By Coral Gables Gazette staff
The Coral Gables Congregational United Church of Christ has long welcomed voices that rise from obscurity to prominence, marking its Summer Concert Series as a place where national talent meets a local stage. On Thursday, August 21, that tradition culminates with the final concert of this summer’s series, featuring Tyreek McDole, a 24-year-old Haitian-American vocalist whose name is quickly becoming synonymous with the future of jazz.
Rising voice in American jazz
McDole’s ascent has been swift and assured. In November 2023, he claimed first place at the Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition, one of the most closely watched contests in the field. The victory placed him among a select lineage of winners that includes Samara Joy, who went on to win Grammy Awards, and Jazzmeia Horn, now regarded as one of her generation’s most commanding voices. McDole is only the second male vocalist to take the prize in the competition’s 12-year history, an achievement that underscores both his talent and his distinctive sound.
That sound, noted DownBeat magazine, carries the “vocal maturity and masculine resonance of Johnny Hartman and Billy Eckstine.” The comparison speaks to more than timbre: it situates McDole within a continuum of deep-voiced stylists who defined an era when intimacy and power could coexist in the same phrase.
Foundations and early accolades
McDole first drew national attention at Jazz at Lincoln Center’s 2018 Essentially Ellington competition, where he earned the Outstanding Vocalist Award. The accolade signaled the arrival of a performer able to channel tradition while speaking in his own voice. Since then, his career has expanded steadily, with collaborations that point to both versatility and ambition.
He has appeared alongside a roster of acclaimed musicians that reads like a cross-section of modern jazz: trumpeter Theo Croker, NEA Jazz Master Gary Bartz, pianist Eric Reed, bassist Rodney Whitaker, and drummer Carl Allen, among many others. Each collaboration has further established his reputation as an artist comfortable in elite company, equally capable of fronting a small ensemble or stepping into a larger orchestral setting.
The Oberlin influence
Formal study has reinforced McDole’s natural gifts. At the Oberlin Conservatory of Music, he earned a degree in jazz performance under the guidance of instructors whose names carry weight across the jazz world. LaTanya Hall, Gary Bartz, Gerald Cannon, Eddie Henderson, and Billy Hart were among those who shaped his approach to both technique and expression. Their collective influence helped sharpen a style that blends precision with emotional directness.
The Oberlin years also connected McDole with peers who share a commitment to experimentation. That community, coupled with his grounding in Haitian and Caribbean musical traditions, has given his performances an expansiveness that resists easy categorization.
Carrying the torch forward
The importance of McDole’s Coral Gables appearance rests partly in the context of the series itself. Now entering its 40th season, the Community Arts Program’s Summer Concert Series has served as an incubator for artists poised to break through. Many have returned to South Florida in later years as established names, making these concerts a record of where jazz and classical talent first intersected with attentive audiences outside of New York, Chicago, or Los Angeles.
In that respect, McDole’s presence reflects both continuity and renewal. The series has always placed younger artists alongside veterans, suggesting that jazz thrives when traditions are honored even as they evolve. His debut here places him squarely within that lineage.
Performance ahead
On August 21, McDole will appear with a quartet of saxophone, piano, bass, and drums. The format is a classic one, but in his hands it is unlikely to feel conventional. Listeners can expect repertoire that highlights the warmth of his lower register, the clarity of his phrasing, and the ease with which he transitions between restraint and force.
The setting itself—intimate, resonant, and acoustically rich—will further frame the performance. For audiences, the evening offers both discovery and confirmation: discovery of a voice that is still new to many, and confirmation that Coral Gables remains a place where artistry finds a stage and a community.
Beyond the stage
McDole’s story also connects to broader themes. As a Haitian-American raised in Florida and forged in New York, his career illustrates the way Caribbean roots, Southern heritage, and Northern institutions together sustain American music. His trajectory shows how artists today draw from multiple geographies to create work that feels both grounded and borderless.
That synthesis makes him an emblem of jazz in the 21st century: respectful of lineage yet unafraid of innovation, equally at home with swing-era ballads and modern harmonics. For Coral Gables, his visit is less a one-night concert than a glimpse into where the music is heading.
Tyreek McDole performs Thursday, August 21 at 7:30 p.m. at the Coral Gables Congregational United Church of Christ. Presented as part of the Community Arts Program’s 40th annual Summer Concert Series. Tickets and information at Community Arts Program.
