About Kadri

“Kadri Voorand is a people person. … Whether playing piano, violin or thumb piano the audience were hanging on her every note and when asked to join in the audience sang as one.”

Jazzwise

“Voorand’s interpretations ranged from whispers, jests and romantic murmurs to smooth, intimate storytelling. Even untranslated language was clear.”

Allaboutjazz

About Kadri voorand

Kadri Voorand is an Estonian singer-songwriter whose unique blend of traditional music, folk, jazz, and improvisational pop and unique storytelling abilities make her one of the most authentic live performers in Europe’s jazz scene today.

Hailing from a fishing village in Northern Estonia, on the shores of the Gulf of Finland, Kadri Voorand was born into a family of generations of traditional musicians and entertainers at village gatherings. From an early age, she was introduced to coastal folk traditions, studying classical piano by day and playing the fiddle by night.

After a childhood spent playing with folk musicians, arranging for her vocal a cappella group, and performing as a solo vocalist, she began her jazz vocal studies at the Estonian Academy of Music and Theater and continued her education at the Royal Swedish Music Academy. She has won nearly every award imaginable in Estonia, including four Estonian Music Awards, and collaborated with a range of internationally acclaimed musicians, including the renowned conductor and composer Kristjan Järvi and pop artists like NOËP.

She has composed for the Grammy-winning Estonian Philharmonic Chamber Choir, creating both the music and libretto for “Giving Myself to the Sea,” a piece inspired by Estonian legends and folk traditions, and is among the most performed contemporary composers at the Estonian Song and Dance Celebration. Since 2020, she has been signed to one of Europe’s most important jazz labels, ACT.

Kadri Voorand is a musical storyteller who likes to engage her listeners and make them a part of the performance, with Jazzwise describing her audiences “hanging on her every note”. Her highly engaging, ritualistic and intimate live shows, often alongside bassist Mihkel Mälgand, transcend language barriers and have led her to stages from the EFG London Jazz Festival to Pori Jazz and the most important jazz festival in China, the Beijing Nine Gates Jazz Festival.

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Discography

  • Kadri Voorand / Tunde kaja / 2009
  • Kadri Voorand Trio / Kosmoloogiline etüüd / 2012
  • Estonian Voices / Ole hea / 2014 (🏆 Jazz Album of the Year 2015)
  • Kadri Voorand Quartet / Armupurjus 2016 (🏆 Jazz Album of the Year 2017, Europe Jazz Media Top 10)
  • Estonian Voices / Taat läks lolliks / 2018 (🏆 Jazz Album of the Year 2018)
  • Tormis Quartet / Tormisele/Hommage to Veljo Tormis / 2018
  • Kadri Voorand / In Duo with Mihkel Mälgand / ACT 2020 (🏆 Best Female Artist of the Year, Jazz Album of the Year by Estonian Music Awards 2020, Musician of the Year 2020 by Estonian Public Broadcasting, Europe Jazz Media Charts, March 2020)

Press quotes

“What is distinctive about a Voorand performance is its dual commitment to the written word and to wordless improvisation. Voorand’s relationship to words is that of a skilled actress in dramaticrecitation, but she frequently abandoned words and turned her airy soprano voice into a wailing, scatting instrument.”

JazzTimes New York

“She is experimental, fun and appears on stage with an incredible level of energy.”

Jazznyt

“This stirring together of jazz, folk and pop, with thoughtful arrangements from these distinctive musicians, takes you, for a while, off into another world.”

London Jazz

“Voorand hits people’s body and soul”

London Jazz News

„It’s almost impossible not to be drawn in by Kadri Voorand’s energy. A long-time star in her homeland – now to be discovered everywhere”

3sat Kulturzeit

“Kadri is singing in Estonian, but the power and energy in her voice moves the listeners heart even without words.”

Jazz.ru