Reviews- Click buttons for links to full reviews
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"It opens with five tunes sung by Nick Ziobro, a lanky, clean-cut winner of the
Michael Feinstein Great American Songbook Initiative’s 2012 High School Competition. Sixteen years old and crooning “Here’s That Rainy Day” in tune, with dreamy phrasing and perfect pitch? Don’t tell me the Great American Songbook is six feet under." |
That's All, Folks: Feinstein's Farewell Foregoes the Typical Holiday Fare
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"And as if it were not enough to be talented, Feinstein is generous. For this run he is sharing the stage with Nick Ziobro ( as he did two years ago with Annie Yokum) who is this year’s winner of the Great American Songbook Vocal Competition. Ziobro opens the evening and
blows the ceiling off the room. This guy is a JUNIOR in high school and will actually be in school one day per week this month while he does the rest almost all online. Thank the stars for the Internet because this is a talent you don’t want to miss. He is proof that emotions are with us probably from the time we arrive (and even before that). In particular his rendition of Here’s That Rainy Day will take you right back to the very center of your young loves and passions. And if that isn’t powerful for you– well you need to check and see if you even have a pulse. Ziobro is a perfect addition to this evening. I only wish the two of them had sung together." |
Review-Michael Feinstein A Gershwin Holiday
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“Nick Ziobro is the kind of talent that comes along once in a lifetime and I think everyone felt that,” said Michael Feinstein. “He has an indefinable ability to touch the heart. To see a young man with such connection to the music and a voice that is so beautiful is inspiring, and I think he has a great career ahead of him”
Five-time Grammy winner, Sandi Patty says, “From my first encounter with Nick, there was a maturity in his spirit, a maturity in his musicianship, and a maturity in song selection and musical performance. Not only did he tell a beautiful story in music, but he will be a great ambassador for the American standards genre.” Two-time Grammy winner, Sylvia McNair agrees, “Nick has the ‘magic.’ He has the X-factor. It can't be taught, it can't be learned. You either have it or you don't.” |
Michael Feinstein's Great American Songbook Initiative reaches all generations
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Tall and good-looking, Ziobro, who'll return September 14, gave "All of
Me" a going-over that started smoothly and then caught wildfire. The upshot was, the lad -- looking as if he's been doing this for more than 16 years -- proved that handled properly, he wouldn't take long to earn the sort of wide-spread appreciation Michael Bublé has now. Or Feinstein has. |
First Nighter: Feinstein, Maye Swing the Night Away Brilliantly
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...at the opening on Tuesday night of Mr. Feinstein and Ms. Maye’s show
“Swingin’ the Night Away” at Feinstein’s at Loews Regency, the big surprise was the appearance of a fresh-faced 16-year-old crooner, Nick Ziobro. He delivered “All of Me,” the 1931 jazz standard by Gerald Marks and Seymour Simons, with an easy swinging confidence and charm that suggested he could evolve into another Michael Bublé, who recorded the song several years ago. (He’ll make a repeat appearance at the show on Sept. 14.) |
Two Veterans Give a Nod to a Talented Youngster Michael Feinstein and Marilyn Maye at Feinstein's
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Hamlisch became the lead conductor for the Pasadena Pops in 2011, and it was there that he gave his final performance. On July 21 of this year, just a few weeks before his death, Hamlisch conducted an evening of classics from the Great American Songbook with Michael Feinstein. The evening also featured a debut performance by Nick Ziobro, winner of Feinstein's Great American Songbook Competition and a budding young talent championed by Hamlisch.
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Marvin Hamlisch's Last Performance at the Pasadena Pops
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The highlight of the first act was a knockout number from 16-year-old Nick
Ziobro, who won this year’s Michael Feinstein Great American Songbook Initiative. Performing a non-Porter number, the enchanting Frank Sinatra standard "All of Me," from 1931 (written by Gerald Marks and Seymour Simons), the youngster demonstrated an appealing vocal style, a powerful voice and a radiant presence. He supplied ample evidence of why he was victorious in Feinstein’s star-search endeavor. His appearance at the Pops was a welcome bonus for audiences, whose appreciation was evident during a prolonged standing ovation. 
