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Every one of the 18 songs featured on the disc are performed by blind artists and there’s something for every listener – from folk to salsa to country to
hip hop to choral music to Christian rock to jazz to everything and back again.
Click here to see our press release
The first single from the project is called “Let Me See You Move” by Brother/Sister hip hop duo Kemistry. Click here to download the track for free.
An interview podcast featuring artists from “Sound and Sight” is also available. Click here to download it for free.
Ways to purchase “Sound In Sight”
You can buy the CD and listen to samples at CDBaby. or Click here to purchase the CD using your credit card via Paypal
Or you can purchase the album by sending a check for $12 each CD (price includes shipping) to Performing Arts Division c/o Brooke Fox, PO Box 4203, New
York, NY 10163. Allow 1-2 weeks for delivery.
About the artists of “Sound In Sight”
18 talented musicians and bands from around the country contributed their tracks to make this album possible. To find out more about them, click on each artist’s name listed below.
Kevin Reeves
JP Williams
Got Kemistry
Radio Altar
Brooke Fox
Jimmy Fontanez
Lisa Ostrow
Mike Markaverich
Selena Sang
Los Ciegos Del Barrio
Elizabeth Kazmierski
Beth Alred
Donna Hill
Craig Eckhardt
Cameron Strife
Eddie Salcido
Sarah Alawami
Mark Adreon
Kevin Reeves's musical journey has taken on many styles. As a child, Kevin's Coast Guard family moved all over the country, giving him a taste of different cultural communities and sounds. Born in Michigan in 1977, he was diagnosed with Optic Nerve Atrophy, which caused him to be totally blind. Kevin's early childhood was met with total inclusion into the sighted world around him…..and it was filled with music.
In Mobile, Alabama he heard the music of Charlie Daniels and Lynard Skynard. In Northern Michigan, Kevin loved synthesizers, keyboards and drum machines, taking a deep interest in the art rock of Yes, Pink Floyd, and Rush. He was too free spirited to formally learn the piano. Instead, he spent his time working with his keyboard and the family's upright piano exploring his own musical world. While his sighted counterparts were sneaking flashlights in order to read at night, Kevin was sneaking speakers under his pillow to hear "The Sunday Night Sides at 8" on local radio station WKLT. Dave Duran would play a side from 8 albums," Kevin remembers. "I especially remember when he played side 3 of "The Wall." Man that was something I had never heard before as an 8 year-old kid."
He spent his middle school years In Northern California, near San Francisco, where he was introduced to Public Enemy, Boys II Men, the vocal jazz of Take 6 and the hard rock of Metallica, Slayer, and Nirvana. Kevin began classical vocal training just before returning to Northern Michigan, where he involved himself in his high school's choral program. He began to study audio production and electronic music composition.
During his senior year of college, Kevin attended the Contemporary Music Center on Martha's Vineyard. During the 3 month program, Kevin sharpened his songwriting skills, writing "Shine," out of an intense desire to reach his potential, and prove a point to a professor. Reeves recalls, "I asked him if he thought I could really do it as an artist. He said that he wasn't sure, because he had only seen me doing canny imitations of other artists. At that very moment, I came face to face with the artist I wanted to be, but wasn't. Tom wasn't telling me I couldn't do it. He was just telling me that he hadn't yet seen me do it."
"Shine" is Kevin's first single from his debut full length solo release entitled "It's About Time", which is available via www.KevinReeves.net.
JP Williams is a soulful-singing songwriter who's making his way in Nashville after years earning his supper (and his stripes) on the road.
JP's distinct vocals and original music have scored him the chance to share bills with the wide-ranging likes of Bruce Hornsby, David Wilcox, Charlie Daniels, T. Graham Brown, Wet Willie, Marshall Tucker and Ricky Skaggs. He's even brought his 'T-shirt-and-jeans' groove to the college set, playing tours of universities in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeast US. He's got more than a few war stories after all that gigging from Atlanta to Boston and just about everywhere in between.
Today, JP's focus is on his home base, Music City, where he spends his days songwriting and his evenings playing out at venues such as The Bluebird and The Basement.
