Marina Pacowski

An accomplished classical pianist, jazz singer, and educator, Marina Pacowski is known for her lyrical, acoustic post-bop, scat, and standards-based style. Building upon her highly regarded classical performance and teaching work in Europe, she embarked on a jazz vocal career in Los Angeles, debuting with 2023's Inner Urge. Born in France, Pacowski grew up in Biarritz in a creative family where she started on piano at a young age. Although she did listen to jazz, classical was her main focus during her formative years. She excelled, picking up accolades, including winning Vienna's Hans Gabor Belvedere International Competition in the Coaching Singers Directory category. She also garnered first prizes in competitions at conservatories in Bayonne, Bordeaux, and Rueil-Malmaison in Paris. Along with performing, she moved into education, joining the faculty of the Conservatory Maurice Ravel. In 2017, she was awarded Best Collaborative Music Award by the International Society of Bassists. That brought her to the attention of bassist/composer Frank Proto, who wrote a Concerto for Piano and String Orchestra specifically for her and which they recorded in 2018. Around the same time, Pacowski moved to the United States, eventually settling in Los Angeles, where she decided to focus on jazz singing. In 2023, she made her solo debut with Inner Urge, an acoustic jazz standards album featuring contributions by pianist Josh Nelson, bassist John Clayton, drummer Ron McCurdy, trumpeter Carl Saunders, saxophonist Joel Frahm, and others.
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