Whe… Read Full Bio ↴Diana Panton is a jazz vocalist who hails from Hamilton, Canada.
When legendary Canadian multi-instrumentalist Don Thompson first heard Panton sing at age 19, he recommended she audition for the reputed jazz workshop at the Banff Center for the Arts (Canada). There, she studied under Norma Winstone (and, in subsequent visits, Sheila Jordan and Jay Clayton).
While at Banff, Panton was invited to perform with Thompson at the famed Blue Room. “She really knocked me out that night," Thompson said. “She was so young but she had a lot of depth and real feeling. It surprised me right away.” Following that performance, Thompson told Panton to contact him when she was ready to record an album. She did - some 10 years later!
Before recording her first album, Panton first completed an honours masters degree in French literature and fulfilled a teaching engagement at the University of Paris (France), followed by a position as a sessional lecturer at McMaster University (Canada). She then completed a teaching degree. During this time, she also produced and performed a number of sold-out concerts with emerging jazz prodigy, pianist David Braid.
When the time finally arrived to go into the studio, national award-winning guitarist Reg Schwager was invited to join Don Thompson for some stellar accompaniment behind Panton's vocals. The result: Panton was featured on the covers of Toronto's Now Magazine (Feb 2006) and Hamilton's View Magazine (July 2005). Her debut release, yesterday perhaps, appeared on the Top 10 discs of 2005 in Toronto’s Now Magazine, Earshot! and the Montreal Mirror. The album was also nominated for four Hamilton Music Awards for which it won “Best Jazz Recording” and the publicly voted “Best Live Performance” for the CD release concert. Reputed Montreal jazz critic Len Dobbin pronounced the album one of the finest debut CDs he had heard in years.
Her much awaited sophomore release, if the moon turns green..., was released in September of 2007. It was selected as a Top 10 Canadian Recording of the Year by Len Dobbin, Kathya Heppell and Dan Sich. It earned her recognition as the "Best Female Vocalist" at the 2008 Hamilton Music Awards and a nomination in the same category at the National Jazz Awards in 2008 and 2009. The album was also a first place jury selection which allowed Panton to perform at the prestigious Jazz a Juan Revelations 2008 (Juan-les-Pins, France) where she was voted "Premiere Dauphine" by the Juan public. In 2009, the album was nominated for Jazz Album of the Year at the National Jazz Awards and Best Vocal Jazz Album at the JUNO's.
Heralded as one of Canada's most promising jazz vocalists, Panton's aesthetic sense has attracted the attention of some of the jazz world's most respected masters. She has performed with international jazz luminaries including Guido Basso, Mike Murley, Phil Nimmons, and Kenny Wheeler, and was a featured soloist with the Hamilton Philharmonic Orchestra under the direction of Akido Endo.
Be it at jazz festivals in Vienne (France), Freiburg (Germany), Montreux (Switzerland), or a concert in her hometown of Hamilton, wherever Panton performs, she has a mesmerizing effect on her audience. A quiet hush descends over the room as listeners await “little masterpieces created before [their] very ears.” (Hugh Fraser, Hamilton Spectator)
Panton's Red won the 2015 Juno Award for Best Vocal Jazz Album.
Official website: http://www.dianapanton.com/
Imagination
Diana Panton Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Right in the middle of my head
I close my eyes
And my room′s not my room
And my bed isn't really my bed
I look inside and discover things
That I′m sometimes strange and new
And the most remarkable thoughts
Here in the middle of imagination
Right in the middle of my mind
I close my eyes
And the night isn't dark
And the things that I lose, I find
Time stands still and the sky is clear
And the wind is warm and fair
And the night is late
In the middle of imagination
When I am fair
In Diana Panton's song "Imagination," the lyrics describe a state of mind where the imagination takes over and the reality of the physical world fades away. The singer is situated in the middle of her imagination, in the middle of her head, and when she closes her eyes, the world around her transforms. Her room becomes something else entirely, as does her bed. She is able to look inside herself and realize new and strange things about herself. In this imaginative state, she is able to think the most remarkable and truthful thoughts.
The description of this imaginative state is continued on in the second verse with the idea that the singer is situated in the middle of her mind. When she closes her eyes, the darkness disappears and she finds things that she has lost. Time stands still and the sky becomes clear. The wind is warm and gentle. The late night becomes a time where she experiences the world in the most beautiful way. It is in these moments of imagination that the singer is able to reflect on her life and come to realizations about herself.
This song speaks to the power of the mind and imagination to help us better understand ourselves and our place in the world. Through imaginative thinking and reflection, we are able to gain new insights and truths about ourselves that can help us grow and become better versions of ourselves.
Line by Line Meaning
Here in the middle of imagination
This line sets the theme of the song where the singer is lost in her imagination.
Right in the middle of my head
The singer is saying that her imagination exists within her head.
I close my eyes
To delve into her imagination, the singer shuts her physical eyes.
And my room's not my room
The singer's imagination is so vivid that she feels like she is in a different room altogether.
And my bed isn't really my bed
In her imagination, the singer feels like her bed is not the same one she usually sleeps in.
I look inside and discover things
The singer explores her imagination to discover new things.
That I'm sometimes strange and new
The things the singer discovers in her imagination can be bizarre and unfamiliar.
And the most remarkable thoughts
The singer finds her most intriguing and brilliant ideas while in her imagination.
I think, have a way of being true
The singer believes that her imaginative ideas can manifest into reality.
Right in the middle of my mind
The singer reiterates that her imagination is within her own mind.
And the night isn't dark
In her imagination, the singer believes that even the darkest things can be illuminated.
And the things that I lose, I find
The singer finds that she can regain what she has lost through her imagination.
Time stands still and the sky is clear
The singer's imaginative world defies the constraints of time and allows clarity and peace.
And the wind is warm and fair
The singer's imagination can create feelings of warmth and equality.
And the night is late
Despite the lateness of the hour, the singer's imagination is still active and thriving.
In the middle of imagination
The singer is in the midst of her imaginary world.
When I am fair
The singer finds balance and beauty in her imagination.
Writer(s): Joseph G. Raposo
Contributed by Victoria S. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@TheAudbbgirl
Beautiful
@stephenseidner7884
An amazing collection of tunes that fit her perfectly.
@humanwendy5995
Such a sweet version💕
@dallasvontierr6028
This was a GREAT cover...LOVE IT!!!