Though blind since age 10, JP writes and sings with incredible insight, vision and clarity. He's thankful for the downs and the ups, 'cause-when you're a songwriter and an artist-it's all material.
JP blends memorable melodies and lyrics about life, love and the human experience to create songs that pierce the heart, lift the spirit and open the mind. And he sings 'em like he means it-because he does. Though he's knock-your-socks-off talented, JP's just about as genuine and approachable an artist as you can find.
If pressure is all it takes to form a diamond, then singer Seria, rapper Lawrence (XL) and their hip-hop group Kemistry is a jewel on the horizon of success. After a lifetime of triumph and heartbreak, the gifted Brother and Sister duo has found both their rhythm and groove on their debut CD "Burb-Hop".
A musician from birth, singer-songwriter Seria was an introverted and shy child. She began expressing herself through performing arts at age four by organizing, rehearsing and producing plays and musicals for her parents and relatives using her siblings and friends as cast members. She admits, "I didn't have very many friends as a child, so I honed my creativity instead".
Both Seria and her brother Lawrence (XL) were born with Albinism, an inherited condition that inhibits pigment in the eyes, skin and hair. Seria, who has a stunning complexion and beautiful amber-blonde hair, had a rough time as a child. "I was the tallest, skinniest girl in the class with the thickest glasses ever. They used to call me Skippy because my hair was the color of peanut butter". Being different would become a lifelong challenge for both Seria and Lawrence. In addition to the reduction of pigment, albinism also causes legal blindness, and sensitivity to the sun. Being African-American, they do not have the typical physical characteristics of albinism: the white skin, pale eyes and platinum blonde hair. "Black people questioned our race," Seria explains "but we didn't appear white either. So, we just hung around each other and made music". In fact, one of Seria's best songs, "Hold Your Head Up", came from living through those agonizing school-age experiences.
The turning point in their music career came while attending Midland Lutheran College where Seria and Lawrence attended the student talent show. After it was announced there would be a prize of $100, Seria turned to her brother and said, "I'm going to sing. You follow me". She belted out a haunting a capella rendition of Toni Braxton's "Love Should Have Brought You Home", while Lawrence b-boxed along. Suddenly the crowd of 300-400 students began clapping and singing along and cheering their names! They had won - and the rush of performing for a crowd left Seria and Lawrence wanting more.
Seria soon began performing on a regular basis at shows around the Tampa Bay area. Her uncle Tony who produces Hip Hop shows encouraged her to get as much stage experience as she could. In 2000, she began to take songwriting more seriously. "Freak", a dance tune featured on her first CD called "Something Different", was the first song she ever wrote. In 2001, Seria auditioned for "Tampa Bay Idol" and was chosen third place out of 3000 contestants. Her second solo CD "Just Dance" was released in 2006.
Seria's and Kemistry's musical future is on the rise. But, experience has taught them that life is a balancing act. Seria graduated from Midland Lutheran College with a Bachelors Degree in Marketing. She also has a Masters Degree in School and Mental Health Counseling from University of South Florida and she is currently pursuing her Doctorate in Counseling Psychology. She lives near Tampa with her husband and their son, Adonis.
Read More at www.myspace.com/gotkemistry
This innovative, alternative rock/worship band from California brings a fresh new sonic perspective and voice of diversity to the Christian music industry. The five-piece band's sound features uncompromising heart-felt lyrical worship over a backdrop of lush, edgy modern alternative rock. Their first full-length project, "Arms", was released in June 2005. Since then, Radio Altar has developed a loyal following playing in clubs and churches in Los Angeles and the San Francisco Bay Area.
Drawing upon the diversity amongst its members, the band reaches and impacts hearts across culture, age, and religion. The multi-ethnic band is comprised of David Paredes on lead vocals; Tim Elder, guitar; Joe Quadara, guitar; Josh Greegor, bass; and Cleo Cook, drums.
