Montréal jazz vocalist Isabella Hallia, who opened for Madeleine Peyroux at the Montréal International Jazz Festival, releases her debut album, A Formal Introduction, in November 2026.

BIO - One liner

Isabella Hallia is a Montréal-based jazz vocalist whose lyrical voice and warm, resonant tone bring fresh sensitivity to the timeless sound of traditional vocal jazz. A graduate of McGill University in Jazz Performance, she performed at Carnegie Hall at seventeen after receiving the Jury’s Favorite Award at the American Protégé International Competition. In 2025 she toured Quebec and Ontario with her trio, playing six major jazz festivals and opening for Madeleine Peyroux at the 45th Montréal International Jazz Festival. Her debut album, A Formal Introduction, pairs three original compositions with her own arrangements of jazz standards and arrives in November 2026.

Isabella Hallia is a Montréal-based jazz vocalist whose lyrical voice and warm, resonant tone bring fresh sensitivity to the timeless sound of traditional vocal jazz. Inspired by Anita O’Day, Carmen McRae, Sarah Vaughan, and Mel Tormé, she performs original compositions written in the tradition of the Great American Songbook alongside standards she has reinterpreted and arranged herself.

Her path began early. At seventeen she received the Jury’s Favorite Award at the American Protégé International Competition, which took her to the stage of Carnegie Hall. She went on to earn a degree in Jazz Performance from McGill University. In 2024 she produced a three-track live demo with support from a FACTOR Professional Development grant, and she has headlined Upstairs, Montréal’s landmark jazz club.

In 2025 Isabella toured Quebec and Ontario with her trio, performing at six major jazz festivals. The highlight was opening for Madeleine Peyroux at the 45th Montréal International Jazz Festival.

Her debut album, Isabella Hallia: A Formal Introduction, will be released in November 2026. It was recorded at Studio Piccolo in March 2026 with her trio: Anthony D’Alessandro on piano, Mathieu McConnel on upright bass, and Baptiste Lejeune on drums. The album combines three original compositions with personal arrangements of jazz standards, and Isabella describes it as a musical self-portrait. It reveals a more intimate side of her artistry and is the centerpiece of her upcoming Canadian tour.

Committed to keeping the classic jazz tradition alive, Isabella gives audiences a performance that is both authentic and emotionally direct, rooted in the past and unmistakably her own. She also teaches and mentors musicians of all ages.