Leni Stern

Location:
New York, US
Type:
Artist / Band / Musician
Genre:
Alternative / Blues / Nu-Jazz
Site(s):
Label:
LSR/Megaforce MRI/Red
Type:
Indie
"It's a risk, listening to Leni Stern: You risk losing the comfortable
distance between artist and audience to share the emotions of someone who dares to feel deeply. Her sensual soulfulness, her hummingbird melodies and the family camaraderie of her band, though, make the gamble virtually inevitable." Greg Burk LA WEEKLY
"j'aime la guitar de leni
j'aime la musique de leni
j'aime leni"
("i love leni's guitar
i love leni's music
i love leni")
Salif Keita
News!
Leni Stern reaches a career high with her soaring new full-length CD, 'Sa Belle Belle Ba' – by showcasing multiple guest performers, highlighting indigenous instruments from Africa and elsewhere, and allowing the collaborative process to shine, Stern has delivered a complex, hard- hitting, funky, Global rocker.
Stern lets loose on the new CD, singing in Wollof, Arabic and Bambara, and the surrounding ensemble performances create a palpable energy, especially via raps, layered vocals, wild funk sounds, and guest musicians including Haruna Samake, Ami Sacko and Zoumana Tareta. In addition, Stern has infused the CD with strings, combining kora, oud and percussion with a string ensemble, an achievement she's particularly proud of. 'Sa Belle Belle Ba' was co-produced by Stern and Andy Tommasi, and will be released July 15th.
Leni Stern is a Global Music artist and electric guitarist whose stature has grown in the wake of her acclaimed CDs 'Alu Maye', 'Africa' and 'Spirit In The Water' – all were recorded in Mali, using local musicians, instruments and equipment, and integrating African and Western music forms with distinction. Critics embraced 'Africa' as "a
significant new chapter in a career marked by bold changes," and ALLMUSIC described it as "one of the finest CDs of the.year, in any genre." 'Spirit In the Water' was praised as "a glorious triumph," and, in its wake, critics remarked that Stern's eclectic career had emerged as "one of modern music's great adventures." Recorded on analog tape, the EP's warm, soulful sound was evocative of jazz and rock albums of the 1960's. 'Sa Belle Belle Ba' is the full-length CD that evolved from the 'Spirit' sessions.
CHOPS:
Five consecutive wins of Gibson's Female Jazz Guitarist of the Year might make anyone hunker down and focus on going 'six for six'. But Leni Stern has always defied expectations, and her diverse, 20-year career in music is a textbook example of growth under a self-imposed fire. From the expert instrumentalist, a singer-songwriter emerged, with observations to share from her travels throughout the world. Stern adds: "Why deny the impulse to put words to these experiences? I couldn't think of a reason."



DIVERSITY:
Indeed, with the May 11th release of 'When Evening Falls', Stern evokes recent travels to Kenya, India and New Orleans to deliver a haunting singer-songwriter album. Mix in her trademark bluesy guitar solos and the jazz-infused "On The Outside" and "Dancin' With the Devil", and a burst of creativity is revealed – ten songs which reflect an artist who has seen the world, experienced life, recorded 13 albums, and continues to grow.



RENAISSANCE WOMAN:
Born in Munich, Germany, Leni started playing piano at the age of six and guitar at eleven. At seventeen, she formed her own acting company, and her radical productions sold out houses across Europe. In 1977, she turned her attention to music and left for the United States to study film scoring at the Berklee College of Music in Boston. Scoring gave way to her love for guitar and in 1981, Leni moved to New York to play in a variety of rock and jazz bands. In 1983, she formed a group of her own with Paul Motion on drums and Bill Frisell on guitar. As a recording artist, she originally made a name for herself in jazz circles (her first nine albums were instrumental,) then crossed her talents over into the singer-songwriter realm, garnering consistent praise in the process. Critics have said her music incorporates "intelligent lyrics and beautifully drawn vignettes" (Washington Post), "crystalline, jazz-meets-blues guitar lines" (Guitar Player), and "thoughtful structure, evocative moods, attention to groove" (San Francisco Bay Guardian). Leni runs her own label, LSR/Ryko Distribution partners.



"Exotic and Solemnly Beautiful" "Stern Sees the Poetry in Incidents Both Large and Small."
- JazzTimes
"Leading the Charge in.the New 'Folk Jazz'"; "A Mature and Worldly Composer"
-The Boston Herald
"An Impressive Singer-Songwriter in the Joni Mitchell-Meets-Marianne Faithfull Mode"
- Albany Times Union
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