Guitarist and producer Tim Elder provides a unique vision for the band by blending his desire to reach popular culture with his heart for worship: His orchestral background gives an intelligent and articulate quality to the band. "Despite the methods and styles we use to deliver our music, we do not compromise or water down the potency of our gospel message," says Tim. "The music that we play is a reflection of the joy that we have found in a personal relationship with Jesus Christ and the comfort that comes from His Holy Spirit."
Learn more at www.radioaltar.com
With a "strong yet vulnerable" set of songs drawing mentions to The Sundays, Patty Griffin and Ricky Lee Jones, Brooklyn songwriter Brooke Fox's ethereal vocals and direct lyrics draw a decidedly optimistic reality of relationships and human response. Originally from Northern California, Brooke Fox is a singer-songwriter who has performed live in over 24 states and 3 countries. Her second self-produced record, "Breathe The Same Air" (released July 2005) was a CDBaby best seller and took home third place for Female Singer/Songwriter Album at the 2006 Just Plain Folks Music Awards. Two of Brooke's songs from that collection were recorded by Kathy Brier, star of Hairspray and ABC's One Life to Live.
Fox's obsession with song craft was founded early. She began creating her own music in front of the Fox family piano at the age of eight and went on to earn her Bachelor's Degree in Songwriting at Boston's Berklee College of Music. She then relocated to Nashville after graduation where she recorded her first album "NightLight" in 1999 before heading to New York in 2000.
On first glance, the strikingly pale Fox, glowing under the stage lights, is simply fair-skinned but her lilywhite features are actually albinism, a rare genetic trait that also causes legal blindness and sensitivity to light. Brooke has spoken to schools and community groups about albinism and made major press appearances (Fox News, CNN, KROQ) on behalf of NOAH (The National Organization of Albinism and Hypopigmentation) to raise awareness in the face of the motion picture release of The Da Vinci Code which marks the 68th "Evil Albino" character to appear in cinema since 1960.
Brooke's most recent venture was writing Lyrics and contributing Music for "Williamsburg! The Musical" which was produced as part of the New York International Fringe Theatre Festival. The show played to sold out houses at The Village Theatre in New York City and took home a FringeNYC 2007 Overall Excellence Award for Music and Lyrics.
Learn more at www.brookefox.com.
Jimmy Fontanez was born and raised near Lincoln Center in New York City and has been playing percussion since the age of 5. Currently, he plays congas, bongos, timbales, drum kit, and keyboards.
In the 1990's, Jimmy traveled to Russia and the Dominican Republic to perform as part of Project Troubadour.. He's had the honor of sharing the stage with the infamous Tito Puente, one of the best timbaleros of all time, and also sat in with Andy Montañez, a well-known vocalist in the salsa genre, who was impressed with Jimmy's vocal abilities.
In 1997, Jimmy joined Alex Torres y Su Orchesta, a 13 piece latin orchestra which plays over 100 shows per year performing popular Afro-Caribbean rhythms such as Salsa, Merengue, Cha-cha, Bomba, Plena and Latin Jazz.
Jimmy earned his certificate in Audio Engineering in 1990 from the Institute of Audio Research and has extensive experience with audio recording software such as Cubase, Sonar, Sound Forge, Wave Labs, Fruity Loops, and several others. He's available for freelance instrumental work, music production, percussion instruction, and digital audio re-mastering. He resides in Albany, NY.
Contact Jimmy at charanga1@yahoo.com.
Long ago, Lisa Ostrow stopped counting the occasions when she has patiently explained, "yes, I can do that," and subsequently reached a milestone others assumed insurmountable: "a blind person can't hike the rugged, 60-mile West Coast Trail." "Harvard's Russian Department has never graduated a blind student." "How could you possibly enjoy an African safari?" Barriers are not Lisa's concern; she enriches her life, her family and her friends on her own terms, and through her music.
Born in Colorado to Canadian parents, Lisa has dual US/Canadian citizenship and has also lived in Nova Scotia, Manitoba and British Columbia before going to college in Boston, where she has remained since 1984 and grown a family of her own. Today she is a full-time mother and active performing artist, and is proud to be affiliated with the NFB Performing Arts Division's Sound In Sight celebration.
