Press — Emilie Conway

Emilie Conway Bio

“Star of the show is Conway’s voice,” - Hot Press

“Splendid.” - The Sunday Independent

“Her own vocalese to Coltrane’s solo demonstrating her abilities to their fullest, flitting through the lyrics at a tempo most rappers would be envious of, while maintaining a bouncing melody and clarity of diction throughout. ” - GoldenPlec

Emilie is an award winning vocal jazz artist, composer and lyricist, blending her own compositions, spoken word/poetry, with improvised and composed music and her interpretations of jazz standards. She is also a disability activist, consultant and advisor, a creator of aesthetically accessible audio-described and sensory experiences. She is regularly invited to contribute as a panelist and presenter on EDIHR and she is also a fully accredited and practising art psychotherapist with the Irish Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy.

Music is at the centre of Emilie’s arts practice and creative process which is multi-disciplinary in singing and sound, writing, movement, and visual art. All of which gives rise to three areas of concentration: jazz art/literature, jazz and disability and jazz and children

Emilie was awarded a commission with the National Gallery to respond to the work of pioneering modern artist, Piet Mondrian. She created two podcasts, Music for Mondrian, and is in the final stages of production of her original compositions. This work, in turn, led to an invitation from New York’s global centre for culture, The 92nd Street Y, for Emilie to dig deeper into her research to present a series of online lectures, entitled The Musical Art of Piet Mondrian, which took place Winter 2022.

In collaboration with children from St. Colmcille's Senior School, Knocklyon. during lockdown 2020, Emilie pivoted an in person work to produce a music video called It All Works Out. This original composition tells Emilie’s story, for and with the children’s musical and artistic participation, of growing up with a disability. The work was launched as part of Cruinniu na nOg festival in 2020 on the Arts Council Vimeo channel where it attracted more than 1,000 hits in 2 months.

As an artist with a disability, Emilie is a passionate activist for equal and equitable participation of disabled people in arts and culture. In “Solid, Space & Sound™ at the RHA Gallery and the National Gallery she brings her musical, writing and artistic skills to the creation of audio described, sensory, tactile, Braille and movement experiences of cultural space and visual art which are accessible to all, especially visually impaired and blind people. She was commissioned by the Ark in 2023 to adapt this work for disabled and visually impaired children from Child Vision to experience the Ark in an interactive musical, sensory, participatory, creative way - which was met with delight by the children. She was commissioned by the Project Arts Centre to respond to their new policy: Towards Equality, Diversity and Inclusion, launched in April 2022.

Emilie is also founder of DADA, Disabled Artists, Disabled Academics whose focus is campaigning for the equitable participation and contribution by disabled artists to Ireland’s art and culture, inline with UNCRPD. Keeping music to the fore she sings her message at meetings and presentations to Oireachtas members. Since 2020 DADA has made several influential submissions on barriers facing disabled artists, for example the Department of Arts, Culture, Media and Sport in the publication, A Safe and Respectful Working Environment in the Arts.

Currently Emilie’s production, Une Soirée Folle, The Roaring ‘20s brings together the joyous and rebellious music of the 1920s along with Emilie’s own recent more provocative compositions of the 2020s inspired by her disability activism and Mondrian commission. This is a concert that is proving very popular with audiences, at Arthur’s Jazz and Blues, and sold out at the Project Arts Centre.

Emilie performs across Ireland the US, and Europe at festivals and venues including JJ Smyth’s, Dublin, Carnegie Hall’s Migrations Festival, NYC, The Village Trip Greenwich Village Festival, Sligo International Jazz Festival, The American Writers’ Museum, Chicago, The Red Line Book Festival, Ranelagh Arts Festival, The Bray Jazz Festival, The Galway Jazz Festival, Jazz is … Festival of Jazz and World Music:, The Flatlakes Festival, Copenhagen Jazz Festival, The Edinburgh Fringe Festival, Dalkey Book Festival, International Jazz Day at Belles Artes, Dominican Republic, the Cornelia St. Cafe, NYC, and many more. 

