Take a sensitive singer/pianist, choose an imaginative set of songs, add George Koller on bass, guitarist Reg Schwager and Don Thompson on vibes - but only one of them on each number- and you are already rounding third and heading home. It is difficult to choose favorites from this CD and Lindzon has created an album that might just be too good to be "popular," but real listeners to the music will find a great deal of pleasure in this tasteful collection of superior lyrics and melodies.

Jim Galloway

Los Angeles Jazz Scene, April 08

A very talented pianist and singer from Toronto, Fern Lindzon has released a rather unusual debut CD. She is featured in duets with either guitarist Reg Schwager, bassist George Koller or vibraphonist Don Thompson. Duets, even more than solos, are particularly tricky because they leave each player very exposed, and the two musicians must work perfectly together or their missteps will be obvious. There is nowhere to hide.

But with musicians of this caliber, there is no reason for anyone to hide. Fern Lindzon, who takes vocals on eight of the 11 duets, is not shy to take chances yet she makes it all sound easy. She sings her own lyrics to Wayne Shorter’s Infant Eyes (which is retitled To See Through Infant Eyes) and her vocalese to Moments Like These which she uses as a prelude to her lyrics to Stolen Moments. She turns the Jewish piece Re’i into a haunting ballad, contributes the playful You Really Shouldn’t, But... (a thinly disguised Well You Needn’t), and takes Where Do You Start? as a solo piece. Everything works.

Clearly Fern Lindzon deserves to be better known on this side of the Canadian border. Moments Like These, which is available from www.fernlindzon, is a keeper.

Scott Yanow

Coda Magazine, May 08

Veteran Toronto singer and pianist Fern Lindzon has taken an interesting approach to her debut recording Moments Like These. Completely made up of duets with noted musicians Don Thompson (here on vibraphone), bassist George Koller and guitarist Reg Schwager, Lindzon achieves a sense of intimacy on this recording that is pleasing and rare.

Lindzon's vocals are rich, elegant and, thanks in part to her many years of stage experience, delivered with a sense of confidence and ease. Her piano playing is very much in the jazz tradition (she has a great swing feel), but is also contemporary in tone. The temptation when playing duet might be to play more, if only to fill empty spaces, but Lindzon maintains a judicious style.

Vocally, Lindzon is most effective on standards like Irving Berlin's Let Yourself Go, where she performs a clever rendition of the rarely heard verse. Of the duets that are strictly instrumental, standouts include a spirited conversation between Schwager's delicate guitar and Lindzon's piano on You Really Shouldn't, But... and the opening track Like Someone In Love, where Thompson's mile a minute vibes provide an effective counterpart to Lindzon's clean piano lines.

Tracey Nolan

Klezmer Podcast

I first became aware of Fern Lindzon about a year ago. When I leaarned that she was releasing this, her first CD, I was immediately intrigued. Not really sure what to expect from her, when the CD arrived I started listening to it right away. And listened again. And again. Moments Like These is a collection of intimate duets with Lindzon on Piano/Vocals, Reg Schwager- Guitar, Don Thompson- Vibes, and George Koller- Bass. Normally, I would say that this would make for a great sounding quartet, but the idea of doing these songs as duets is both bold and inspired.

Lindzon pays tribute to some great jazz artists such as Wayne Shorter, Chick Corea, Thelonious Monk, and Oliver Nelson, as well as legendary singers Ella Fitzgerald and Shirley Horn. The songs are selected from a broad range of standards, show tunes, plus a few surprises.

Lindzon is a truly outstanding performer. She has the ability to hold the listener's attention throughout the album. The music never gets in the way of her floating voice, but provides a perfect background for her inventive style. In addition, the outstanding musicianship of everyone is on display during the instrumental breaks and on the three nonvocal pieces. Here we find quality jazz, a nice touch, considering that instrumental tracks are a rarity on vocal albums in general.

Another aspect of Lindzon that is not immediately apparent is her innovative approach as a composer and lyricist. As she says in the liner notes, she likes writing lyrics to standard jazz tunes. She displays this talent with great aplomb on the title track, Moments Like These/You Belong To Her, where she sings an original vocalese as an intro to her own lyrics set to the tune of one of my all-time favorite songs, Stolen Moments, by Oliver Nelson. She also sets original lyrics to Wayne Shorter's Infant Eyes on her version called To See Through Infant Eyes.

Her composing and arranging abilities are on display with the Chick Corea-inspired Children's Lullaby, which serves as a wonderful prelude to her beautiful rendition of Never Never Land, arranged in 5/4 time that reminds me of Dave Brubeck. Another Lindzon composition is the inventive TR7, a 12-tone blues that is actually a very nice piece. Just don't try to sing along, you might hurt yourself (Just kidding, Fern).