Music was destined to play a significant role in Lisa's life journey. Her father spent 35 years in the Canadian Armed Forces, Music Branch, rising from enlisted private to commissioned major, as a clarinetist, commanding officer and finally as the branch's #2 executive. At the age of seven, Lisa began the study of piano, and at ten, began intensive training with the Royal Conservatory of Music, advancing through their rigorous program at an accelerated pace, performing in a wide variety of live performance venues and television broadcasts, and winning awards and recognition throughout the Maritime Provinces and Western Canada. As the first member of her family to attend university, Lisa aimed high and was accepted to Harvard, where she earned a Cum Laude degree in Slavic Languages and Literatures. Musically, her focus in college migrated to vocal study and performance; she fronted a Top 40-style dance band, sang with the renowned Harvard Collegium Musicum chorus and, with the a cappella group Radcliffe Pitches, performed in a variety of venues including a tour to Bermuda.
After college, Lisa married and settled in the Boston area, managing production at the National Braille Press until 1994, when her second child turned out to be twins. Full-time motherhood beckoned and ever since, she has nurtured the wide array of vocal, instrumental, drama and dance pursuits of her three teenage daughters. Lisa continues to perform in regional theater productions, primarily as a vocalist, in genres ranging from Gilbert & Sullivan to Christmas-season jazz.
"Once Upon A Time" is the opening selection from Unconditional¸ Lisa's first CD, scheduled for release during the 2007 holiday season via CD Baby and iTunes. This particular track is literally a labor of love, with backing vocals provided by her husband, Peter, and all her children. Lisa's arranger and co-producer, Patrick Dreier, contributes additional vocals along with those of his own daughters. Unconditional's 15-song collection includes a variety of musical styles, is supported by numerous exceptional Rhode Island- and Boston-area musicians, and will generate net profits donated to charities including the Polycystic Kidney Disease Research Foundation.
Lisa can be contacted at: info@lisaostrow.com.
"Coupled with a tremendous technical ability, Mike Markaverich is a pianist of rare sensitivity and warmth." - Ron Della Chiesa, former host of WGBH radio's MusicAmerica,
A native of Nashua, New Hampshire, jazz pianist Mike Markaverich began playing the piano at age 3 and started classical studies in the 4th grade. He studied jazz history, theory and improvisation with Dwike Mitchell and Willie Ruff, trumpeter Don Cherry, and French horn virtuoso Bob Northern.
Markaverich was a premature baby whose subsequent over-exposure to oxygen in the incubator resulted in blindness. He attended grammar school at Perkins School for the Blind, graduated second in his class from Bishop Guertin High School and studied at Dartmouth College where he became interested in jazz and decided to make music his career. After obtaining a B.A. in Music (with distinction) from Dartmouth College in 1971, he had advanced training at Rivier College in his native Nashua, NH, at Berklee College of Music with Luciano Salavatore, and with Billy Taylor's Jazz in July program at UMass. He was awarded an M.A. in Music from the University of New Hampshire.
His professional career began on Cape Cod where he worked as a solo performer and in various combo settings in major area nightspots for over ten years. In November 1988 he moved to Sarasota, Florida where he has since been a regular member of the local jazz scene. Special events have included the Keys to the City Concert Series a the Regattabar/Charles Hotel in Boston, The UNH Traditional Jazz Series, the 1986 Great American Jazz Piano Competition, 2nd & 3rd Annual Jazz Festivals at the Grove Park Inn in Asheville, NC, and a 20th Reunion Concert at Hopkins Center/Dartmouth College. Past television appearances have included WCVB-Boston, WCUX-Hyannis, WTVT-Tampa, and WWSB-Sarasota. Mike's quick wit has been heard on WGBH-Boston, WQRC-Hyannis, and WAMR-Venice radio stations.
Mainstream, straight-ahead jazz is Mike's strength, but he is equally comfortable with stride piano of traditional jazz, hard driving bop and blues, and sensitive renderings of pop and Broadway show tunes. He has had the benefit of working with and learning from such jazz greats as Dave McKenna, Maxine Sullivan, Dick Johnson, Marie Marcus, Bill Britto, Brian Torff, Bob Wilber, Ira Sullivan, and Buddy Defranco.
