Magni Wentzel

Born on 28 June 1945 in Norway, Wentzel built a multifaceted career even though she later became known chiefly as a jazz vocalist. Her mother sang and her father performed violin with the Oslo Philharmonic Orchestra. At five she appeared in children’s theatre, afterward taking up classical guitar while continuing to sing from time to time. At eighteen she trained in voice at the Norwegian School of Opera, then moved on to guitar studies in Spain, Switzerland and England. In Spain during the late 1960s she performed jazz with pianist Tete Montolui and saxophonist Pony Poindexter. Back in Oslo she worked clubs and began mixing R&B into her programs. As a classical guitarist she appeared on television, made recordings and, in 1978, played at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, DC. Also during the late 1970s she sang jazz with the Danish Radio Big Band, performed at festivals in Poland and appeared with Charlie Ventura.

Through the 1980s and into the early 1990s she sustained this breadth of activity. She played guitar on television both alone and with chamber groups; as a classical singer she gave operatic recitals; and as a jazz singer she worked in several European countries alongside Art Farmer, Roger Kellaway, Red Mitchell and Neils-Henning Ørsted Pedersen. In 1993 she toured the USA with Kellaway, and the following year she toured again with both Kellaway and Pedersen. Wentzel sings with a pure, clear tone. Although classical training is audible in much of her singing, she phrases with assurance and brings intelligence and feeling to English-language lyrics. She draws on her four-octave range with restraint, and her performances swing.