Awards

The Arts Council of Ireland’s Travel and Touring Awards: Emilie sings Billie, 2010, Dear World, Emilie Conway sings Alec Wilder, 2014

The Arts Council's Arts & Disability Connect Scheme Training Grant, 2018, The Irish World Academy

The Arts Council's of Ireland’s Artist in the Community Research Grant, managed by Create and supported by the RHA 2018

The Arts Council of Ireland Arts & Disability Connect Scheme Training Grant, 2019, Brazilian and Afro-Brazilian rhythms.

The Arts Council of Ireland Arts and Disability Connect Scheme New Work Award 2020

The Arts Council of Ireland Agility Award 2021

Selected 30/30 Artist 2022: 30 Years of the Improvised Music Company 30 Years / 30 Improvisers

Albums:

The Secret of a Rose 2012

Dear World, Emilie Conway Sings Alec Wilder 2016

Festivals:

Ranelagh Arts Festival, 2010-2022, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, 2010, Copenhagen Jazz Festival 2011, Vermont Jazz Centre, 2010, Dominican Republic: International Jazz Day, 2015. Celebrating Maeve Brennan @ American Writers' Museum, American Irish Historical Society, Cornelia St. Cafe, NYC, National Concert Hall, Dublin, 2017, Dalkey Creates Festival, 2017-2018, Carnegie Hall Migrations Festival: Yeats & Tagore, NYPL for the Performing Arts @ the Lincoln Ctr, NYC 2019, Galway Jazz Festival, 2019, Cruinniu na nOg, 2019 & 2020, Big Bang Dublin, International Music Festival for Children, 2019 & 2022, Dublin Fringe Festival, 2022.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: You Won't Forget Me: A Celebration of Maeve Brennan in Words & Music, John Field Room, the National Concert Hall, Tuesday, 12 September 2017

You Won't Forget Me: A Celebration of Maeve Brennan in Words & Music with actor Cathy Belton

Pre-concert talk by Angela Bourke, author of the biography, Maeve Brennan: Homesick at The New Yorker.

2017 marks the centenary of Maeve Brennan’s birth. A daughter of the Rising, Maeve grew up in the Dublin suburb of Ranelagh, before moving to the US in 1934. In 1949 she became a staff writer for The New Yorker and wrote Talk of the Town columns as the Long-Winded Lady.

Following a sell-out event at Ranelagh Arts Centre and performances in NYC and Chicago earlier this year, the Emilie Conway Quartet is delighted to be joined again by actress Cathy Belton, and Angela Bourke to explore the soundscape of Maeve’s life and work in readings, spoken word, and music that ranges from traditional Irish to jazz, echoing how Maeve would have experienced the move from post-civil war Ireland to the glamour of cosmopolitan New York in the 1950s. Indeed Maeve’s columns for The New Yorker read like jazz: their cleverness, lightness and incisiveness show the dexterity of a master improviser which belie a deeper, Rembrandt-like meditation on the human condition - so hauntingly audible in the ballad-like quality of her short stories and her novella.

Cathy Belton is a multi-award winning actress of theatre, TV and film whose film credits include: Philomena, A Little Chaos, Intermission, The Tiger’s Tail. Television credits include: Glenroe, The Clinic, and Red Rock for which she was nominated for an IFTA award in 2015. She performs regularly in the Abbey and Gate Theatre: The Crucible, (Abbey Theatre), A View from the Bridge, (The Gate), Medea (Abbey Theatre), A Woman of No Importance, (Gate). She also performed in Wonderful Tennessee, (Sheffield Theatre) and in the world premiere of Frank McGuinness’s one-woman play The Match Box, at the Galway Arts Festival.

Emilie Conway is an award-winning Dublin-born jazz singer. She’s been described by legendary jazz singer, Fionna Duncan as “A heart stealer with the voice of an angel, smooth, mellow, sincere and deeply connected to both music and lyrics. She is no imitator but has a fresh approach and a sound that lingers on …” Emilie released her debut album, The Secret of a Rose, in 2012, to critical and popular acclaim and Dear World: Emilie Conway Sings Alec Wilder in 2016. She performs in Ireland and internationally.

