The Jazz Psalms is a musical album that explores the depth and beauty of the Psalms, using the language of modern music. The eclectic background of its featured vocalist, Carol Rogers, was just what the project needed to interpret the very different rhythms and melodic styles of each track. Rogers has sung and recorded jazz, blues, and gospel, and even toured internationally with Sergio Mendes.
Rogers believes this latest project to be her most melodious, stating, “I was initially asked to sing a five-song demo” for the composer of The Jazz Psalms Project, Chuck Marohnic. “Now it’s become a full solo album, videos, and tours! Working with Chuck places me in the tutelage of a maestro again. He is such a gifted composer and friend. His challenges for me are my opportunities to grow, and his compliments mean that God has blessed something!”
Growing up in Omaha in a musical home provided the perfect surrounding for Rogers to develop and showcase her talent. At fourteen, her first television appearance was on a weekly show on KETV called “Black on Black.” Eventually, Carol found her way into the world-celebrated company of Grammy Award Winner Chip Davis (Mannheim Steamroller, C.W. McCall), providing background vocals for Davis’s innumerable recording live shows, sessions, and including his local and national commercials.
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In the mid-seventies, Carol Rogers, began touring the world with Brazilian superstar Sergio Mendes, appearing in lead and background capacity for 25 years and in a total of twelve of his releases, including Mendes’s 1994 Grammy Award winning “Brasileiro.” Per his introduction, Carol has worked for the stars: Stevie Wonder, Oscar Castro Neves, Gerry Mulligan, Dave Grusin, Dionne Warwick, Lee Ritenour, Djavan, Japanese saxophonist Sadao Watanabe, Brazilian composer Eumir Deodato (2001 Space Odyssey, Kool and the Gang).
In 2011, Rogers met Chuck Marohnic, whose career spans more than four decades as a respected pianist, educator, author, director, composer and arranger. Marohnic launched The Jazz Psalms Project after reflecting on the original Psalms of the bible, which were written as musical compositions to be sung, not merely read.
In just two years, Marohnic has written over eighty original compositions and he’s on track to complete all 150 new Psalms in the next two to three years. Each song is being recorded by Music Serving the Word Ministries and will be made available to church musicians and worship teams that want to explore a new way of presenting these ancient scriptures.
To purchase the songs as MP3’s or as a CD, visit The Jazz Psalms with Carol Rogers
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