Hot off the press! Here is my new Artist Bio: Lucia Comnes celebrates the diversity of musical cultures from around the world through her singing, songwriting, fiddling, and guitar playing. She’s known for her contemporary interpretations of Irish, Balkan, and American folk music, and for her original songs, which reflect her many influences. Her ability to seamlessly blend different styles results in music that draws from the past but is refreshingly contemporary. Lucia’s fiddling is a powerful and emotional expression of her musical vision – a vision that demonstrates that she isn’t afraid to take chances. Her voice, crystal clear but with a hint of mystery, was described by the San Francisco Chronicle as “singular… embedded with soul and spirit.” Perhaps her most valuable talent is her powerful imagination. An imagination that breathes vivid imagery into the lyrics of her songs and infuses her fiddling with the spirit of the ancient tones, be they from Kilkenny, Kentucky, or Kosovo. Lucia has recorded three full-length albums, and a fourth is slated for release in early 2015. Love, Hope & Tyranny was recorded at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley and produced with Gawain Mathews and Jeffrey Wood (Luka Bloom, Penelope Houston). It features 11 of Lucia’s original songs and an impressive list of contributors including background vocals from the delightful T Sisters. She also finds time to front Lucia and Her Rockin’ Irish Band, delivering new takes on the Irish sound, with hair-raising vocal harmonies, soul-shaking harmonica solos, fierce melodies on the fiddle and songs in Irish Gaelic. Driven by a powerhouse rhythm section of drums and bass, jigs and reels have never been so danceable. Born in San Francisco, Lucia Comnes started her professional career in 2002 as a vocalist with Kitka – the Oakland-based women’s a cappella vocal ensemble specializing in Balkan/Eastern European folk music. At the same time, she began delving deep into Irish music and studied with many fiddle masters (Martin Hayes, Kevin Burke, Oisín MacDiarmada) in the U.S. and Ireland. She also attended the Traditional Irish Music Program at University College, Cork, to study spoken Gaelic and sean-nos, or “old-style,” singing. Lucia attended UC Berkeley and graduated from Long Island University’s Global Studies program in 2006 with a self-designed interdisciplinary degree called Music, Culture and Nature, following her research in Ireland, Greece, Turkey, and Bulgaria. An avid traveler throughout her life, Lucia has studied, visited, and performed in more than 20 countries, including remote parts of Siberia. Along with her passion for music, Lucia has made lifelong commitment to meeting the environmental challenges of our time. In her compositions, Lucia strives to bring people back in connection with nature and with their own roots. - Written by Chuck Poling, 2014
Posted on: Mon, 01 Sep 2014 15:21:46 +0000
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