Award-winning writer Angela Bourke is Professor Emerita in Modern Irish at UCD, Dublin, and a Member of the Royal Irish Academy. A frequent contributor to TV, radio, and print media, she has lectured widely and held visiting academic positions on both sides of the Atlantic and in Japan. Along with the ground-breaking 2004 Brennan biography, her books include Caoineadh na dTrí Muire (1983), By Salt Water (short stories, 1996), The Burning of Bridget Cleary: A True Story (1999), and the Famine Folio Voices Underfoot: Memory, Forgetting, and Oral Verbal Art (2016).

For Immediate Release March 18: Emilie Conway Quintet Launch second album, "Dear World," JJ Smyth's on Thursday, May 5

Album Title: "Dear World,” Emilie Conway Sings Alec Wilder

Artist: Emilie Conway

Location: JJ Smyth's, Aungier St., Dublin 2

Date: May 5th, 2016

Emilie Conway is delighted to announce the release of her second album; "Dear World".

In 1945 a then unknown Frank Sinatra conducted and recorded a collection of instrumental compositions by his friend Alec Wilder. While Sinatra was to begin his ascent to worldwide fame and stardom a year later, Wilder eschewed the limelight and remains relatively unknown.

Jazz critic Barry Ulanov described Wilder's melodies as "leaping and lovely, sinuous and sequested, elusive and wistful." In "Dear World,” award winning Dublin jazz singer Emilie Conway and her quintet bring the music of the enigmatic Alec Wilder to life.

With arrangements by Emilie’s gifted pianist and musical director, Johnny Taylor, Wilder's songs emerge in all their sparkling originality, haunting simplicity, beauty, humour, warmth and vibrant with fascination with life. The album brings the listener on an evocative, reflective, at times relaxed, then piquant journey through some rarely heard songs like “Is It Always Like This?” and “Crazy in the Heart,” and “Blackberry Winter.” This recording marks the debut recording of the title track, “Dear World.”

For this exciting project Emilie is joined by her regular band members: Johnny Taylor (piano), Damian Evans (double bass) and Dominic Mullan (drums). The fifth member is the outstanding Brendan Doyle (saxophones / clarinet ). Special guest Julien Colarossi, (guitar) joins Emilie and Johnny on “Dear World.”

Emilie’s career has been progressing since the release of debut album, The Secret of a Rose, in 2012, with invitations to perform and collaborate with musicians in Europe, Northern Ireland - and the Caribbean! A 2015 highlight was the discovery that Emilie’s music had an audience in the Dominican Republic where it was being featured on local radio. Subsequently, Emilie, together with her pianist, Johnny Taylor and bassist, Damian Evans were invited to perform in Belles Artes Concert Hall in Santo Domingo to mark UNESCO International Jazz Day. The Trio's concert was received with a standing ovation from an audience of over 600. Especially loved was their arrangement of a piece called ‘Romantico’ by local legendary composer Rafael Bollumba Landestoy, with lyrics written by Emilie. On their return journey to Ireland the Trio stopped off in Paris to perform a second concert for UNESCO International Jazz Day.

At home, the Emilie Conway quartet has given sell out concerts in the John Field Room, National Concert Hall. In 2014, in association with Jazz on the Terrace, the Emilie Conway Quintet received an Arts Council Award to research and present the music of Alec Wilder in a nationwide tour. The songs chosen for this second album have been selected and developed from the repertoire for the 2014 tour.

