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April is Autism Awareness Month

Nadine Jansen On Piano Jazz

Nadine Jansen
Courtesy of the artist
Nadine Jansen

Pianist and horn player Nadine Jansen got her start as a part of Horace Heidt's amateur show. Performing alongside The Clooney Sisters, Skitch Henderson and Tony Pastor, Jansen learned show business from the best entertainers around. She quickly made a name for herself on the nightclub circuit, particularly in clubs like New York's Capital Theatre and the Blue Note in Chicago.

Jansen was known for her proficiency on both piano and flugelhorn, and she often played the two at the same time, periodically pausing to sing a few bars. She joins host Marian McPartland here, displaying her many musical talents in "Just Friends," "Yesterdays" and "Nadine's Blues."

Nadine Jansen continued to perform regularly through the early 2000s at J. Chew & Company in Scottsdale, Ariz. She died in northern California in 2008. She was 79.

Originally recorded Jan. 13, 1988.

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