My favorite song on the album is Re'i. This is quite a departure from the rest of the album. Lindzon sings the song in Hebrew, which adds a touch of mysticism to the smooth lines of the melody. Just as we settle into the slow groove, we are treated to a perfectly matched vibes solo from Don Thompson. Another song with a twist is You Really Shouldn't, But... As a tribute to Thelonious Monk it is a great Piano piece. But again, Lindzon puts her own stamp on it by using a slight Bulgar rhythm as the background. The Bulgar is a traditional Jewish dance, and gives new direction to what is otherwise a mainstream jazz piece.

The 6-page foldout booklet is nicely done, with photos; liner notes by Mark Miller, a noted jazz critic; thank yous and credits; and song descriptions. The track personnel and times appear on the back tray card.

I must say that I was very impressed with the audio quality. The vocals are clear, with just the right amount of reverb; the piano, guitar, and bass are clear and distinct; and the vibes have great presence. Vibes can be troublesome to record properly, but I give a lot of credit to the audio team of Chad Irschick and Michael Haas for the outstanding results the have achieved.

Moments Like These is a welcome introduction to the artistry of Fern Lindzon. And especially for those not familiar with her work, have a listen, immerse yourself in the music, and seize the moments that this album offers. Moments like these don't occur very often.

Keith Wolzinger

Now Magazine, Feb 21, 08

Interesting how such a basic set of instruments can create such divergent thoughts and feelings. A vibraphone, a guitar, a bass and a female voice add up to more than the sum of their parts on Lindzon’s debut...She challenges herself by singing in Hebrew one moment and inserting a few instrumental pieces the next, evening out the listening experience. The 12-tone-row used on TR7 intrigues the ear, even if it is a little abstract and heady...her potential is evident, and the album is more inventive than might initially seem.

Addi Stewart

CD Liner notes by Mark Miller

Folks — friends, fellow musicians, fans — have been telling Fern Lindzon that there’s something very brave about Moments Like These. Daring even. After all, it’s her first CD, and here she is playing piano and singing in that most intimate and revealing of settings, the duet, with vibraphonist Don Thompson, guitarist Reg Schwager and bassist George Koller, three of Toronto’s finest jazz musicians. Daring indeed.

Well, yes, that’s certainly one way of looking at it. But here’s another: Fern is simply challenging herself, as jazz musicians are wont to do — the good ones, anyway, the ones who understand instinctively that complacency does not complement creativity.

That’s certainly consistent with the inquiring spirit that Fern has shown throughout her career: classical studies in piano and voice, a degree in music history from the University of Toronto, an introduction to jazz in her early twenties and to Klezmer music more recently, and a thriving career along the way as a pianist and singer for all seasons.

The idea of recording with just one other musician at a time is surely the boldest of her challenges on Moments Like These, particularly when that one other musician is capable of offering the level of invention and inspiration that Thompson, Schwager and Koller bring to this warm and engaging CD.

So too, in this matter of challenges, is Fern’s decision to sing Estate and Where Do You Start?, two songs already recorded near-definitively by Shirley Horn with string orchestra; Fern makes them her own all over again with much, much less.

And how about writing lyrics to Wayne Shorter’s Infant Eyes? Or creating the vocalese — the lyrics and the free melodic line — of the song Moments Like These as a prelude to Oliver Nelson’s Stolen Moments? Or composing a 12-tone blues, TR7, and an allusively Monk-ish You Really Shouldn’t, But..., two of the CD’s three instrumentals? Or adapting Re’i, a song of reflection in Hebrew, for piano and vibes, and to such ravishing effect at that? Or finding other ways as an arranger to freshen the rest of her repertoire, and other ways as a singer to bring to it new insights? Or exploring those insights even further at the piano, right hand melodically inquisitive and left hand harmonically reassuring?

Or ultimately — as challenges go — making a CD that stands with quiet confidence apart from so many other CDs these days by singers, singers who play piano and pianists who sing?

Challenges set. Challenges met.

Mark Miller was the jazz critic for The Globe and Mail from 1978 to 2005 and is the author of High Hat, Trumpet and Rhythm: The Life and Music of Valaida Snow and seven other books.

Then there's the Yiddish classic Chiribim...the middle section is infused with great jazz solos by saxophonist Jane Fair and pianist Fern Lindzon...I must mention the outstanding rhythm section...These ladies are terrific! They shift between swing, bulgar, Latin, and contemporary jazz with ease and absolutely nail each style...I really liked the musical arrangements of Fern Lindzon, who has a great understanding of the varied musical styles on the album.

Keith Wolzinger