Reviews:

A wonderful talent. Emilie Conway sings her songs from her heart. She really means what she sings.” - Sheila Jordan, USA

“A heart stealer with the voice of an angel, smooth, mellow, sincere and deeply connected to both music and lyrics. She is no imitator but has a fresh approach and a sound that lingers on ...” - Fionna Duncan, UK

“Splendid. Emilie Conway gets better all the time.” - The Sunday Independent

“her own vocalese to Coltrane’s solo demonstrating her abilities to their fullest, flitting through the lyrics at a tempo most rappers would be envious of, while maintaining a bouncing melody and clarity of diction throughout. ” - GoldenPlec

For Immediate Release July 18:

LUNCH TIME CONCERT @ THE NATIONAL CONCERT HALL WITH EMILIE CONWAY QUARTET: "Jazz on a Summer's Day" 1:05pm, Wednesday August 20th

"Star of the show is Conway's voice." - Hot Press

"A wonderful talent. Emilie sings her songs from her heart. She really means what she sings," - Sheila Jordan USA

Emilie Conway is an award winning Dublin born jazz singer whose stage debut was an impromptu session with Jon Hendricks and Kurt Elling in a Chicago club in 1999.

She has been described as "a heart stealer with the voice of an angel, smooth, mellow, sincere and deeply connected to both music and lyrics,” and with what the Irish Times called "classic style," Emilie Conway appeals not only to jazz fans but also to a more mainstream audience.

Following several sell out concerts and a recent countrywide tour of the music of Alec Wilder, Emilie returns to the John Field Room to present the sounds of summer with the sparkle of some well-known jazz standards, as well as a few hidden gems.

She is joined by her quartet; some of Ireland's leading jazz musicians: Johnny Taylor (piano), Damian Evans (double bass) and Dominic Mullan (drums0

For Immediate Release March3:

“Dear World:” Emilie Conway Sings Alec Wilder

Emilie Conway Quintet on Tour in Ireland in April 2014

Friday 11th April: Mermaid Arts Centre, Bray, County Wicklow. Thursday 17th April: Droichead Arts Centre, Drogheda, County Louth. Saturday 19th April: Dunamaise Arts Centre, Portlaoise, County Laois. Thursday 24th April: Ballina Arts Centre, Ballina, County Mayo. Friday 25th April: Mill Theatre, Dundrum Centre, Dublin 16.

"I’m concerned with the miracle of life in all of it’s incredible forms. I’ll stop for a spider, a bird, a tree, a flower, a child, a book, a storm, a sound, a scent, a smile. I’ll blow bubbles, watch bobble birds, read a dictionary, listen to a sad take, make up a puzzle, row a boat." - Alec Wilder, (1907-1980)

Dazzling Dublin jazz singer Emilie Conway and her quintet bring the music of the enigmatic Alec Wilder to the stage; a music of originality, haunting simplicity, beauty, humour and warmth, and brimming with Wilder’s fascination with life.

Emilie Conway, discovered Alec Wilder and was entranced by his wonderful songs and music. She was assisted by Allen Smith of Jazz on the Terrace in the final stages of production of her debut album, The Secret of a Rose. He remarked on the Wilder song “I’ll Be Around” being on the album, and they realised that they were both admirers of this composer.

Emilie had devised three other projects on artists Billie Holiday, Elis Regina and Abbey Lincoln. Emilie and Allen discussed creating this project “Dear World”: Emilie Conway Sings Alec Wilder and Allen was eager to be involved. A grant was received from the Arts Council and work progressed to the realisation of the project and this tour. Emilie will join her regular associates Johnny Taylor (piano), Damian Evans (bass) and Dominic Mullan (drums). The fifth member will be the outstanding Brendan Doyle (tenor, alto saxophone, clarinet).

Alec Wilder was born in Rochester, New York but made his home in New York City at the famous Algonquin Hotel. Though largely a self-taught composer, he studied composition and counterpoint at the Eastman School of Music. Wilder’s music is a blend of American musical traditions: jazz and the American popular song, and “classical” European forms and techniques that totally resists labelling. He wrote, prolifically and diversely, from songs to sonatas, of remarkable originality, humour and warmth that reveal an intelligent, sensitive mind fascinated by life.

Jazz musicians fascinated Wilder with their gift for extemporaneous compositions. He composed for Marian McPartland, Stan Getz, and Clark Terry. Bob Brookmeyer, Dave Liebman, and Vic Juris all recorded albums of his songs.

Wilder’s relationship with popular and jazz singers was also especially close. The intricacy or originality of his melodies and lyrics combined with at times unorthodox song forms enthralled singers Frank Sinatra, Peggy Lee and Tony Bennett who all loved and recorded his songs - indeed Sinatra conducted and recorded an album of Wilder’s instrumental music.

