Vanessa Rubin is well-versed in a wide variety of vocal styles, including sulltry ballads, bebop scat solos, and "down home" blues. But perhaps her greatest asset as a performer is her ability to find feeling and offer personal expression through the songs she sings.

Rubin strives to identify with the lyrics she sings, claiming that this is essential to a "credible" performance. She says maturity and life experiences are assets for vocalists. Rubin tells Dr. Taylor, "It wasn't until I lived some of those things that I could actually sing them with some conviction..." She starts off her performance in the Terrace Theatre at the Kennedy Center singing "I Have a Feeling I've Been There Before" in such a way that no one would deny the conviction in her voice.

Rubin was born and raised in Cleveland, the second youngest of eight children. Her father and older brothers introduced her to big band music and records by the likes of Cannonball Adderley, Dexter Gordon, Blue Mitchell, and Nancy Wilson. She also grew up with a fondness for calypso, because her mother had been from Trinidad.

Despite these influences, Rubin didn't resolve to pursue a career in music until after college, though she had been involved in musical theater and the marching band in high school. With a degree in journalism, she briefly worked with a newspaper. After a stint in public relations, she found herself teaching English in New York.

However, Rubin's move to New York was more inspired by her growing desire to become a performer than by teaching opportunities. The latter were just a way to pay rent while she developed her skills. Rubin took music classes with Barry Harris at a jazz cultural theater on Eighth Avenue, where she learned phrasing and how to carry a melody. This classwork also included lessons in music theory taught by Frank Foster.

Dr. Taylor notes Harris' insistence on his students learning tempo, or how to "get that groove together". With that, he makes the fitting suggestion that Rubin do her rendition of "World on a String". Not only is Rubin in the groove, she demonstrates her sensational scat soloing abilities with the number. Dr. Taylor and Rubin then discuss improvisation, and Rubin provides her own advice on this topic to aspiring vocalists. She recommends that vocalists learn to sing solos played on instruments.

Rubin cites Carmen McRae and Sarah Vaughan as major influences as she developed as a jazz vocalist. She also finds inspiration in other genres, including Brazilian music, in part because of its infectious rhythm. But Rubin also admires the way Brazilian performers relate so openly to their audience.

Responding to questions from the audience, Rubin addresses the legacy of past greats (such as Ella Fitzgerald and Sarah Vaughan) and the challenge they pose for newer vocalists like herself. She also discusses why she is confident that jazz will prevail in the face of a difficult marketplace for radio airplay.

Rubin's well-rounded repertoire also includes "Lady Bird" by fellow Cleveland native Tad Dameron. She also does Billy Strayhorn's "Lush Life", and "Speak Low", before finishing off with "Shuffle Blues".