Desmond, Trudy

Jazz singer Trudy Desmond was born in October 12, 1945 and died February 19, 1999 in Toronto, Ontario. Desmond's career began at the age of 14 in Coney Island, New York, where she made her first record. She moved to Toronto to appear in the revue Spring thaw (1970), and stayed, performing in variety shows, commercials, and cabaret productions (e.g., What's a nice country like you doing in a state like this). She also performed regularly in Los Angeles. Desmond took a break from performing briefly in the 1980s, but returned in 1988.

She performed regularly with other jazz artists like Rob McConnell and the Boss Brass, Lionel Hampton, Kenny Rogers, Neil Swainson, Ed Bickert, Don Thompson, and Doug Riley. Desmond was one of the 16 original members of Doug Riley's Dr. Music ensemble. In 1990 and 1991, Desmond was the music director of the Church Street Café in Toronto.

In addition to live performances, Desmond appeared on several radio and television programs and made several recordings, including Tailor Made (The Jazz Alliance, 1992); RSVP (Jazz Alliance, 1994); Make me Rainbows (Koch, 1995); and My One and Only (Justin Time, 1998). She also had a radio series called The Song is You, where she interviewed various jazz singers including Carol Weisman and Ranee Lee, which ran on CBC Radio Two.

Desmond was also an actress, interior designer, club manager, and theatrical producer.

Toronto, Ontario
New York

Created April 21, 2022. RS.