Wilder himself had an unpretentious elegance and style, lending a blend of spontaneous looseness and formal discipline to his music. Alongside more complex melodies, he was capable of writing tunes of haunting simplicity. ‘I’ll Be Around’ is an extraordinary example.

Join Emilie, Johnny, Damien, Dominic and Brendan as they bring to life the beautiful music of the engimatic Alec Wilder.

“A wonderful talent, Emilie Conway sings her songs from her heart. She really means what she sings.” - Sheila Jordan, USA

ENDS

Further information from

Allen Smith, Administrator, Jazz on the Terrace, 44 Belgrave Square West, Rathmines, Dublin 6, Ireland.

Tel: 01 4979562 Fax: 01 4979562 Mob: 086 8278692

E-mail: jazzontheterrace@gmail.com Website: http://www.jazzontheterrace.com

For Immediate Release February 24: Spring Journey 2014 #1: Emilie Conway & Johnny Taylor at the Dublin Unitarian Church - Friday February 28th

Spring Journey 2014 is a series of 3 concerts planned to raise money for the ongoing Unitarian Church Organ Restoration Project. The target is to raise €250,000 by the end of 2015. The project itself, overseen by Irish organ-builder Trevor Crowe started in January 2014 and is due to be completed midsummer 2015.

The first concert in our Spring Journey 2014 season is Friday 28th February 2014. Emilie Conway and Johnny Taylor will play swing, ballads, blues and Latin in a show entitled “You Must Believe In Spring”. They will also be joined for some of the concert by double bassist Dave Fleming. We hope you can make it. Failing that, we hope you can help us spread the word in your own unique way – radio, print, online or just talking about it.

Spring Journey 2014: 3 Concerts for the Organ at Dublin Unitarian Church

Friday. Feb 28th, Friday. Mar 28th, Friday May 9th 2014

All concerts at 8pm

Dublin Unitarian Church, 112 St Stephen's Green

Some of Ireland's finest musicians will perform special concerts this spring in aid of the Dublin Unitarian Church's Organ Restoration Project. Ranging from jazz to classical guitar via Flanders and Swann and Tom Lehrer, the concerts in this beautiful city centre venue will run in February, March and May, with special season tickets available for all three concerts. Irish Organbuilder Trevor Crowe has just begun work on the beautiful 1911 JW Walker Pipe Organ, and the profits from the performances will help complete it.

Singer Emilie Conway with Johnny Taylor on piano, will kick off the season on Friday Feb 28th with You Must Believe in Spring, a sensuous and infections combination of jazz and latin as heard most recently on Emilie's critically acclaimed debut CD, The Secret of a Rose, and in a national concert tour through 2012 bookended by successful concerts in the NCH in Dublin.

A Tip of the Hat- The Songs of Flanders and Swann, Tom Lehrer and more is the title for Friday March 28th, when singer Benjamin Russell, accompanied by David O'Shea on piano follow up on their Culture Night preview of this mix of British and US comedy song. Well known as classical musicians, they present this timeless repertoire with fun and style, making for a hugely enjoyable evening.

The season closes on Friday May 9th with the exquisite sound of Pat Coldrick on guitar. His beautiful flowing classical style, which also draws on jazz and new age music, has been heard in sold-out performances in Ireland and abroad, and on regular airplay of his debut CD Cayendo. He is now recording his second CD, thanks to a successful Fundit campaign, which yielded 110% of its target fund.

Tickets are excellent value: €40 season ticket for all 3 concerts, €15 per concert if bought in advance from www.dublinunitarianchurch.org or €20 per concert on the door. People are advised to book early, as capacity is limited.

