JESSE AUTUMN: The Black Rose

Jesse Autumn

The Black Rose

© 2004 Jesse Autumn (666449362828)

CD IN STOCK. ORDER NOW. Will ship immediately.

Introspective, dramatic and ethereal, Jesse Autumn (voice, double harp) and Barry Phillips (cello) embark on a sonic journey through the Celtic landscape.

notes

About the CD:

"The Black Rose" was created as part of a fundraising effort called the Golden Harp Fund, a project to restore a 1920's Lyon & Healy orchestral harp to playability. In 2003 I adopted the beautiful gold-gilded, 6-foot-tall pedal harp through the Community Music School of Santa Cruz (CMS) "Music Match" program. The School had originally received the harp as a donation, but unfortunately it needed major repairs that the organization could not afford. As an emerging artist and an active part of CMS, it was decided that the harp would be passed along to me in hopes that I would eventually be able to repair it and use it.

At around this time I was planning for my second CD, and decided it was a great opportunity to raise some money to fix this amazing instrument that had come my way. When "The Black Rose" was finished, I released it as a fundraiser to fix the Golden Harp.

That said, after the costs of production, all proceeds from the sale of this album will benefit the Golden Harp Fund. (For updates on the project and pictures of "Goldie", visit the website.) I look forward to continuing my music career into the world of pedal harp. Thanks to all who buy this CD. Enjoy! - J.A.


About the Artists:

JESSE AUTUMN is a vocalist, pianist and harpist known for her beautiful multi-textured style of playing and her dynamic approach to the double-strung harp, an instrument with two parallel sets of strings. She has released two albums of traditional and contemporary Celtic music, co-produced by cellist/percussionist Barry Phillips: Her debut CD "California Celt", released in 2002, was funded by an ethnic arts grant from the California Arts Council supporting artists age 18-25. In 2004 she released her sophomore album "The Black Rose". She has served on the board of the Community Music School (CMS) since 2002, after many years of performing in their Living History Concert Series, working at their Celtic Camps in the redwoods, organizing and promoting events, and supporting youth musicians through CMS programs. She is also deeply involved with visual and performing arts, and serves on the board of the Santa Cruz Institute of Contemporary Arts and the Tannery Arts Center Artist Advisory board. Her studio work includes appearances on recordings by early music diva Shelley Phillips, piper David Brewer, songwriter Freesia Raine, vocalist Gail Clark, fiddler Deby Benton Grosjean, author/singer Victoria Hanley, children's music group Banana Slug String Band, Joya Winwood's Mothersong Santa Cruz, and the vocal group Our Lady of Perpetual Help Chant Choir. Jesse has also dabbled in theater, performing with the improv comedy troupe Improv-ers Anonymous and occasionally composing or directing music for the stage. She currently works as a musician for hire, administrative assistant and co-director of programming at CMS, teaches Celtic harp privately, teaches 6,7, and 8 grade music at the Santa Cruz Waldorf School, coaches a fun and feisty teen band during the school year, presents concerts and performs regularly around the Monterey Bay Area (and in Ireland, when possible) as a soloist and in ensembles. Her latest artistic collaboration is a duet with Shelley Phillips, translating African mbira music and polyrhythms onto folk and double-strung harps. For the past year and a half she has been studying the technical approach of master harpist Cheryl Ann Fulton, and additionally she has enjoyed master classes with folk harp mavericks Chris Caswell and Rudiger Oppermann, and virtuoso jazz harpist Park Stickney. Among her many goals, Jesse hopes to become fluent on the double-strung, cross-strung, in-line chromatic and pedal harps, learn to do live looping in concert, expand her abilities as a vocalist and pianist, and explore the sonic universe through composing, recording and performing live. She also hopes to nurture creative expression and a passion for the arts in her community and world through her work with non-profit organizations, individuals, and through her music.


BARRY PHILLIPS is a composer, performer, engineer and producer who usually performs as a cellist, but is also very good at hitting things and has been known to play different kinds of percussion, namely the Indian tabla drums. He received his M.M. in Composition from the San Francisco Conservatory of Music, then went on to record several albums for the indie record label Gourd Music. He has collaborated on many projects with a wide variety of artists, including folk icon Martin Simpson, sitartist Anoushka Shankar, singer/songwriter Ariel Thiermann, the British rock group Camel, Beatles band the White Album Ensemble, and Rumi poet Coleman Barks. Barry's unique style of playing reflects his many musical influences, including the Celtic and Scandinavian folk traditions, funk, rock, European classical and Indian classical music. He is a student of legendary sitarist and composer Ravi Shankar, and was thrilled to get to play in Ravi's orchestra and in the rock orchestra for the Concert for George, a celebration of the life and music of George Harrison. Barry's latest CD "Trad" (also available on CDBaby), is a beautiful collection of Swedish, Norwegian and original music arranged for bowed strings, pipe organ and percussion. He resides in Santa Cruz, CA with his lovely wife, musician Shelley Phillips, and three very naughty cats.

For more info on Barry, visit www.barryandshelley.com.

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