Markaverich has produced eight of his own recordings and also finds time to teach privately and at the college level, conduct lectures and workshops.
Contact Mike at thejazzcats@comcast.net
Pop singer Selena Sang was born on October 19th, 1985 and grew up in Stockton, in Northern California as part of a large family (5 sisters and 3 brothers). For Selena, Living in a family who did not accept blindness brought many challenges. She learned to depend on herself and to find other ways to cope with her stress.
At about the age of nine or ten, she found herself singing to get through her days and soon after that she sang for the first time in public at her elementary school. The feeling of performing for the crowd was more than incredible and gave young Selena strength to keep going and to pursue a career in performing music.
Since then, Selena has been performing every chance she could - in talent shows, graduations, and musicals around her home town. As a school project, she recorded her first CD in November of 2004 with a little help from friends and a talented recording engineer.
In December of 2004, she moved to New York City to attend school and pursue music. She is currently working on writing her own lyrics and songs with hopes for a second CD in the future.
Contact Selena at Selena_Sang@yahoo.com.
After a decade of dynamic Latin music, New York City's Los Ciegos Del Barrio continue to get people on their feet in 2007.
Their second album "Dominando" (released in 2003) has enjoyed a tremendous amount of underground success in clubs, MP3.com and on college radio. The album shows off the band's Latin diversity with BACHATA, MERENGUE, BOLERO and SALSA sounds and the collection has amassed three #1 hits on MP3.com with "Y Sigues Hablando", "Si Tu Me Quisieras" and their version of "I Will Survive".
"Los Ciegos Del Barrio" or "Blind boys from the neighborhood" chose their name because all of the members of the group are legally blind. Their positive outlook on being visually impaired and playful sense of humor shines through in the fun, upbeat music they make. They have taken that energy around the world with them, playing shows in Russia and the Dominican Republic as part of Project Troubadour. The band is currently working on their third album which will be released by the end of 2007.
LOS CIEGOS DEL BARRIO includes:
Band Leader Alvin Suarez - Lead guitar, percussion and vocals.
Alvin's Twin Brother Derek Christopher Suarez - Bass guitar, percussion, keyboard and vocals.
Machete - Piano/keyboard, percussion, bass guitar, accordion and vocals.
Jaime Diaz - Rhythm guitar, bass guitar and vocals.
Jimmy Fontanez - Percussion and Vocals.
Learn more at www.LosCiegosDelBarrio.com
Pianist and Composer Lizzie Kazmierski was born in 1996. She has always loved music and began playing piano at age 3. When she was seven years old, she composed her first piece of music for piano, entitled "I Want to Hear Your Voice Again". The piece was her response to the grief she felt upon learning of the drowning death of a dear young friend, who is also blind. Since then, she has found herself inspired almost continually by events and people around her, creating beautifully complex and moving pieces of music. As she tells it, "I feel songs in my heart and hope to make people feel inspired by them."
Lizzie's talent as a Young Composer has been recognized by the National Federation of Music Clubs and by Very Special Arts/National. In her home state of Michigan, she receives instruction privately in classical piano as well as in composition and orchestration. She attends Blue Lake Fine Arts Camp and the Braille Beats Fine Arts Program which offers her specialized training in reading and writing Braille music.
In addition to classical training, Lizzie is inspired by contemporary artists such as Michelle Branch and Imogen Heap. She has a twin brother Michael, also blind due to Retinopathy of Prematurity, who plays piano and is a bagpiper. Together they collaborate and perform Celtic music as "Twin Thistle".
Lizzie is honored to contribute her piece "Summit" to this special "Sound in Sight" compilation CD and thanks the National Federation of the Blind for this opportunity. "Summit" honors Erik Weihenmayer, the first blind man to summit Mt. Everest. Like many, Lizzie was truly inspired by his accomplishment and had the opportunity to play the piece for Erik in May 2006 when he was awarded the Children's Vision Award by ROPARD, an organization which supports research into childhood retinal diseases.
