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QuickTake:
Gina Saputo, who grew from being an underage singer at Jo Federigo’s to become a professional jazz musician, will perform in Springfield this week.
Gina Saputo’s first taste of jazz was at 12 years old, thanks to a record from her dad. The free-form music was a world away from the structured choir works she usually sang.
Three years later, she was performing in downtown Eugene jazz clubs.
Technically too young to be in the clubs, she was old enough to know she was in love with the genre. Saputo, now 44 years old and a professional jazz singer, credits the Eugene-Springfield region with her early opportunities to perform, including as a youth choral student in the Oregon Bach Festival.
She spent the bulk of her career in Los Angeles, including singing for jazz trumpeter Jack Sheldon and for the actor Jeff Goldblum’s jazz concerts.
She is touring the Pacific Northwest with her new album, “Daydream,” including a June 13 show at Springfield’s Richard E. Wildish Community Theater.
For Saputo, who moved back to Oregon with her family three years ago and is now living in Portland, the album and tour is her launch back into the jazz scene in her home state — especially after taking time off to give birth to her second child 14 months ago.
“Here I’m the mom, and in Los Angeles, I’m a jazz singer,” she said. “I want to bring that here.”
This conversation has been edited for length and clarity.
Lookout Eugene-Springfield: What was it like growing up in Springfield, and how did you first incorporate music into your life?
Gina Saputo: I was born in a farmhouse in Springfield. My dad’s an artist and he plays guitar, and my mom’s a homemaker and amazing seamstress, and we just grew up in a house full of art and music. I started singing at my church when I was really young, and then I got into the Oregon Children’s Choir in about second grade. That really shaped my passion for music.
My dad gave me a jazz record when I was about 12, and I just ingested it like it was cotton candy. I really liked the freedom that jazz provided. Growing up in Oregon Children’s Choir, school choir and in church, there’s much more structure to the music. So when I heard jazz, I was like, “Oh, you can do whatever you feel like in that moment.” I just thought that was so enticing. I just kind of fell in love, and I dove really deep and started performing in jazz clubs.
I used to play Jo Federigo’s. I was 15 at the time. Jo Federigo’s was like the local jazz club, and they had a jazz club downstairs and then the restaurant upstairs. They used to make me sit upstairs in the restaurant with the lights off and then they would just call me down to sing because I was underage, and then I’d have to be walked back up to sit. I could hear everybody talking and having fun.
I was just very deeply involved in music and arts in Eugene and Springfield. The nurturing from the community really is what launched me.
Lookout: Was this always something that you were going to pursue as a career?
Saputo: I had other ideas. I was going to be a choral director. But when I was applying for colleges, I got in easily to all the jazz programs. I got almost a full ride scholarship to [the University of Southern California] in the jazz program, whereas, in the choral program, I was just a normal student. Because of where I was in the jazz scene already at that age, the jazz schools wanted me.
That’s what launched me to Los Angeles and to USC, and from there, it just kind of kept going. At a certain point I was like, “Well, I can’t not do this.” I got addicted to singing on stage. Not necessarily the attention, but just the emotion behind it and the interpretation of song lyrics and the musicality. It’s an obsession, and so it just became such a critical part of my lifeline. It’s like therapy for me. If I don’t sing for a period of time, I get an itch and I need to perform. When I do, it feels like my best self.
Lookout: What is it like to be returning to a hometown venue, the Wildish Theater, after you sold it out more than a decade ago?
Saputo: I just hope it sells out again. There’s always this nervousness of, “Will I be welcomed back? Are people still interested?” There’s always this little tickle of doubt.
But I know it doesn’t matter if there’s five people or if there’s 400 people. I’m [going to] put on the best show, and it’s exciting to be in that room again.
I just did a tour in Los Angeles. One gentleman flew in from Arizona to meet his brother and to come to my show. They were both Springfield High School graduates that went to school with me. The stage I’m going to be performing on is named after their dad. I didn’t even know that. It’s not just being in my hometown, it’s also just being part of this community,
Lookout: I see that you recently had another baby – congratulations. [Saputo’s baby is 14 months old.] Does he go with you on tour?
Saputo: It’s so interesting. My husband [Joe Bagg] is also a very well renowned jazz musician, and three weeks ago, he was playing the London Palladium with Jeff Goldblum. Then I went out, and he came home. We had a week together, and then I went out on my L.A. tour and he stayed home, and then he is playing the Carlisle in New York this week with Jeff Goldblum and a show in Atlanta. Next is our tour together here in the Northwest.
So this is a very busy month for us as far as touring goes, but I took a lot of time off to have the baby. I toured Europe with Jeff Goldblum when I was six months pregnant. Since then, I haven’t really been touring, and I didn’t perform in Portland or here much, because I wanted to wait until this album came out, and I wanted to make a big splash.
So that’s what this tour is. It’s like, ”OK, we live here.” For now, the baby stays home with a babysitter when both mom and dad are on the gig, and my husband is going to be performing with me for this tour. But also my parents live in Springfield, so we have helping hands there.
But my daughter, who is 10 years old, actually sings on the record, and she’s going to be performing with us on this tour. She’s kind of just old enough to be able to come to these, since they’re only 7-9 p.m. or 6-8 p.m. for most of this tour, so she’ll be able to hang out with us.
Lookout: She has five years until she’s hitting the jazz club.
Saputo: That’s right. Gotta get her started.
How to see Gina Saputo at the Wildish Theater
Gina Saputo will perform at 7 p.m. on June 13 at the Richard E. Wildish Community Theater, located at 630 Main St. in downtown Springfield. Tickets are available at a standard price for $25, for seniors at $20 and for students at $15.
