Biography
Michelle Pirret grew up in New York and remains based there, performing as a torch singer whose range encompasses jazz, cabaret, and classic pre-rock pop. Rather than projecting power through aggressive belting, she favors a nuanced, unforced delivery that conveys quiet intimacy and emotional openness. Although she participated in the arts for most of her life, she initially held no ambition to sing professionally. Her early goal was dance, and at fourteen she enrolled at Balanchine’s School of American Ballet. After several years there, an injury ended her dance prospects and redirected her toward vocal work. While recovering, she first encountered jazz singing through radio broadcasts. The recording that ignited her lasting interest in both jazz and cabaret was Dianne Reeves’ version of Rickie Lee Jones’ “Company.” Pirret’s own style bears no resemblance to Reeves, whose grittier, more forceful approach places a strong R&B imprint on jazz. Exposure to that performance nevertheless prompted deeper study, and Pirret trained in jazz singing with Sheila Jordan and Jay Clayton at the Vermont Jazz Center while also working with Marion Cowings, whose former students include Harry Connick, Jr.
In the early 2000s, Pirret, who also acts, met New York resident Bernard Bierman, a veteran songwriter shaped by Tin Pan Alley masters such as George Gershwin, Harold Arlen, Irving Berlin, and Cole Porter. Born in New York on August 26, 1908, Bierman was already in his nineties at the time of their meeting. Though never a major commercial figure, he had placed songs with artists including Sarah Vaughan, Frank Sinatra, Billy Eckstine, Guy Lombardo, and Xavier Cugat. Their 2001 collaboration led Pirret to produce her debut album, Somewhere in the World, which features only Bierman’s material and appeared on Raydo Music in 2002.
In the early 2000s, Pirret, who also acts, met New York resident Bernard Bierman, a veteran songwriter shaped by Tin Pan Alley masters such as George Gershwin, Harold Arlen, Irving Berlin, and Cole Porter. Born in New York on August 26, 1908, Bierman was already in his nineties at the time of their meeting. Though never a major commercial figure, he had placed songs with artists including Sarah Vaughan, Frank Sinatra, Billy Eckstine, Guy Lombardo, and Xavier Cugat. Their 2001 collaboration led Pirret to produce her debut album, Somewhere in the World, which features only Bierman’s material and appeared on Raydo Music in 2002.
Albums