terza rima

5 minute radio interview along with the play of two Terza Rima songs *Avalon, Orange Juice* heard regionally in Canada. - CBC Radio 1

A rare breed.....
Kelowna all-female band has high aspirations
by Lori-Anne Charlton

Terza Rima, according to 'Dictionary.com Unbridged: "an italian form of iambic verse consisting on 11-syllable lines arranged in tercets, the middle line of each tercet rhyming with the first and last lines of the following tercets."

And that kind of defines Terza Rima, the Kelowna all-female band that adopted the name.

"We're definitely dance-driven, with a lot of disco beats, and throw in some reggae, pop and rock," said Shauna Lauren, keyboard player and lead vocalist of the year-old group. "We haven't hear another female band with our sound, so hopefully it will be revolutionary. I can't think of another band with this much diversity."

Memebers of Terza Rima, also made up of guitar player and back-up vocalist Elise Hjalmarson, bass player Kerri Lynn, and drummer Sarah Kay, weren't aiming for an all girl band to begin with. Now in their 20s, Lauren and Lynn go back to grade 7, while Kay and Hjalmarson have been friends since grade 9. Both sets of friends have been in numerous bands together, and only joined forces after a mutual friend told them about each other.

They admit that being all-female - a rarity in music - has its disadvantages as well as advantages.

"People don't take female bands seriously," Lynn divulged.

"It's harder for females to adjust to other females," Lauren pointed out, noting that petty jealousies and insecurities often get in the way. (Not that they don't among men, but men get over it faster.)
There's also a tendency in the music industry to channel women into pop stardom, or at least to solo careers, rather than playing together in one band.

But the Terza Rima girls insist that their experience, in the year they've been writing and performing together has been a positive one, like a sisterhood of sorts.

"I think in today's society that feeling of sisterhood is fading, and not just here in North America. Elise has noticed in India (where she currently works for Hope for the Nations), too. We want to bring back and accent it," Lauren said.

Even though they're lying low over the winter while Kay attends UBC Okanagan and Hjalmarson works in India (the band is anticipating her return this month), their first year was a busy one, with gigs around the province throughout the summer.

It was enough to buy them a touring van which they hope to put to good use this spring break and summer. The plan is for a coastal tour during Kay's reading break and a cross-Canada venture this summer.

"We have to see where it goes because if we don't, we'll never know," Kay said.

While they eventually want to make music full time, the girls are insistant they want to do it their way. So while the security of a label would be nice, they're skeptical about relinquishing control of their image and sound.

"People like the way we are," said Kay. "We don't want studio musicians or to be told to change our look, dye our hair blonde and lose 50 pounds. There's more to females than selling music through sex."

"We'd rather inspire women not to be intimidated," Lauren stressed.

With their first CD slated for release this spring, they're also trying to broaden their audience.

In the future, they'd like to introduce their music to a younger crowd, who can grow with them.
And yes, they admit, they're still growing musically, still finding themselves and their ever-evolving sound.

"We want to bring the real feeling behind music back to what it was. We're still trying to find and harness that within ourselves," Lynn said.

But then, like any good poem, the beauty is not in the destination but in the journey. - December Cover story, eVent! Magazine, Kelowna BC

Following are the awards won for the track "Avalon" in a contest Terza Rima had entered on Garage Band.com


Track of the Day on 7Feb2007 in Dance

Best Female Vocals in Dance, week of 29Jan2007

Best Female Vocals in Dance, week of 5Feb2007

Best Guitars in Dance, week of 12Feb2007

Best Drums in Dance, week of 12Feb2007

Best Bass in Dance, week of 12Feb2007

Best Lyrics in Dance, week of 29Jan2007

Best Lyrics in Dance, week of 5Feb2007

Best Lyrics in Dance, week of 12Feb2007

Best Melody in Dance, week of 29Jan2007

Best Mood in Dance, week of 5Feb2007

Most Original in Dance, week of 5Feb2007


Following are the awards won for the track "Jah Love" in a contest Terza Rima had entered on Garage Band.com

Track of the Day on 19Feb2007 in Reggae

Track Of The Week on 5Mar2007 in Reggae


Best Female Vocals in Reggae, week of 19Feb2007

Best Female Vocals in Reggae, week of 26Feb2007

Best Female Vocals in Reggae,
week of 5Mar2007

Best Female Vocals in Reggae, week of 26Mar2007

Best Guitars in Reggae, week of 5Mar2007

Best Lyrics in Reggae, week of 5Mar2007

Best Melody in Reggae, week of 5Mar2007

Best Melody in Reggae, week of 26Mar2007

Most Original in Reggae, week of 5Mar2007










- Garage Band.com