It’s a stretch to think of any paying gig, much less one in a world-class setting, as a dress rehearsal. But witnessing Sony Holland on the bandstand in Oakland a couple of Monday nights ago, one got the impression that her performance would serve as the perfect prelude to her Valentine’s Day show at the Jazz & Blues Company in Carmel.

At Yoshi’s, in Jack London Square, Mondays are typically quiet, a night where local or rising-star touring musicians are featured. Valentine’s Day, in turn, may be the second biggest night of the year for a working musician behind only New Year’s Eve.

Sporting a striking red pleated dress, Holland looked very Feb. 14 as she charmed and moved the crowd that turned out to help her celebrate the release of her latest recording, Out of This World.

“Yes, absolutely,” she said later, when I asked if the dress was making a trial run for this Wednesday night. “That is exactly what I bought it for.”

The red dress was an ideal, all-purpose symbol for her second set. The vibrant color highlighted her flowing blond hair, and also matched the quality of her vocals, which can rise to an impressive level of authority without ever being overpowering. The classic garment also reflected the makeup of her set list, which mixed standards with timeless-sounding originals.

“A lot of what I hear from people is that the originals sound fresh but familiar,” she said in a phone conversation from home in San Francisco. “When I first starting singing jazz, my creative partner [and husband] Jerry Holland said. ‘People cover standards all the time. Why don’t I write some material for you?’”