for some time. She resurfaced in the mid-1990s with programs devoted to spiritual repertoire that featured Celtic material and classical pieces, frequently presented a cappella. Following the release of Feather & Bone in 2000, an album that captured this direction, she returned her focus to jazz. Massé now presents a monthly jazz program on WAMC, appears in occasional concerts, and devotes most of her professional energy to teaching.
Albums