Press information: Josh Johnston 086 892 0602

hello@dublinunitarianchurch.org

www.dublinunitarianchurch.org

For Immediate Release July 4, Singer Emilie Conway & pianist Johnny Taylor to Perform at Paris Jazz Club, Cafe Universel on Bastille Day, July 14

From Ireland, jazz singer, Emilie Conway & pianist, Johnny Taylor are delighted to make their French debut at Cafe Universel with a programme of jazz standards that features the music of celebrated French composer, Michel Legrand as well as Jobim, Bowman, Evans & more. They are joined on bass by special guest, Sava Medan.

Born in Dublin, Emilie’s love for jazz was sparked by her encounter with Kurt Elling (Blue Note) at The Green Mill, Chicago, in 1999. This fateful experience changed the course of her life and Emilie returned to the infamous jazz & blues city to immerse herself in the music. Winner of scholarships to Berklee College of Music, Vermont Jazz Centre & Souza Lima, Brazil, she has studied with Sheila Jordan (US), & Fiona Duncan (UK). Influences include Billie Holiday, Elis Regina, Edith Piaf, Kurt Elling, Abbey Lincoln & Joni Mitchell but also Prokofiev, Satie, Chopin, Ravel & Mahler.

Emilie's love for the music of Michel Legrand began that fateful summer of '99 in Chicago when she first heard "What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life,"at a lunchtime concert in a shopping mall! Indeed Emilie found the inspiration for her debut album; a belief in hope & the beauty of life; so beautifully and simply enunciated in Legrand's "You Must Believe in Spring" that she chose it as the featured track on her debut album. It is from Bergman's lyrics that the album takes its name: "The Secret of a Rose."

Emilie is joined by her long-standing pianist Johnny Taylor. London born, Johnny graduated with a First Class Honours degree from Trinity College Dublin in 2006. After studying on scholarship at Berklee College of Music in Boston, Johnny returned to Dublin and has become one of Ireland's leading jazz pianists. While he takes his lead from master pianists such as Ahmad Jamal, Bill Evans & Oscar Peterson, he is equally influenced by modern players including the likes of Jacky Terrasson & Peter Martin.

Belgrade born bassist, Sava Medan is resident in Paris five years. Emilie first sang with Sava on a jam session in Munich in 2000, an occasion that established their musical connection & sealed their friendship. Well established on the German jazz scene at the time, Sava Medan's profile has continued to grow across Europe owing to the virtuosity, beauty and creativity of his unique style.

“A wonderful talent. Emilie Conway sings her songs from her heart. She really means what she sings.” - Sheila Jordan, USA

"Classic style.. Emilie Conway’s slightly breathy unaffected voice has an authentic quality.." - The Irish Times

"Emilie Conway, a Dublin born jazz singer whose stage debut was an impromptu session with Jon Hendricks and Kurt Elling in a Chicago club in 1999, is possessed of a set of air freshener tones and uses them to very adroit affect. But she's not the only performer to impress - pianist, Johnny Taylor, also plays a blinder. “ - The Sunday Business Post

"This young Irish singer combines a love of melody with a feeling for the nuances of lyrics. Her diction is spot-on at every tempo. She has the kind of straight-ahead style that appeals not only to jazz fans but also to a more mainstream audience" - The Sunday Independent

“Star of the show is Conway’s voice.” - Hot Press

“Emilie Conway and Johnny Taylor, giving jazz aficionados an unforgettable experience”- Real Travel, San Francisco

**********

For Immediate Release May 24, The Jazz Supper Club comes to Dublin

Jazz Supper Club @ The Wild Goose Grill, Upstairs at 1 Sandford Rd, Ranelagh, Dublin 6

The 3rd in a series of 6 Jazz Supper Nights at the Wild Goose Grill with the Emilie Conway Qtet. Each Friday night features one of Ireland's most up and coming Jazz musicians. This Friday 24th features Damian Evans, bass along with stalwarts of Emilie's Qtet, Johnny Taylor, piano and Dominic Mullan, drums.

While Jazz Supper Clubs are common in the States, as yet, they are few and far between in Ireland. This 6 week series is inspired by a passion for art; for jazz at the Wild Goose Grill: and their desire to create a setting that first and foremost showcases the music. Come and listen over a glass of wine or sample from their supper menu, especially created by the chef for these evenings.

