Artist InformationBiography
Allison Tartalia's powerful and expressive performances have a way of charming audiences. The secret weapons: fearless honesty, a wry sense of humor and a flair for writing songs that are at once unpredictable and unforgettable. Audiences have taken notice at clubs, colleges and festivals around the country.
A classically trained pianist and self-taught guitar player with a theatrical bent, Allison draws upon diverse influences to create her eclectic brand of orchestral chamber pop. Her debut CD, "Ready," was enthusiastically greeted by critics, and tracks from the album receive airplay on college and independent radio stations from coast to coast. Recently, Allison's "Spinning Song" won second place in the Indiegrrl Song Writing Contest, and other tunes have been recognized by the Billboard and John Lennon Songwriting Contests.
2007 saw Allison's first foray into musical theatre as composer and arranger. 1918: A House Divided, (book and lyrics by award-winning playwright Barbara Kahn) was produced by the Pulitzer Prize-winning community cultural center, Theater for the New City, in April 2007. An original cast recording was released in September, 2008. 2008 has been equally busy for Tartalia, who frequently accompanies other artists as a keyboardist and vocalist both on stage and in the studio, and recently wrote music for the documentary 5,000 Miles From Home.
Allison performs as a singer with Petra Haden and the Sellouts and can be heard playing piano on recordings by Kirstin Williams, Meg Braun, Sharon Goldman, and others.
Tartalia is currently in the recording studio working on a follow-up CD, produced by Grammy Award winner Michael Leonhart (Steely Dan, Lenny Kravitz).
::COLLEGES PLAYED::
Ramapo College – Ramapo, NJ
Scripps College – Claremont, CA
Carnegie Mellon University - Pittsburgh, PA
University of Wisconsin Parkside – Kenosha, WI
Princeton University – Princeton, NJ
Lehigh University – Bethlehem, PA
::FESTIVALS/CONFERENCES::
Midpoint Music Festival (OH)
M.E.A.N.Y Fest (NY)
SXSouth Austin (TX)
Invasion of the GoGirls at SXSW (TX)
Chicks Rock Fest (OH)
Millennium Music Conference (PA)
Cape May Singer Songwriter Festival (NJ)
Tunes in the Tunnel (NY Port Authority)
Airlie Arts Festival (NC)
Southern Womyn's Festival (GA)
Cape Fear Folk Festival (NC)
Estrojam Festival (IL)
Dewey Beach Music Conference (DE)
Lower East Side Arts Festival (NY)
Rockrgrl Music Conference (WA)
Northeast Regional Folk Alliance (NY)
Indianapolis Music Conference (IN)
Tourbaby (NY)
Astoria Arts Festival (NY)
September Concert (NY)
Oxygen Network Tank Tour (NY, PA)
::HIGHLIGHTS/ACCCOMPLISHMENTS::
- Indiegrrl Songwriting Contest, 2nd Place (Spinning Song)
- Sam Ash Sponsored Band
- Performed with Petra Haden and the Sellouts on a co-bill with Fred Armisen (SNL)
-ASCAP Popular Award for six years in a row
-Billboard Song Contest, Honorable Mention
-Songlounge.com Song Contest, Honorable Mention
-John Lennon Song Contest, Honorable Mention
Instrumentation
Allison Tartalia: vocals, piano, wurly, xylophone, vibraphone, keyboards, acoustic guitar
Band members include:
Mark Dodge: drums
Geoff Kraly: bass
and sometimes various guests on horns and strings and other fun things
Allison can be booked solo, as a trio or with a full band.
Discography
Sweet and Vicious EP - TBA, 2009
1918: A House Divided Original Cast Recording, 2008
5,000 Miles From Home (film score), 2008
Advent of You single - Make Haste! Records, 2005
Ready - Make Haste! Records, 2002
Compilations:
Chicks Rock Fest Compilation CD, 2005
Indie Music for Life, Vol. II (benefitting cancer reserach), 2005
Music for Life Volume I (benefitting cancer research), 2004
Indiegrrlapalooza, 2004
::Selected Broadcasts::
WXPN (PA) WXPH (PA) WVOF (CT)
WPKN (CT) WJFF (NY) WUSB (NY)
WKHS (MD) WRUW (OH) WVXC (OH)
WVXC (OH) WVXU (OH) WVXG (OH)
WRFL (KY) WVXR (IN) WVXH (MI)
WVXA (MI) WVXM (MI) KRCL (UT)
KZMU (UT) KOOP (TX) KPFT (TX)
KFCF (CA) KZSC (CA) KGPR (MT)
WUML (MA) WBRS (MA) WAIF (OH), Radio Milo 103.1 (Belgium)
Women on Air (Synd.)
Live from the Fallout Shelter, WUML
Bryant Park Project, NPR (with Petra Haden and the East Coast Sellouts)
Links
| http://allisontartalia.com |
| MySpace |