About Us

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Simultaneity…..

As a vocal stylist / acoustic bassist , Julie Poncé is unique in her
field. The Julie Poncé Experience with the other memebers of her band, all accomplished and well-known performers in their own right, ignite into some hard-swinging, Chicago-style Jazz. Tender ballads and contemporary versions of danceable standards, pop and county songs in English, Spanish and other languages are also showcased in her performances, recordings and videos.

You've come a long way from the Peoria Symphony, lady.....
Jaws wired shut, hospitalized after the car accident which waylaid a
conservative musical career, having been slated to become a flute-playing
Fulbright Composition Scholar in Milan and awarded the Prix de Rome in Italy, Julie lay listening to the
voice of her musician father. He stood by the foot of her bed, an old
electric bass in his arms. "Remember when they said you chose the
wrong instrument—that you're a natural on bass? Well, here's your
chance."

Papa knows best.........

Julie Poncé's first professional gig at 14 in her dad's orchestra was
where the vocal magic began;  her list of credentials as back-up
bassist and opening act since then reads like a Who's Who? of the
entertainment industry: Chet Baker, Stan Getz, Bobby Enriquez, Richie
Cole, Joe Farrell, Ira Sullivan, Eddie Palmerie, Shellie Mann, Cuchito Valdez Jr.,
Samuel Del Real, B.B. King, Pete Fountain, Maynard Ferguson's Big
Band, Buddy Rich, The Warren Covington's Tommy Dorsey Band, Lou
Rawls, Al Green, Jackie Wilson, Bob Hope, Julian D'Rosa, REO Speedwagon, and many more have all been on her roster.
In 1985, Julie met her husband, jazz legend, Tommy Poncé. They performed together at all the mainstay clubs as key figures in the Jazz Renaissance that swept over Chicago. "He really felt Bop, not just the style. Whatever came out, you knew that was him reflecting the despair and ecstasy of the moment", said the Chicago Tribune's, Larry Kart of Tommy. Julie responds: "And that is what he gave to me--the realization and direction to make music the window to my soul." After his death, Julie performed throughout the United States, the Far East, Asia, Europe, and Central America.

A surprising diversion.......

During her classical studies and at her master's degree composition recital of Avant Garde music, Julie's father, a well-accomplished musician in his own right, said to her, "The idea that you could notate this music is unbelievable, but can't you write a country or pop hit?" " I got a job doing research of Appalachian music for an instructor of mine and got very interested in country music of the United States. I started writing country songs with a great deal of humor, sadness and just having to do with plain living. I love these songs because they tell of the human condition through all phases of life and love. Right now I am working on a world song that highlights how our world is changing for the good called "Changes Are Comin'". It's very powerful and its message is quite relevant for the times we now live in." I wrote a very humorous blues song, "You're a Mess of a Man" for Tony-award-winning actress and Blues/Gospel singer, Felicia Fields, for her new musical, "Pearl, Rollin' in the Blues" which was premiered at the Writer's Theater in Glencoe, Illinois where I also played and performed in.  Be on the lookout for the official online versions of "Changes Are Coming" and "You're a Mess of a Man".

As you listen…..

CD "Window to My Soul"
It's the combination of strength and vitality as a bass artist and her lulling
femininity as a songstress. There's so much to see and hear in her. Jazz
aficionado, Lori Martin, agrees: "It's the depth of her soul that grabs you
and brings you closer to the song". Yes, Julie Poncé's performances touch you and
bring you closer to the song, closer to the performance and more closely
down the path of emotions we all have traveled.