Reservations: 01 4912377

www.thewildgoosegrill.ie

www.emilieconway.ie

“You Must Believe In Spring:" Debut Album Concert Series

Vocal Jazz: The Emilie Conway Quartet

Jan 31, The Linenhall, Castlebar / March 2, Ballina Arts Centre / March 3, The Courthouse Arts Centre, Tinahely / March 10, Wexford Arts Centre / March 21, Dolan’s Limerick / April 4, The John Field Room at The National Concert Hall, Dublin.

Jazz singer Emilie Conway launches her debut album “The Secret of a Rose” with an evening of music to celebrate spring as a season of hope, change and new love with jazz standards You Must Believe in Spring, Joy Spring, Aguas de Marco, It Might As Well Be Spring,, But Beautiful, So In Love and many more..

Emilie: “The repertoire for this concert and album developed out of my personal response to the climate of negativity in our country over the past few years. Life has taught me that there is always hope and there is beauty, that this is a beautiful life we have here - where there are dark shadows, there is also light. For me, these songs are about affirmation and acceptance. Well just as it says in You Must Believe in Spring

Beneath the deepest snows, the secret of a rose,

Is merely that it knows, you must believe in spring!”

Encouraged by audience response at Dublin’s Bewley’s Café Theatre, Emilie performed the repertoire in Copenhagen and Munich in 2010 where it was equally warmly received by Danish and German audiences.

Born in Dublin, Emilie has won scholarships to Berklee College of Music, Boston, The Vermont Jazz Centre, and Souza Lima, Brazil, She has studied with Sheila Jordan, Jay Clayton in the US, Fionna Duncan UK and Dorothy Murphy here in Dublin. Her influences are Billie Holiday, Elis Regina, Edith Piaf, Abbey Lincoln, Kurt Elling and Joni Mitchell but also include Prokofiev, Satie, Chopin, Ravel, and Mahler. As a singer, Emilie’s strength and uniqueness lie in her simple and sensitive interpretation of the music.

Strong ties with jazz musicians and audiences outside of Ireland see Emilie a welcome guest vocalist in Vermont, Boston, Chicago and throughout Europe. In 2010 she was invited to perform at The Copenhagen Jazz Festival and at the Edinburgh Fringe Festival. At home “Emilie Sings Billie”, a Tribute to Billie Holiday, won an Arts Council award and was presented at the Linenhall Arts Centre, the Galway Jazz Club and Bewley’s Café Theatre. Not afraid to take risks, Emilie has made interesting choices in interpreting and bringing the music of less obvious artists, Elis Regina and Abbey Lincoln to Irish audiences with “Emilie Sings Abbey” and “Emilie Sings Elis” which won festival invitations to The Ranelagh Arts Festival, and The Flatlake’s Festival. ”Emilie Sings Elis” has been particularly well received by Ireland’s Brazilian community. .She has made several radio appearances on the Arena Arts show on RTE 1 radio, last October as part of RTE’s Big Music week. The Emilie Conway Quartet perform regularly at their musical home: Bewley’s Café Theatre, Grafton St, Dublin.

The evening features the talents of Emilie’s in-demand support musicians: Johnny Taylor (piano), Dave Fleming (double bass) and Dominic Mullan (drums) who are among Ireland's leading musicians, sought after north and south. The Emilie Conway Quartet has been working together for the past six years so that there is a very close musical understanding.

“Emilie Conway is a heart stealer with the voice of an angel, smooth, mellow, sincere and deeply connected to both music and lyrics. She is no imitator but has a fresh approach and a sound that lingers on ...” - Fionna Duncan, UK

“A wonderful talent. Emilie Conway sings her songs from her heart.” - Sheila Jordan, USA

”Emilie Conway is a jazz vocalist who will melt your heart to butter and then spread it on a freshly baked croissant on a warm Paris morning. Yes, folks, she’s that good!” - Stephen Kennedy, Nighthawks IRL

“An unforgettable experience.” - Real Travel, San Francisco

ENDS

For further information please contact: Emilie Conway 087 7748 303

emilieconway@gmail.com