Jazz singer, saxophonist, composer, and bandleader Camille Thurman will perform this Friday at the Walton Arts Center in Fayetteville as part of the Starlight Jazz Club series. Thurman has won numerous awards and honors and was the first woman to be part of the Jazz at Lincoln Center Orchestra with Wynton Marsalis.
She spoke with Shades of Jazz host Robert Ginsberg ahead of this week's performance and says playing with the Marsalis family works out beautifully.
Camille Thurman: Because of a long friendship. When I first got out of college and came to New York City, he was one of the first musicians that I met, and we just instantly clicked musically but also in terms of friendship and being musicians. And when I was trying to get my feet on the ground, Darrell said, “Hey, Camille, I have a trio. Why don't we just work together and collaborate?”
That was 12 years ago, and we've still been collaborating ever since. Since the beginning of our journey, we were arranging and composing together, developing our own sound and concept of what we’re trying to go for. When we were able to get a residency in New York City at Smoke, they gave us two years every week to work out our music, build up a crowd, and connect with other musicians. It’s been such a great journey to develop the music with all this time.
Robert Ginsberg: You have worked very hard at your art, and I know what a difference that makes. But I also feel like you've had some incredible breaks and some incredible mentors. When I think about how many talented musicians are out there jockeying to build a career, mentorship can make the difference — maybe in the same way as great teachers when you’re coming up. You were fortunate to have several noteworthy mentors — Tia Fuller, Mimi Jones — but you’ve also played with people like Louis Hayes, Wynton Marsalis, and Terri Lyne Carrington. Those are life-changing experiences, I’m sure.
Camille Thurman: Oh, certainly. Through mentorship, it’s almost like you develop or adopt a musical family that takes you in, nurtures you, and helps you get on the right path. It’s hard coming to New York City and saying, “Okay, I’m going to conquer the world and be the best musician I can be.” But then you realize there are so many other great musicians. What makes me stand out for who I am and what I’m trying to do, and how do I stay true to it?
It’s those mentors who really help you stick to your roots and stay true to it.
Robert Ginsberg: If you’ll indulge me, let’s go back to some of the early chapters. I know your mother was instrumental in bringing you into this world of jazz in regard to her career. I guess she was working on her master’s. And that’s not to mention the fact that you actually grew up in a neighborhood with a deep history of jazz. Can you tell me about some of your growing-up experiences and beginning to perform on an instrument?
Camille Thurman: I grew up in St. Albans, Queens, which was once the home to Ella Fitzgerald, Count Basie, Milt Hinton, Frank Wess, and so many other incredible jazz musicians and entertainers. I believe even James Brown at one point lived there, too.
I didn’t know this was my neighborhood because I just grew up in the ’90s — it was a different time. My mother grew up there, and when she was studying to get her master’s, she noticed that there was a mural that was falling apart. The community came together to advocate for repainting this mural. Come to find out it’s a beautiful depiction of all the entertainers who once lived in that neighborhood.
That was her introduction to learning the history of who lived in those houses, who walked the same streets that we walked. My mom, being a teacher, made her research my educational experience. She would take me to the library with her, and she would take out CDs of Duke Ellington, of Ella Fitzgerald. She would bring home documentary tapes, and we’d watch them together.
I was eight years old. Of course, I was like, “I don’t want to watch this. This is boring. I want to watch my cartoons.” My mother was like, “No, you need to learn this. This is important.” And I’m so glad she made me do it, because it really gave me an appreciation for the history of my neighborhood and for the contributions of the many men and women who shaped this music and my community.
It gave me a sense of pride knowing that where I come from is where they once lived, too.
Robert Ginsberg: As I hear you perform as a singer, saxophonist, arranger, and bandleader, it seems like you wear a lot of hats in creating your art. Is it tricky balancing those different sensibilities?
Camille Thurman: Certainly. The voice is the first instrument, so anything I hear, I’m trying to find how it fits in context to the voice and how it fits in context to the saxophone. It’s funny, because when I first started singing and playing, it took a second to level each game.
By nature, you hear things all the time and you just instantly sing things without thinking about it. Your instrument is part of you. But when you’re playing an external instrument like the saxophone, it’s another level of learning that takes time.
I remember when I was 12 or 13 years old, I’d get frustrated trying to play what I heard singing on my instrument and then trying to do it vice versa. Sometimes it was quicker to sing it, sometimes it took longer to play, but with time it evened out.
A big part of that was just doing a lot of listening, a lot of transcribing, and just really sticking to it. There’s something about developing that connection so it gets closer and closer to where it’s almost like walking — you don’t even have to think about it.
You also have to take time to learn each instrument for itself. Because sometimes when you have a gift like perfect pitch, you just hear things and think, “Okay, I’m great, I’m wonderful,” but you still have to work out the kinks of the instrument. Those things creep up if you don’t work them out when you’re trying to execute them.
It’s really humbled me and taught me a lot about taking the time to learn your instrument, but also figuring out how you learn — how you get to those things and how you get to a point where you don’t have to think about it.
Robert Ginsberg: And of course, there’s the obvious connection when you’re scat singing and improvising a solo. It’s very much the same process as improvising on the saxophone — only a little more direct to your voice.
Robert Ginsberg: What can folks expect to hear when you perform with Darrell Green’s Quartet at Walton Arts Center on Friday, Oct. 24, as part of the Starlight Jazz series?
Camille Thurman: Sure. It’s going to be a great show. Each person in the band is out of this world, and hearing us together is an experience everyone will never forget. It’s going to be a great show, so come on out, be ready to hear some great music, and I look forward to seeing everyone there.
Robert Ginsberg: Camille Thurman will be in concert on Oct. 24 — that’s Friday — at the Walton Arts Center. The concert begins at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are available at waltonartscenter.org.
Camille Thurman speaking with Robert Ginsberg, host of Shades of Jazz. You can hear more jazz and conversations like this on Shades of Jazz, Friday nights at 10 p.m. on KUAF 91.3.
Ozarks at Large transcripts are created on a rush deadline. Copy editors utilize AI tools to review work. KUAF does not publish content created by AI. Please reach out to kuafinfo@uark.edu to report an issue. The audio version is the authoritative record of KUAF programming.