Contact Lizzie c/o Michael Kazmierski at michael.kazmierski@spectrum-health.org
As a child, Beth was always singing, at school, at home, and everywhere in between. At five, she was trying to accompany herself on the piano, making up her own chords and harmonies to the kindergarten songs she would learn at school. Her parents started her on piano lessons at age six and she began choir at eleven and voice lessons at twelve. During high school, she could often be found in the choir room, helping with the schools music activities, spending time with other students, and of course singing.
At the end of her junior year, Beth received a full-tuition music scholarship to attend the University of Wisconsin Madison. She also received an Honorable Mention from the National Foundation for Advancement of the Arts for participating in their Arts recognition and Talent Search program.
Currently, she is about to enter her senior year at the University of Wisconsin Madison as a vocal performance major. Beth has completed two recitals during her college career. She has also played The Sandman and the Dew Fairy in the University's production of Hansel and Gretel. She has been involved in the University productions of Mozart's Marriage of Figaro, and Ravels L'enfant et les Sortilèges. From the music school, Beth has received an Opera Props award for 2006-2007 and the Lois and Bob Dick Award for 2007-2008.
She plans to complete her Bachelor of music degree in voice and then go onward to complete her master's degree in vocal performance. As well as being a professional singer, Beth hopes to open her own private studio and teach voice lessons.
Beth has a gift for expressing text. Her ability to infuse her music with emotion is extraordinary. She hopes that with her music, she can positively affect the lives of others.
Contact Beth at allred@wisc.edu
Singer/songwriter, author and speaker Donna Hill is a former Philadelphia area resident now living in the Endless Mountains of Pennsylvania. Donna is featured regularly as a performer at the Old Lynn Concert Series in Susquehanna County, which has been presenting national and international singer/songwriters to packed houses since 2000. She is also an active member of the Folk Lore Society of Northeastern Pennsylvania. She has recorded and released two acclaimed CD's "Harvest & Rainbow Colors" and "The Last Straw".
Legally blind from birth from Retinitis Pigmentosa and a two-time cancer survivor, Donna has a message of tenacity, perseverance and hope. Casual and upbeat, Donna intrigues audiences at house concerts, teen book discussions about Harry Potter (with songs) or school assemblies about her guide dog.
Donna, who has a degree in English Literature from East Stroudsburg University of PA, was a volunteer radio show producer for ten years for the Radio Information Center for the Blind in Philadelphia. She received national press credentials to cover the Carter inauguration - a first for blind representatives of radio reading services.
In the First Biennial Convention on Women in Northeastern Pennsylvania held at the University of Scranton in 2007, she presented, "Blind Women in Northeastern Pennsylvania: What we're up to and what we're up against." This speech, which has appeared in several area newspapers, has opened a dialog on issues facing blind people in modern American life.
Currently, Donna is working on her first children's novel and companion CD, and marketing articles about guide dogs, blindness, cancer, Harry Potter and her love of nature.
Her CD "The Last Straw" is available at www.cdbaby.com/cd/donnahill.
Contact Donna at: penatwork@epix.net
Singer and arranger Craig Eckhardt studied music and performed from a very early age. Starting out in barbershop, church, and high school choirs, Craig was able to experience a myriad of genres; ultimately, he decided to pursue the study of jazz and has recently completed his masters in jazz studies at the University of Miami in Florida. He now lives in New York City.
Craig's submission for the Sound and Sight CD is his original arrangement of the jazz standard "My Shining Hour", which was written as a final project for an arranging class and performed and recorded by various students from the University of Miami during the spring of 2006.
Craig would like to thank the National Federation of the Blind Performance Division for giving him the opportunity to share his music with the world.
Contact Craig at eckhardia@yahoo.com
Cameron Strife is a rock guitarist and recording engineer whose musical training had its modest beginnings in England at the age of thirteen when his grandfather showed him a few chords and a scale on an electric guitar and a vintage Univox amp from the early '60s.
