Singer and songwriter Diane Nalini started singing jazz at the age of three and never stopped. She composes and sings in four languages, has performed at jazz festivals around the globe and given gala performances for President Bill Clinton and Sir Paul McCartney. Diane was nominated for the Grand Prix de Jazz at the Montreal International Jazz Festival and won second prize in the UK’s Young Jazz Vocalist of the Year awards. She has recorded and produced five critically-acclaimed albums and her original songs have been featured in television programs, video games and films. Since 2014, Diane has been the resident vocalist with the Ottawa Jazz Orchestra at the National Arts Centre.
She has taught jazz singing and songwriting in Canada and the UK, and, more recently, has also taught at ukulele festivals and online workshops. She created the website Ukulele For Jazz Singers as a resource for people who want to begin learning jazz uke comping for voice. Diane developed video lessons for three recent publications by Ukulele Magazine: Baby Songs and Lullabies for Beginning Ukulele, Traditional Songs for Beginning Ukulele, and Christmas Songs for Beginning Ukulele. During the pandemic, she created and programmed two highly successful editions of the online Ukulele Jazz Festival.
Diane received a BSc in Honours Physics from McGill University and a doctorate from the University of Oxford, where she studied on a Rhodes Scholarship. She has over 20 years’ experience as a classroom educator.