- Joani Taylor performing Jazz Vespers with the reVive Vocal Emsemble at St. Stephen's Anglican Church, Sunday, May 30, 4 p.m.

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Joani Taylor vividly remembers the night she fell in love with jazz.

"My dad took me to a jazz club when I was 13," she says. "There was a local big band playing real jazz charts -- Thelonious Monk. That music just grabbed me and never let me go."

After that, Taylor knew where she belonged in the music industry. By 16, she was opening for major acts like Stevie Wonder, Little Richard and Jimmy Smith at Vancouver's Isy's Supper Club.

Decades later, Taylor has established herself as Canada's "first lady of the jazz ballad." She currently has six albums, two jazz vocal nominations and has sung on thousands of commercials, film scores and recordings.

Looking back on her career, Taylor reflects on her musical family and her early experiences in the Vancouver music scene as major influences. With both her father and brother involved in music, she was encouraged to explore and develop her passion for jazz.

"There was a lot of live music in town so I would open the show and I could walk down the street and go to another club to see wonderful music," she recalls. "It was exciting. It was fun."

While she's a jazz singer at heart, Taylor also sang funk and R&B throughout her career. On her latest album, In My Own Words released in 2008, the singer is joined by musical director Bob Murphy, saxophonist Ross Taggart, Buff Allen on drums, bassist Miles Foxx, and trumpeter Brad Turner.

For one track, Taylor experiments with her traditional sound by collaborating with local hip-hop artist Jaykin. Performing a remixed version of Dave Brubeck's "Take Five," she hoped to recreate the old beat poet style by mixing the classic song with a hip-hop flair, she says.

"There were people who thought that I shouldn't do it and it would open up the door to a lot of criticism but it was a hit," Taylor says. "I love to prove people wrong."

The jazz singer's collaboration with Jaykin was made into a video with the help of her son, a director of cinematography, in Vancouver's Gastown area.

These days, Taylor is busy performing and teaching music in the Vancouver area. She recently began mentoring students at West Vancouver secondary.

"I remember walking by the school and hearing the choir going over a bit of 'Amazing Grace' from outside. I walked in and started singing with them," she laughs. "I gave the choir some ideas to use and then the school started sending me students to teach. That's how I started mentoring students there. "

Taylor works with West Vancouver secondary students as well as other students in the Vancouver area. She uses her experience in the business to help people interested in music to realize their potential, she says.

"There's a reason we're drawn to things," Taylor says. "Sometimes, unless all those doors are open, we don't know what it is. I want people to be brave and make phone calls and promote themselves and be as creative as they can. I'm more of a mentor than anything."

Taylor hopes to wrap up her teaching jobs soon so that she can begin her next big project. Local writer Guy MacPherson recently asked her to write lyrics to songs written by his late father, legendary Canadian musician Fraser MacPherson.

"I am totally honoured. He was such a wonderful musician in town," Taylor says. "I'm really looking forward to clearing off all the stuff I have to finish. When I write, I just close the doors and there's always a whole pile of paper on the floor."

Until then, Taylor is busy teaching and performing in the Vancouver area. She's set to perform next with the reVive Vocal Ensemble at St. Stephen's Anglican Church on May 30 at 4 p.m.

nscallan@nsnews.com