Brief Bio of Judith Ames

Originally from Milwaukee, Judith has always had a passion for music, from playing classical piano, French horn, and folk guitar in days gone by, to her many years as a church organist,and most recently, as an up-and-coming jazz singer. A longtime UNR Spanish professor (under her original name, Judith Ames Whitenack), she was inspired some years ago by the great Detroit saxophonist Rocky Tatarelli to develop her vocal skills.

During the last ten she has been performing in Reno and Carson City, the San Francisco Bay Area, Milwaukee, and Madrid, with Rocky Tatarelli (now her husband), and a rotating group of the best jazz musicians in the area. Judith favors jazz standards from the 1930s and 1940s, vocal versions of jazz tunes from the 1950s and 1960s, and a variety of Latin tunes, which she sings in the original Spanish and Portuguese. She also sings in French and Italian.

Some of her recent gigs include the following: 

     Reno and Sparks: Nevada Museum of Art--Sunday Jazz Brunch and “First Thursday;” Various Artown events; Reno Little Theater, Sierra Arts Foundation Eldercare Series, Sundance Books and Music, Wild River Grille, Anna's Mexican Grill, Daughters Café, Concerts in the Gallery (Sierra Arts), Cascades of the Sierra, MorningStar Senior Living, Stone Valley Special Care, Brookdale Reno, The Fountains, Bonaventure, Park Place, Five-Star Premier Residence, Anchors on the Marina, Louisiana Jazz Kitchen, Alterra Wynwood, Monaco Ridge, The Villas of Sparks, The Arbors, Sky Peaks, Atria at Summit Ridge

     UNR: L-Cubed series, Hispanic Culture Week, Latin American Poetry and Music series, Annual Awards Day (Dept. of World Languages and Literatures).  

     Carson City/Tahoe area: Living the Good Life Bistro, Sassafras Eclectic Food Joint, Plan: b Microlounge, Carson City "Jazz and Beyond" Festival, Carson Valley Inn, Carson Plaza, and Sierra Place, among others. 

     Elsewhere: San Francisco Bay Area; Santa Barbara, CA; Milwaukee, WI, among others.

CONTACT INFO: judithames@gmail.com 775-225-1071.

Brief bio of Rocky Tatarelli

Legendary tenor sax soloist and composer Rocky Tatarelli originally hails from Detroit, where as a young man he made a major name for himself in the very competitive jazz and popular music world there, performing live and also appearing on more than 30 CDs, and playing with such greats as Louis Hayes, George Bohannon, Joe Messina, Roosevelt Brown, Markus Belgrave, Bobby Anderson, Orthea Barnes, George Chambly, The Chisel Brothers (1990 "Rhythm and Blues Group of the Year"), Bobby Cook, Kenny Cox, Frank Tatarelli, Martin Fierro (of Santana and the Grateful Dead), and many, many others.

For many years he lived and performed in the San Francisco Bay area and in Los Angeles. In 2006 he settled in Reno, NV, where he plays with the best musicians in the area, and in 2007 was elected Tahoe “Musician of the Year.” Besides many private events, he has played at a wide variety of local venues, including recent gigs inReno: Harrah’s, the Wild River Grille, Reno Auto Museum, Silver Legacy, El Dorado, Nevada Museum of Art, ARTOWN (various venues); in Carson City: Plan: b Microlounge (inside Sassafras), Gleneagle, the Nugget, the Carson Jazz Festival, Carson Station, Carson Mall; Carson Valley Inn (Minden); Lake Tahoe: The Horizon, Fresh Ketch, Harrah’s, Cal-Neva, Montbleu; Sparks: the Farmers Market and the Nugget, as well as Moody’s in Truckee and many private performances, including many fundraisers and benefits. 

Among the great local musicians he has played with regularly are Craig Fletcher & Teri Campillo, John & Cherie Shipley, Tony Cataldo, Peter Supersano, Chuck Hughes, Neil Strocchio, Tony Savage, Jeff Bond, Andy Heglund, Dennis Steele, Paul January, Joe McKenna, Corky Bennett, Scot Marshall, Phil Jerome, Chuck DiLaura, Gerry Genuario, Dave Kubin, Bob Greenwood, Bill Heise, Hans Halt, Mick Valentino, Terry Scott, Mike Mayhall, Kyle Rothchild, Paul Covarelli, Eric Finkelstein, Jimmy Vermilion, Mauro DiGioia, various members of the “Reno Jazz Syndicate,” and of course Judith Ames and numerous other area vocalists, as well as the terrific musicians who show up regularly at the Plan: b open jam sessions, which he and Judith host once a month.

CONTACT INFO: rockytatarelli@yahoo.com 775-530-4989.