UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — As a grade-school musician, Bria Skonberg ditched the piano for an instrument with more bebop attitude — the trumpet. Two decades later, the self-described small-town girl from Chilliwack, British Columbia, is “shaking up the jazz world,” according to Vanity Fair, and earning rave reviews as a musician and vocalist. Skonberg will make her Penn State debut at 7:30 p.m. Wednesday, Nov. 30, in Schwab Auditorium. She will perform a variety of standards and original compositions with her quintet.
“She has a beautiful voice — both soul sultry and innocent sweet — and an instrumentalist’s feel for melodic line and rhythm,” wrote an All About Jazz critic. A Wall Street Journal writer mused, “With her outstandingly satchel-mouthed trumpet solos, charismatic singing and sunshine personality, [she] continues to shine a light on the New Hot Jazz movement.”
In addition to fronting a high school-era ska band and jazz ensembles — including Mighty Aphrodite Jazz Band, The 51st Eight and Bria’s Hot Five — Skonberg has performed with notable musicians throughout North America. She has shared the stage with guitarists Bucky Pizzarelli and Howard Alden, clarinetist Anat Cohen, Vancouver’s King of Swing Dal Richards, Woody Allen (at Café Carlyle) and multi-instrumentalist Wycliffe Gordon. She’s “the full package,” Gordon said. In addition to her musical knowledge and talent, “she lights up on stage and automatically gets your attention.”