I have had a passion for music since my first piano lesson at age seven and have spent a dozen years studying big band “girl singers” and women in jazz. Not only do I find these incredible women inspirational, I love delving into the past (yay for microfilm!) and finding those intriguing details that make the lives of these artists more real and vibrant. Along the way, I have sifted through the collections of archives and libraries; received a doctorate in musicology from the University of Pennsylvania; taught multi-media courses in jazz, classical, and world music; spoken at national and international conferences; and discussed Sarah Vaughan on local and national radio, including NPR. All of this has come in handy in my most recent project: a biography of the vocalist Sarah Vaughan, titled Queen of Bebop: The Musical Lives of Sarah Vaughan, published by Ecco, an imprint of HarperCollins, in 2017.

I enjoy making music accessible and fun for non-musicians, and in my post-academic life, I have focused on telling engaging stories about the jazz artists, both past and present, that I admire. I was the editor of the monthly magazine Earshot Jazz. I have co-produced radio segments on Billie Holiday and Seattle’s nationally recognized high school jazz programs for community radio. I’ve also written entries on Sarah Vaughan, Maxine Sullivan, and Nancy Wilson for the second edition of the Grove Dictionary of American Music. My musings on Sarah Vaughan, women in the entertainment industry, and music – jazz or otherwise, can by found at my blog Lady Be Bop.

When I’m not nose deep in the world of music, I am a freelance writer and editor. I have written on topics ranging from competitive yoga to celebrity chefs and accounting. My work appears in magazines, business communications, and on the Web. For more on my editing services, please visit here.