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2xHD presents the high-fidelity digital release of the first album by one of the most promising young jazz singers to emerge in years: Tawanda Suessbrich-Joaquim, known simply as Tawanda. The Los Angeles-based vocalist, 26, sings in a cloudless alto with a crystalline shimmer, effortless but unfussy jazz feeling, immaculate musicianship, and a maturity that few of her contemporaries possess. In June of 2021, Tawanda tied for first place with Gabrielle Cavassa in the 9th Annual Sarah Vaughan International Jazz Vocal Competition, held in Newark, New Jersey. (The competition was originally slated to be held in 2020 but delayed due to COVID. The winner of the 10th annual competition was also announced in 2021). Her performance — judged by a panel that included singers Carmen Lundy and Vanessa Rubin and bassist Christian McBride — was all the more impressive given that Tawanda had performed her first full show just a year before. Smile was produced by Resonance Records founder and president George Klabin. Resonance is renowned both for its deluxe reissues of previously unreleased gems by Bill Evans, Wes Montgomery, John Coltrane, Stan Getz, and other greats; and for its new recordings by an impeccably chosen array of veterans and newcomers. On Smile, Tawanda gives even the most time-honored standards a freshness that makes them sound new. She also finds the jazz in tunes recorded by Sting (“Sister Moon”), Donny Hathaway (“Sack Full of Dreams”), and Maureen McGovern (“Bring Back My Dreamer”). Lifting her even higher are the elegant piano-playing and arrangements of two members of the Resonance family, Tamir Hendelman and Josh Nelson, both of whom have brought out the best in many a singer.