"Breathtaking amazing emotional intensity...sheer virtuosity...whether she sings jazz, Irish traditional, or Jacques Prevert. Melanie O'Reilly's exhilarating and unique blend of Celtic Jazz creates a powerful soundscape.

10 MP3 Songs in this album (40:40) !
Related styles: JAZZ: Jazz Vocals, FOLK: like Joni

People who are interested in Joni Mitchell Ella Fitzgerald Anita For the Day should consider this download.


Details:
BIOGRAPHY

"House of the Dolphins" is a mighty fine leap into the big blueâ¦Melanie O'Reilly deserves a Grammy"
-- Hot Press

One of the most sensational musical pioneers to explode on the Irish scene, Melanie O'Reilly is now firmly established in the pantheon of creative Irish artists.
As a performer/singer-songwriter, her exhilarating and unique blend of Irish traditional music and jazz creates a powerful and haunting soundscape, exploring untouched frontiers, and which captivates audiences on both sides of the Atlantic.
Born in Dublin, Melanie comes from a family of musicians and actors, and she spent most of her youth treading the boards as an actress and singer, while at the same time was a multiple- award -winner singing in Dublinâs Feis Ceol competitions.
Her passion for jazz began when her sister Clodagh introduced her the sound of jazz singers at the age of 11. Intrigued by the rhythms and scat improvisations of Ella Fitzgerald, she decided then that she would become a jazz singer, and she immersed herself in the music of other jazz giants such as Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie. She also absorbed much by listening to Irish groups such as Horslips, Louis Stewartâs Trio and the Sean-nos (unaccompanied traditional) singing of Sean O Riada.
After an Arts Degree from University College Dublin, Melanie began her professional musical career, discovering the possibilities of mixing jazz with traditional Irish music and began to build phenomenal respect and notoriety within jazz circles.

Melanie O'Reilly's 2004 concert with guitarist Larry Coryell at Dublinâs Green Room was noted as one of the top jazz concerts of the year by the Sunday Independent (Dublin).

Melanie tours extensively throughout Ireland, Scotland, England, France and other parts of Europe and the United States. Venues of note include New Yorkâs Cooper Union, the London Barbican, the Lorient Festival Inter-Celtique in Brittany, the Cork International Jazz Festival, La Fete de la Musique in Norway and the Royal Festival Hall in London; a special highlight of her international work was performing at the Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors festival in New York.

Melanie is a regular performer on the BBC radio and TV and on Irelandâs National broadcast station (RTE) as well as being a frequent guest on French radio and TV. In 2004 she entered the world of radio broadcasting, being asked by RTE to record a series of interviews with American jazz musicians. Her interviews of Bobby McFerrin, David Benoit, Larry Coryell, Kitty Margolis and others aired under the name âJazz on the Bayâ in 2005. It received "Critics Choice" award from the Irish Times and Sunday Independent. She will broadcast her second series of Jazz on the Bay in summer of 2006.
Melanie's stunning Celtic jazz album Oilean Draiochta (Enchanted Island) received the critical thumbs-up from the artistic community as well as garnering wide radio play and has contributions from a host of renowned musicians such as guitarist Larry Coryell, and Irish traditional stars Tommy Hayes and Eileen Ivers. It also features songs that were the result of her collaboration with Nuala Ni Dhomhnaill.
Other recordings include the album House of the Dolphins, a further development of Melanieâs fusion of Celtic jazz, and nominated for Best Contemporary Album and Best Contemporary Female Artist by Irish Music magazine. Her subsequent album, Aisling Ghear (Bitter Vision), is a duo album with guitarist Sean OâNuallain and has been released to wide critical acclaim. Two of her songs she has co-written with Nuala ni Dhomnaill, âChugat an Pucaâ and âAmhran na Milaoise,â were chosen for the compilation albums -âRealta â98â and âRealta 2000â (RTE). She also featured on the recently released French album Lorient Festival Interceltique âTrent Ans/Thirty Years, a compilation of the best of Lorient. Melanieâs most recent album, Women who Left, is an original song cycle exploring 19th Century Irish emigration to America through a fusion of jazz and Irish traditional themes.
In addition to her performing and recording work, Melanie also enjoys her work as a music educator. Since 1994, she has taught jazz vocals in workshops and to individual students and has presented workshops in the Scottish Highlands and Islands and at Princeton University, the Chicago Irish Heritage Center the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, the National Concert Hall in Dublin and Napier University, Edinburgh. In 2003, she was awarded a Visiting Research Scholarship by the University of California at Berkeley in the Celtic Studies program to develop and research the theme of Irish immigration for her songwriting and performing. She currently resides in Berkeley.

PRESS & REVIEWS

âA very special talentâ¦I want to do everything I can to expose her
beautiful artistry to the rest of the world.â
-- Larry Coryell

"Spellbinding... uplifting music from a true innovator"
-- Rough Guide to Irish Music

âA very special talentâ¦I want to do everything I can to expose her
beautiful artistry to the rest of the world.â
-- Larry Coryell

...A wondrous mix of what this fine singer is all about - a deep passion for Irish Traditional music and Jazz...with O'Reilly's voice weaving a spell..."
--Matt Nugent, Evening Herald

âThe golden voice of Melanie OâReilly ⦠powerful ⦠deeply movingâ
-- The Sunday Independent

"The Royal voice of Melanie O'Reilly has opened a new door; that of a Celtic spirit always ready for new influences, an ancient spirit urgent to enrich itself...â
-- Le Telegramme, France

"Breathtaking amazing emotional intensity...sheer virtuosity..."
-- The Irish Times

