Legendary jazz singer and former Peterborough resident Ada Lee will be returning to the city on Thursday, February 8th to perform at a benefit concert for the Peterborough and District Pathway of Fame.
Produced and sponsored by David Goyette, the “Home Again” concert takes place at 2 p.m. in the Nexicom Studio at Showplace Performance Centre in downtown Peterborough. Following an opening performance by the Sean Hully Jazz Group, Lee will perform accompanied by pianist Rob Phillips.
Tickets for the concert are $35 and available in person at the Showplace Box Office from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday to Thursday and 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Friday or online anytime at showplace.org.
Born to a musical family in Springfield, Ohio, Lee was formally trained in classical, jazz, blues, and gospel music. Her professional musical career began in 1957 and she recorded her first album Ada Lee Comes On! in 1961.
Regarded as one of the great jazz vocalists of her time, Lee has shared the stage with such iconic jazz musicians as Count Basie, Duke Ellington, Lionel Hampton, Guido Basso, Moe Koffman, and Don Thompson.
In 1963, she moved to Peterborough with her late husband Frank Baker where they raised six children. As well as founding the Voices For Life Gospel Choir, Lee was an active community volunteer supporting local causes including the Cancer Society, Festival of Trees, Festival of Lights, and the Easter Seals Campaign.
VIDEO: “Come Sunday” by Duke Ellington performed by Ada Lee (2019)
In the late 1990s, Lee was one of the founding members of the Peterborough and District Pathway of Fame and was herself one of the first inductees in 1998.
In 2002, she received the Queen Elizabeth II’s Golden Jubilee Medal from Canada’s Governor General, which was awarded to Canadians who made outstanding and exemplary contributions to their communities or to Canada as a whole.
In 2014, Lee moved from Peterborough to Vancouver, British Columbia to be closer to her daughter. In 2019, she returned to Peterborough to receive a key to the City of Peterborough from then-mayor Diane Therrien during Black History Month.
