EPK

Jazz Vocalist and Indie Singer/Songwriter

Ava Preston is a 21-year-old jazz vocalist and indie singer-songwriter based in Cleveland and New York. She performs a unique mix of jazz, blues, pop, and originals. When performing her wide array of jazz standards, audience members often describe her as an “Old Soul.” Ava is the Winner of the 2026 International Ella Fitzgerald Jazz Vocal Competition. Ava was voted Best Female Vocalist at the 2024 Cleveland Music Awards. She is a 12x Downbeat Student Music Award Winner: 6x for Vocal Jazz Soloist and 6x for Blues/Pop/Rock Soloist from 2018-2024 and also a 2023 YoungArts Finalist and Silver Award Winner for Jazz/Voice. Ava was selected as the Vocalist for the Next Generation Jazz Orchestra, which brings together 20 of the most accomplished high school jazz musicians in the country, culminating in a main stage performance at the 2023 Monterey Jazz Festival. In 2025, Ava created Sidewalk Swing, an event to “bring jazz directly to the people” on 12 street corners throughout Manhattan, which featured student and alumni combos from seven local universities.

An active singer in Northeast Ohio, she began her career singing at a jazz club when she was 10-years old. A few years later she was featured at a number of local venues including The Bop Stop, BluJazz+, The Music Box, Nighttown, Beachland Ballroom, Brothers Lounge, Tri-C JazzFest, and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame to name a few. She has performed with the Cleveland Jazz Orchestra, trumpeter Dominick Farinacci, Brazilian guitarist Moises Borges, and was the lead singer for two 17-piece big bands.

On the national scene, Ava has performed at Jazz at Lincoln Center-Dizzy’s Club (NYC), Birdland Jazz Club (NYC), Small’s (NYC), NuBlu (NYC), Blues Alley (DC), Bluebird Café (Nashville), Blue Llama Jazz Club (Ann Arbor), Con Alma (Pittsburgh), Andy’s Jazz Club (Chicago), and the Monty Alexander Jazz Festival (Easton, MD). Ava has been privileged to perform with such jazz greats as Monty Alexander, John Clayton, Sullivan Fortner, Dan Wilson, Sachal Vasandani, Braxton Cook, and Jon Thomas. In 2017, Ava was honored to sing for Wynton Marsalis, who said she had “a gift…a lot of talent and personality.” In 2019, legendary band leader and composer Paul Shaffer watched Ava perform her original song “Toy Solder” and said, “That was a terrific song. You have a big future ahead of you.”

As an aspiring songwriter, Ava has recorded a number of original songs that span jazz, indie, and pop/rock. Steve Bogard, songwriter of ten number one country songs, recognized Ava’s songwriting ability when she was 11-years old at his songwriter’s camp and encouraged her to visit Nashville. Ava released “Toy Solder” in 2020, and “Move Along,” “Some Overdose,” and “Antifreeze” in 2023. Ava was interviewed and performed her original songs for two PBS programs: “Applause Performances” and “Songs at the Center” for their 10th season. A passionate consumer all types of musical genres and styles, she also sings in Portuguese, Spanish and French. Ava draws inspiration from jazz legends like Ella Fitzgerald, Sarah Vaughn, Cyrille Aimee and Astrud Gilberto along with pop singer/songwriters like Sara Bareilies and Alanis Morissette.

Teachers and mentors are very important to Ava and include Carla Cook and Charenée Wade (Juilliard Jazz Voice), internationally acclaimed trumpeter Dominick Farinacci, pianist Theron Brown, guitarist Kurt Reed, jazz vocalists Kim Nazarian, La Tanya Hall, Jean Baylor, Jazzmeia Horn, and classical vocalist Emily Stauch, among others. Ava plans to graduate in May 2026 with a Masters of Music in Jazz Voice at The Juilliard School.