When he lost his sight at the age of fourteen, music became a central part of Strife's life. He soon developed an interest in hard rock bands like Led Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Metallica and Iron Maiden.
He formed his first rock band at the age of sixteen as lead guitarist and lead vocalist. During his first year of college, Cameron and a good friend formed a group called "Blind Drunk", who performed at various venues and charity events. Twp of Blind Drunk's members unexpectedly passed away. The tragic events prompted various changes in lineup, set lists, etc. They later changed their name to "Driven" and headed into the studio to record their first album. The band changed their lineup again and is now called Quadraplain. http://www.quadraplain.com.
Cameron produced and did some writing/session playing for EPs by two talented female vocalists; Alison Hill, (from St. Helens, Mersey side), and, Lucy Tiffin, (from Swanley, Kent.) The re-release of Lucy's first full-length studio album is available at http://www.cdbaby.com/lucytiffin. He also had the opportunity to record concert performances by the cellist Julian Lloyd Webber and the Royal Artillery Band, an orchestra that performs at various functions including those which take place at Buckingham Palace. Cameron finished his first solo album, "Expressions", around this time.
After completing his BA degree in music with a concentration in studio production at SUNY Purchase in 2006, Cameron began to work part time for the Filomen M. D'Agostino Greenberg Music School in Manhattan, which is part of the lighthouse international. He is currently teaching private lessons as well as working on his next solo album.
Read more at www.cameronstrife.com
From early on, it was clear Eddie Salcido had a gift for music. At 3 years old, he began formal instruction on the piano when his parents realized that he wasn't just pounding and banging on the instrument like most other kids his age. At the age of 5, Eddie won a $3,000 scholarship given by the Governor's Committee of the State of California.
He continued to excel at the piano through his childhood, taking a particular interest in mastering blues music. At the age of 14, Eddie heard the classic blues/rock and roll hit, "Honkytonk" by Bill Dogget and became inspired to learn the saxophone. He started on the tenor then moved to the alto at the age of 16, studying under Gary Bell, an L.A. musician who worked with the likes of Little Richard and Ray Charles. Under Mr. Bell's careful guidance, Eddie learned and fell in love with the truly American Art form of jazz.
Today, Eddie lives in the Denver area and is currently in a band called the Rocky Mountain All Stars, which has played in some of the top blues venues in Colorado including the Oriental Theatre. He has arranged and recorded several original compositions and is currently in negotiations to build a studio of his own.
Contact Eddie at jazzdogg1@comcast.net.
Sarah Alawami was born in Miami, Florida in 1982. She started singing at the age of eight and began taking choral classes at age seventeen.
She is currently attending college in Las Vegas, Nevada, working toward her dream of becoming a choral conductor and recording engineer.
Sarah is excited to contribute her recording of "O Come Emanuel" which she arranged, performed and recorded at her home studio.
Contact Sarah at kales2@cox.net
Mark Adreon composes music that is intended to take the listener into themselves and add the sound track to their thoughts. These "Soundscapes" are emotionally based and are performed from this emotional stage. The listener can drift into the musical tapestry to find what they want there.
Adreon is self taught and has been playing the piano for almost 20 years. His often cinematic music is created to develop a story that is interpreted by the listener. Most of his compositions are about 15 to 30 minutes in length.
Adreon is currently working on his first album, working with 16 track recording on his Kawai Grand digital piano. The addition of multiple tracks offers Mark a larger pallet and a complexity that can be challenging to the listener at times.
He is also a 15-year member of the Seattle Men's Chorus which has performed in most major performance halls in the US, Europe and Australia. Singing baritone and learning the music by ear, has assisted Adreon in hearing music as a blending of tones, rhythms and sound.
Reach Mark Adreon at indigo@drizzle.com with any comments or inquiries.
Thank You
The Performing Arts division would like to thank all of the sponsors and artists who made this groundbreaking album possible. Special thanks goes out to Derek Suarez, Discmakers and Dancing Dots, makers of braille music solutions. Click here to go to
www.dancingdots.com
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