Album Notes

Elana Arian was raised on equal parts Mozart, Mingus, and Mitchell - influences that guided her to study conducting and violin, jazz guitar, and songwriting while at Yale University. In her debut EP, FOREWORD, Elana blends the discipline of classical, the freedom of jazz, and the candor of folk music into her own unique style as a singer/songwriter.

FOREWORD was born when producer Mike Daly spotted Elana playing at New York City's legendary Greenwich Village music club, the Bitter End. Impressed by Elana's "disarming stage presence" and songwriting he describes as "the perfect balance of emotional fervor and technical restraint," Daly immediately approached Elana about producing her first record. Daly assembled a band of a-list musicians to play on the debut, and in the winter of 2003 Elana was joined in the studio by drummer Dan Rieser (Norah Jones), pianist John Deley (Dido), and bassist Joe Quigley (Lisa Loeb).

Recorded in the faraway reaches of Avenue U, Brooklyn, FOREWORD is an intimate album that speaks honestly of uncertainty, joy, and heartbreak. Combining the vulnerability of Joni Mitchell with the complex musical textures of Jonatha Brooke and the soulful finesse of Ella Fitzgerald, Elana Arian's remarkable debut draws listeners in and leaves them yearning for more.