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Michael Feinstein in Concert
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16 year-old Nick Ziobro received a standing ovation for his stylized version of
“All of Me”. Ziobro is on a six-city tour with Michael Feinstein as Feinstein’s Great American Songbook Youth Ambassador. A youngster stole the show, though. An unusual star emerged during the evening. Sixteen year-old Nick Ziobro, named this year as winner of the Michael Feinstein Great American Songbook Initiative, gave a zippy rendition of “All of Me”, a 1920′s hit song, now a standard. The lanky young man’s bright and youthful personality shone in the number, but his strong (but not yet mature) voice carried the crowd right along with him, which led to a standing ovation. |
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"Competition winner was lanky upstate New York resident Nick Ziobro, who’d just celebrated his 16th birthday. Ziobro earned a standing ovation with a stunning rendition of the jazz standard, “All of Me,” complete with some righteous scatting."
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Feinstein champions Tin Pan Alley at Opera House
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"Through this competition, we are reaching a new generation to teach this music and the American history that inspired and influenced these composers. Our winner this year, Nick Ziobro from New York, was spectacular. He showed an innate sense of how to sing these songs. He's one of many young people these days who love this music." (Michael Feinstein)
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“I’m so excited for people to hear young Nick Ziobro ... he was so sensational
(during the competition) that I had to bring him on tour,” the singer said during a phone chat this week. “I also want to raise awareness of the competition and how it is helping (people rediscover) the great American songbook." (Michael Feinstein) |
Playing the Great American Songbook
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"Ziobro, now serving as Youth Ambassador for the Great American Songbook, nearly stole the show with beautifully paced renditions of “Here’s That Rainy Day” and “All of Me,” accompanied by pianist Sam Kriger. He embellished “All of Me” with scat, to the delight of the audience."
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Focusing momentarily on the Great American Songbook Initiative’s focus on
education and continuing to grow the legacy of the Great American Songbook, Feinstein introduced the winner of the previous evening’s Great American Songbook Vocal Academy and Competition Nick Ziobro, a 15-year old singer with an absolutely breathtaking voice. His voice carried an age well beyond his years and he perfectly captured the classic style of singing that fits so many of the evening’s great songs. The crowd was audibly taken aback when Feinstein unveiled Ziobro’s age, unable to believe that someone sounding as he did could, in fact, be so young. |
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“Nick Ziobro was chosen unanimously by all five judges as the first place
winner. We believe he is a wonderful singer and the best prepared to be a young ambassador for the Great American Songbook. There's nothing quite as powerful as being able to open your heart and share it with a thousand people through song. Nick did that with great comfort. He also sings with beautiful intonation, great care for lyrics and his scat section blew us up! Nick has the ’magic.’ He has the X-factor. It can't be taught, it can't be learned. You either have it or you don't,” says McNair. |
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Nick Ziobro, a 15-year old singer from Manlius, NY, is the 2012 winner of the
Great American Songbook Vocal Academy and Competition, held in Carmel, Indiana. Judges included Michael Feinstein, Jim Caruso, Sylvia McNair, Sandi Patty and La Tanya Hall. During the finals concert on June 15, he sang two American standards: "Here's That Rainy Day" and "All of Me." "I'm beyond thrilled to have won this competition," said Ziobro, adding that his favorite performers are Frank Sinatra, Fred Astaire and Louis Armstrong. "I never dreamed that I would be here." Ziobro, who began singing at the age of eight, joined nine other high school vocalists at the four-day academy and competition, held in the Indiana cities of Indianapolis and Carmel. |
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"Based on the sustained applause and roar of the crowd that followed his
performance, it’s safe to say that many in the sold-out house knew that they had just witnessed the emergence of a bona fide star." "The tall, lean and baby-faced Ziobro showed extraordinary poise, presence and maturity, and he could easily be compared to a young Frank Sinatra (coincidentally Ziobro has blue eyes too). Nevertheless, he showed originality and his own style as he emotionally connected with an audience who clearly adored him, singing in a voice that was distinctive for its exquisite tone, pitch and impeccable phrasing. Earlier, Ziobro’s run for the gold began when he wowed the audience during the first part of the concert with a jazz/swing version of “All of Me,” in which he scatted like a seasoned pro." |
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“I’m numb right now,” said Ziobro by phone about a half hour after learning he
had won. “The competition was fierce. Everyone was so incredibly talented. Honestly, I was absolutely shocked when they named me the winner.” |
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Ziobro spoke by phone from Indianapolis about the experience. “It’s fantastic,”
he said. “I never really thought I would be here.” He added that Feinstein was standing 10 feet from him. When Ziobro, first saw the Feinstein Wednesday he tweeted “Omg he’s here.” Ziobro asked Feinstein to autograph his program from the singer’s performance with the Syracuse Symphony Orchestra in January 2011. Ziobro considers the competition among the 10 finalists stiff. “It’s humbling to see other kids that are so incredibly talented and that love this just as much as I do,” he said. |
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