Award-winning Toronto jazz vocalist Ori Dagan celebrates the spontaneity of live jazz with his fifth album, Live in the Market, arriving October 23.
Award-winning Toronto jazz singer Ori Dagan is preparing to release his fifth album and first live recording, Live in the Market, on October 23, 2026, via G-THREE Records. Capturing the energy, improvisation, and intimacy of a live jazz performance, the eight-track collection celebrates the music that first inspired him to become a vocalist.
Dagan will mark the release with a special concert at Toronto’s Heliconian Hall on October 24, joined by an accomplished lineup of musicians.
Recorded in front of an audience at Kensington Sound, in the heart of Toronto’s Kensington Market, Live in the Market showcases Dagan’s rich bass-baritone voice, inventive phrasing, and improvisational spirit.
Accompanied by Stu Harrison on piano, Brandi Disterheft on bass, and Ben Wittman on drums, Dagan reimagines eight jazz standards with warmth, humour, and effortless swing. The album draws inspiration from legendary live recordings by Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughan, Billie Holiday, and Dinah Washington.
“Releasing this album feels like a milestone for me. Of all the recordings I’ve made, I think this one comes closest to capturing who I am as a musician,” says Dagan. “Ever since the fateful day I got hooked on Ella Fitzgerald’s ‘Mack the Knife’ and ‘How High the Moon,’ I’ve believed that jazz – a music built on spontaneity, risk and discovery – is at its best when there’s an audience sharing in the moment.”
Ori Dagan Live in the Market Captures the Magic of Jazz
For Dagan, the beauty of a live recording lies in its unpredictability. Even familiar songs take on new life when performed in front of an audience, allowing musicians to respond instinctively to one another and the energy in the room.
“There’s something magical about a live recording. It captures an experience that can never happen the same way again but somehow allows that moment to live on forever. Most of the songs on this album I have sung hundreds of times, but I have never performed them exactly this way. To me, that makes this album the most honest and authentic representation of who I am as a jazz artist.”
Beyond capturing a memorable performance, Live in the Market serves as a tribute to the artists who shaped Dagan’s musical identity.
While household names such as Fitzgerald and Holiday remain central influences, Dagan also celebrates lesser-known innovators whose contributions helped expand the possibilities of jazz vocals.
His interpretation of “All of Me” incorporates vocalese lyrics written by King Pleasure, born Clarence Beeks, to a 1951 saxophone solo by Illinois Jacquet. Meanwhile, “Autumn Leaves” draws inspiration from Sarah Vaughan and Mark Murphy, two vocalists celebrated for their adventurous improvisational approaches.
Another meaningful moment arrives with “It Don’t Mean a Thing,” performed as a bass-and-voice duet with Brandi Disterheft.
The arrangement pays tribute to the late bebop legend Sheila Jordan, with whom Dagan recorded a duet in 2017.
“’It Don’t Mean a Thing,’ recorded in duo with Brandi Disterheft is directly inspired by the originator of the bass & voice duo, the late bebop legend Sheila Jordan, with whom I was fortunate to record a duet in 2017. Sheila, who dedicated her life to this music as a musician, educator and ambassador, is one of the greatest inspirations in my life.”
Ori Dagan Celebrates Identity and Musical Freedom
For Dagan, Live in the Market also represents an important personal milestone.
Describing it as his gayest album to date, the Toronto vocalist reflects on how jazz helped him find the confidence to embrace his identity and express himself openly through music.
“I fell in love with jazz in my late teens, around the same time I was coming to understand that I was gay. Back then, I dreamed that one day I would be able to stand onstage and sing songs like ‘Fine and Mellow,’ but it took me years to feel truly comfortable doing so. In many ways, jazz has given me the courage to embrace my story, to sing it in my own voice, and to share it with others.”
The album was recorded and mixed by Vezi Tayyeb, mastered by Mariana Hutten, and produced by Leonardo Dell’Anno, with Greg Gooding serving as executive producer.
A Grand Prize Winner of the John Lennon Songwriting Contest, Dagan also earned recognition in the 2023 DownBeat Critics Poll as a Rising Male Vocalist.
His international performance career has taken him across Canada and to the United States, Japan, South Korea, Morocco, Macedonia, Israel, and Germany.
His previous releases include S’Cat Got My Tongue (2009), Less Than Three <3 (2012), Nathaniel: A Tribute to Nat King Cole (2017), and Click Right Here (2022), his first all-original album.
Beyond performing, Dagan is a producer, curator, and passionate supporter of Toronto’s live music community through his work with JazzInToronto.
Ori Dagan Celebrates Live in the Market at Heliconian Hall
To celebrate the album’s release, Dagan will perform at Heliconian Hall in Toronto on Saturday, October 24, 2026.
For the special performance, he will be joined by Stu Harrison on piano, Michael Herring on bass, and Norbert Botos on drums.
Vinyl copies and CDs of Live in the Market will be available at the concert, with Dagan signing copies following the performance.
Years after discovering the magic of Ella Fitzgerald’s live performances, Ori Dagan has captured his own unforgettable musical moment. With Live in the Market, he invites listeners to experience the spontaneity, joy, and personal freedom that continue to define his relationship with jazz.
Ori Dagan Tour Dates
October 24, 2026 – Toronto, ON – Heliconian Hall, 35 Hazelton Avenue (Album Release Concert, 8 p.m.)
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