You're the Voice: Nina Simone: Piano/Vocal/Guitar Book & CD

This collection gives singers direct access to Simone's most recorded material without requiring them to hunt through jazz standards or classical song collections separately. The professionally arranged backing tracks recreate the sophistication of her original recordings, allowing performers to step into a world of lush harmony and stylistic complexity that demands real musical maturity. Singers encounter genuine interpretive challenges: how to phrase 'Feeling Good' without overselling it, how to sustain 'Ne Me Quitte Pas' with the emotional weight Simone brought to it, and how to navigate the jazz harmonies that make these standards timeless.

These songs embody a cool, sophisticated intelligence paired with raw emotional honesty. Simone's versions breathe with space and restraint in unexpected places, then surge with full voice when the moment demands it. The arrangements honor jazz sensibility: rich harmonic color, unexpected chord changes, and a rhythmic flexibility that rewards a skilled interpreter. Performing from this book means inhabiting a world of controlled intensity where less is often more.

This book suits singers who have foundational classical training or strong jazz experience and are ready to explore jazz standards and blues-inflected popular song. Pianists and guitarists accompanying vocalists will find both the full piano and guitar voicings essential for understanding Simone's harmonic language. College-level vocal students and advanced high school singers working on art song and jazz repertoire will benefit from the stylistic depth.

• Listen to Simone's original recordings repeatedly before rehearsing, paying attention to where she deviates from the written melody and why those choices serve the lyric. Her phrasing is never arbitrary.
• Use the accompanying CD to build comfort with the harmonic movement and tempo, then gradually reduce dependence on it so you develop your own interpretive choices within the style.
• Treat the piano and guitar charts as a foundation for understanding the arrangement's voice leading, but don't feel bound to them; Simone herself was known for reimagining accompaniment based on her instincts.
• Breathe consciously and sparingly. Many of these songs sit in a lower register and require sustained focus; plan breath points that don't interrupt the lyric's emotional arc.

These pieces work beautifully in a cabaret or jazz-influenced concert format where the audience expects musical sophistication and doesn't mind slower tempos or introspection. 'Feeling Good' and 'My Baby Just Cares for Me' suit more upbeat segments, while 'Ne Me Quitte Pas' and 'Mood Indigo' anchor a reflective set. Consider pairing selections from this collection with other jazz standards or art songs to create a cohesive evening that celebrates the Great American Songbook through the lens of a major jazz interpreter.

• Jazz phrasing and rhythmic flexibility within a written melody
• Interpreting chromatic and extended jazz harmonies (7ths, 9ths, altered chords)
• Sustaining lyrical intensity over longer phrases without forcing
• Understanding how arrangement supports and informs vocal interpretation
• Accompanying a vocalist expressively while maintaining harmonic clarity