Biography

Verona was born in Bristol and raised in Bath, Somerset. Her first really lucky jazz break came in 2005 when Humphrey Lyttelton asked her to record a track perhaps aptly entitled ‘Jail Break’ for his ‘Sad Sweet Songs and Crazy Rhythms’ album.

Verona met Humph through jazz pianist Ted Beament who years before had introduced her to Claire Martin with whom she still collaborates.

Verona’s jazz album ‘Fever’ is due for release on 23 April 2010 and features an arrangement of ‘Jail Break’ as a tribute and ‘thank you’ to the late Humphrey Lyttelton.

Humph invited Verona to ‘sit-in’ at The Bull in Barnes and this experience inspired her to set up live jazz at Monty’s in The Mall W5 and subsequently Vamp Jazz, Blues and Live at Café Chai W5, which re-launched in October 2009.

In addition to residencies at the Holiday Inn, Brentford and the Duke of Kent W13, Verona has performed at the Ealing Jazz Festival, The National Theatre; The Purcell Room – South Bank; Café Royal; The Green Room; The Spice of Life; Hugo’s and for Chelsea and Westminster Hospital Arts.

Touring and Festivals include Pizza Express, Norwich; The Brazz, Brighton; The Jazz Bar, Edinburgh; Sedbergh Literary Festival; The Bear, Devizes; Brighton Festival and the Edinburgh and Bath Festivals.

Prior to her jazz career Verona performed as an actor in number one tours with the likes of George Chakiris, Norman Rossington and Barbara Murray also in weekly repertory theatre and pantomime.

She worked extensively in an ensemble called Sheherazade (with Denise Dance – flute, Fiona Clifton-Welker – harp) plus early Italian Opera, concerts and musicals both in the UK and abroad.
Broadcast appearances include – Thames, Scottish, HTV, BBC 2, BBC London Radio, BBC Regional Radio, Liberty Radio and a Bollywood film.

Verona trained in London at the Royal Academy of Music and the Trinity College of Music with the assistance of awards from The Drapers’ Company, The Clara Thornley Trust, Bath Council, The Vanburgh Trust, RAC and friends and supporters.

It was her plan from the age of five to become a professional singer and performer; she worked regularly with The Jane Lilley Singers and won numerous solo awards at local festivals. Her parents Betty & Ron embraced all styles of music and Saturday afternoons were spent, after Verona’s ballroom dancing and swimming lessons glued to ‘the box’, transported to some other place whilst watching musicals and epic movies.

Verona admires amongst others, Ella Fitzgerald, Norma Winstone, Julie Andrews, Harry Secombe, Mado Robin, Nina Simone, Irma Thomas, Barbra Streisand, Kurt Elling, Mark Murphy and contemporaries that it would be too sycophantic to name.

She is vegetarian, collects jet jewellery, loves seahorses, enjoys travel and the outdoor life, lives near her mum and with her actor fiancé and Sloshed the goldfish in West London.

The ‘Fever’ album concept was inspired by Sir John Dankworth and the meteorically talented Dame Cleo Laine’s 1964 recording ‘Shakespeare and All That Jazz’. Music includes arrangements of songs by Elton John, Stephen Sondheim, Galt MacDermot, Cole Porter, Rogers and Hart and a very original treatment of the iconic ‘Fever’ track.