"Melanie O'Reilly ... a kind of priestess marrying traditional and jazz music..."
-- Telefis na Gaeilge

"What better way to drift towards the dawning than in the company of the silky smooth voice of Melanie O'Reilly... her hauntingly beautiful and sensuous voice wooed the audience ... close your eyes and you were in dreamland"
-- Aberdeen Review

âUndoubtedly one of the major talents to emerge in recent times, Melanie O'Reilly possesses a voice which is rich and resonant, and a song-writing talent which is going to ensure that we hear a lot more of her in the future."
-- In Dublin

"Melanie O'Reilly has studiously carved herself a considerable reputation as a jazz singer with a keen ear for the cross-currents that link jazz's lateral thinking with Irish folk and traditional music"
-- The Irish Times
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"...the essence of O'Reilly's music is its feel, which derives solely from her own breathy, airy perambulations around the melodies and an obvious chemistry with pianist/co-writer David Milligan"
-- Q Magazine

"A work of special importance in the development of the sung Irish language...an uplifting celebration of Irish culture that is finding new feet upon which to confidently stride into the future."
--Dublin Event Guide

"...more than just a promise of future greatness.â
--In Dublin

"A spiritual journey and a musical joy."
-- The Big Issue

[of her live performances] "...her pitch was impeccable, her timing totally secure, her phrasing ineffably right. More than this, however, was perhaps the most essential gift of all - her ability to read a lyric with an innate sense of its dramatic demands and to serve these accordingly."
-- The Irish Times
"O'Reilly's sensuous voice is the perfect vehicle for entwining jazz styles with Irish Celtic influences..."
-- The Scotsman
âAn outstanding night of jazz,â (review of Melanieâs performance with Larry Coryell, The Green Room, Dublin)
-- Alex Moffat, Irish Music Magazine


Reviews of âHouse of the Dolphinsâ
"House of the Dolphins" is a mighty fine leap into the big blueâ¦Melanie O'Reilly deserves a Grammy"
-- Hot Press
"... O'Reilly's voice is exquisitely controlled and pure...an outstanding collection of songs"
-- Alex Moffat, Irish Music Magazine

"....An fresh innovative album with soulful singing and beautiful arrangements..."
Sean O Heanai
-- Radio na Gaeltachta


FACT SHEET


⢠Melanie OâReilly is an innovator in a genre that was built on innovation. Crafting a unique and compelling bridge between Irish traditional music and jazz, she has earned a reputation in Europe and the United States as a true pioneer.

⢠Born in Dublin, Melanie comes from a family of musicians and actors. She spent most of her youth treading the boards as an actress and singer and competing in Dublinâs Feis Ceol competitions.

⢠She discovered jazz at age 11 through her sisterâs love of the music. She quickly immersed herself in the recorded works of great such as Billie Holiday, Sarah Vaughan, Miles Davis and Dizzy Gillespie.

⢠Melanieâs education includes an arts degree from University College Dublin, along with studying theater at Brendan Smith Academy in Dublin; studying jazz theory and harmony Guildhall School of Music in London; and studying jazz singing with vocalist Sheila Jordan in New York.

⢠Melanie tours extensively throughout Ireland, Scotland, England, France, other parts of Europe and the United States with various ensembles ranging from a six-piece band to quartets and trio, along with a duo with guitarist Sean OâNuallain performing Celtic jazz and Bossa Nova.

⢠Venues of note include New Yorkâs Cooper Union, the London Barbican, the Lorient Festival Inter-Celtique in Brittany, the Cork International Jazz Festival, La Fete de la Musique in Norway and the Royal Festival Hall in London. A special highlight of her international work was performing at the Lincoln Center Out-of-Doors festival in New York.

⢠Her 2004 concert with guitarist Larry Coryell at Dublinâs Green Room was noted as one of the top jazz concerts of the year by the Sunday Independent (Dublin).


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Fact Sheet â Melanie OâReilly â 2


⢠Melanie has won several awards for her musical work, including a jazz award from the Arts Council of Ireland, and the won the top award at the Celtic Film, TV and Radio Festival in Quimper, Brittany (France). She also was given an award from the Scottish Arts Council, which promoted her work with American arranger Richard Niles; the two toured Britain and were featured together on BBC radio.

⢠Melanie has released several albums under the Mistletoe Music Ltd label, each to critical and audience acclaim, including: Oliean Draiochta (Enchanted Island), House of the Dolphins, Aisling Ghear (Bitter Vision), and Women who Left. Other recordings include Watch What Happens; Melanie OâReilly: Live â96; and Melanie OâReilly: Live in Temple Bar, Dublin. Her work has also appeared on numerous compilation recordings including Lorient Festival Interceltique â Trent Ans/Thirty Years; and Realta 98 and Realta 2000 (RTE).

⢠Melanie also enjoys her work as a music educator. Since 1994, she has taught jazz vocals in workshops and to individual students and has presented workshops in the Scottish Highlands and Islands and at Princeton University, the Chicago Irish Heritage Center the University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, the National Concert Hall in Dublin and Napier University, Edinburgh. In 2003, she was awarded a Visiting Research Scholarship by the University of California at Berkeley in the Celtic Studies program to develop and research the theme of Irish immigration for her songwriting and performing.

⢠Melanie is a regular performer on the BBC radio and TV and on Irelandâs National broadcast station (RTE) as well as being a frequent guest on French radio and TV. In 2004 she entered the world of radio broadcasting, being asked by RTE to record a series of interviews with American jazz musicians. Her interviews of Bobby McFerrin, David Benoit, Larry Coryell, Kitty Margolis and others will air under the name âJazz on the Bayâ in 2005.

⢠Melanie currently resides in Berkeley, Calif.