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Have Harp, Will Travel – The Global Musical Adventures of CHIARA CAPOBIANCO

Born and raised in Milan, Italy, Chiara Capobianco’s earliest musical memory finds her at ages 3-5 attending the Puccini Festival in the charming hamlet of Torre del Lago in Tuscany, where the famed composer wrote classic operas like “Tosca” and “Madama Butterfly.” Her early passion for classical music, her natural wanderlust – and her later love, as a child of the 80s, for the pop magic of American icons like Michael Jackson and Madonna – laid the foundation for her emergence as a true musical citizen of the world.

chiara capobianco harpistIn the 20-plus years since she performed her first professional gigs as last minute fill-in harpist in orchestras everywhere from her home country to Switzerland, Poland and England, the multi-talented musician has performed for thousands of people across the globe – in settings ranging from cruise ships, hotels and weddings to clubs and concert halls. Since 1990, she has gigged as a solo harpist (with both classic and Irish harp), in duos with fellow harp players and also with violin, flute, cello, piano, voice and full ensembles.

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Independent Artist Jim Greer Set to Release Album

Producer/Songwriter/Musician, Jim Greer, will be releasing his new record, Ginger Vision, on March 14 via Rondo Brothers, War Chant Records. Ginger Vision deals largely with the painful life circumstance of Greer’s 20-month old son, Teddy, being diagnosed with a rare pediatric cancer, called neuroblastoma, last year.

Greer and his family will be treating and fighting Terry’s illness well throughout 2011 and all profits of this album will go towards Teddy’s treatments. Ginger Vision will be available to order from the label and through iTunes.

As a songwriter Greer crafts impressionistic, melodic songs that beget comparisons to contemporaries such as Sean Lennon, The Flaming Lips, etc., and classic artists like Syd Barrett or Nick Drake.

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Sweet Relief Musicians Fund: Help Save the Lives of Musicians in Need

sweetreliefmusiciansSweet Relief Musicians Fund has qualified for the Pepsi Refresh Project. During the month of June they will be competing for one of ten $50,000 grants with the winners being determined by number of votes.

You can help by visiting the Pepsi Refresh Project website and vote to help preserve one of the few resources that a professional musician can turn to for support when there is no place else to go. Participants can vote once per day until June 30th.

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TheBuzz-By: Tanner Howe of Disco Curtis

DiscoCurtis_TannerHoweTheBuzz recently caught up with singer Tanner Howe of  Disco Curtis for our new weekly interview feature, TheBuzz-By. Get to know various artists with a short list of random questions.

Disco Curtis just released their EP, “Play with Fire Get Burned,” and have a video out for their single, “Ashley.”

The band is gearing up to hit the road on the 2010 Van’s Warped Tour.

KH: If you weren’t a musician what other career would you pursue?

TH: Underwear model

KH: Do you have any celebrity crushes?

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Euphonic Sound Redefines the Recording Experience For Indies

James Pew gives us the scoop on Studio 2.0.

james4bwAt GigHive, we’re always interested in those folks out there who are taking an active roll in building alternatives to the mainstream music industry. In Toronto, James Pew is an musician/technician well worth watching. Over the last decade, Pew has created Euphonic Sound, a vibrant and diverse community of artists who are currently hard at work building models for the future of the music industry. And psst, guess what? It’s totally indie.

Recently, we had the opportunity to speak to Pew about what he does and why he does it. Here’s what he had to say:

GH: Clearly, you’re a busy guy. You run Euphonic Sound Studio in Toronto, you’ve got the Broken Window label, you run the Studio Manifesto blog, you’re involved with Origin Audio Electronics, and you’re a musician. How did this whole indie empire get started?

JP: Roughly ten years ago I researched recording studios in the GTA that I could potentially record some of my music at. At this point I had already been through an audio engineering course at Humber College and had done hundreds of demo recordings on 4 and 8-track – all of which sounded awful, hence the need for a professional studio with qualified engineers. The best price I found for a pro studio was $900 per day back then.

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Introducing Indie Artist Osaru

OsaruCoverOsaru is a multi-talented musician, composer and vocalist who lives and works in the heart of the Piedmont Triad in North Carolina, USA. He also works full time as a Physician.

His debut CD, ‘home’ released in September 2008 was a work of art. It took you on a journey through his early adult years to the present day. It celebrated life, love and long term commitment. He used powerful vocals filled with soulful melodies to complement punchy bass lines, hip hop chants, jazzy undertones and ‘head bobbing’ percussive rhythms. The result was his amazing musical story.

Home with the keys is a follow up to Osaru’s debut album. It is smooth jazz at its best. From silky soprano phrases in “last night” to funky tenor sax lines in ‘let’s begin’, he manages to express the story behind each song using his keyboards, a breath controller and his wind controller. His background training as a physician is many a time evident in the meticulous craftsmanship of his songs and bedside manner in which he delivers his message.

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