2011 MUSIcFEST schedule

2011 MUSIcFEST FINALISTS

ALINA SMITH
Alina  first  left  her  home  town  of  St. Petersburg, Russia, to tour Europe as a nine-year old soloist.  In her teens,  she  moved  to  the  U.S., where she has since won a number of awards for songwriting and performance, including first place in the 2010 KTLA-TV Battle of the Bands.  Due to the strength of her amazing voice and her masterful gift as a composer and lyricist, Alina has built a significant following both on and offline. Her songs and videos have received millions of plays, and she performs regularly all over the West Coast and New York City.

Alina is known for her melodic hooks, and her songs have been featured on a multitude of compilation CDs.  ‘Fall 4 U’, one of her original songs, was recently chosen by Sony to be the debut single for artist Aisha. As a singer, Smith continues to receive invitations to perform internationally, most recently in Beijing, as the only non-Asian singer in an Olympics-themed concert broadcast on national Chinese TV.  You can listen to Alina in her own singer-songwriter showcase on the historic Sunset Strip every other Friday.

ASHLEY ZAVALA
Ashley Zavala was born in June 1993 in Torrance, California. Ashley began singing and dancing in her first play at the age of 4 and continues to be involved in Musical Theater. She picked up her fir st guitar at the age of 15 and found her calling for singing and writing Country Music.  Ashley performs regularly at The Merc in Old Town Temecula. She has sung for several wineries and other businesses in the Temecula Valle, and has often been invited to perform our National Anthem for several venues in Southern California and Nevada.

BROOKE ROSE
She’s only 16, and Brooke Rose is already an accomplished female solo artist. She was the winner of the 7th Annual OMNI Youth Music & Actors Award for Outstanding Pop Performer, Singer/Songwriter in 2010, and is currently up for Female Vocalist of the Year by Rising Star Music Awards 2011.  Brooke began her career out of Corona, Ca. singing our National Anthem in stadiums all around Southern California. Brooke then worked on her performance talents at Talent Bootcamp in Hollywood under the direction of the great Producer/Performance Coach, Mr. Ron Harris (Christina Aguilera, Pussy Cat Dolls). Noted for her unique blend of passion, energy, grace & fire, Brooke performs at top venues such as the LA Grammy Museum, Whisky A Go Go, ROXY Theater, The Mint, Magic Mountain & numerous showcases around Hollywood & the Los Angeles Area. Brooke Rose completed her 1st All Original 3 Song EP with Producer Anthony Mazza (JoJo, Orianthi, Allison Iraheta, Christina Aguilera) & Ashley Poole (Dream) that dropped on itunes Jan 21, 2011. Brooke’s original song Get Out of My Way aired on the 11th season of Degrassi High this past July, and her song My Alibi is up for "Best Pop Single of the Year" at the 21st LA Music Awards, 2011.

EDDIE CHUN
Eddie Chun is a 20-year old singer/ songwriter trying to get himself known in the music scene. Eddie picked up his first acoustic classical guitar when he was 13 years old and started playing classical music. As a result, he graduated up to grade 5 in the Royal Conservatory of Music. He then picked up his first electric guitar at 14 and started playing more rock/blues oriented music. During his years of playing guitar, he studied many theories and techniques around it by learning different cover songs. At age 19, the songwriter in him was born and he began to write pop songs, strumming his way through life. He currently goes to University of Ottawa, studying Chemical Engineering. Even with the hectic schedules that Eddie has during hi s school year, he tries to find time to write songs whenever inspiration comes to him.

JOSEPH PFEIFER
Joseph Pfeifer is a singer/songwriter from San Diego, California. With a father who was a classical pianist, he was exposed to music at a very young age. Picking up bits and pieces on the piano,  he also began playing guitar at the age of 13. At the age of 19, he traveled to Eastern Europe and found himself singing at a Ukrainian orphanage. “In some unknown city, singing a few songs with these totally abandoned children ... I knew playing music was what I was born to do, and loving people was what I was called to do.” Joseph soon began to write his own material. In 2010, he released his debut album Good Company, an eclectic project teamed with acoustic-driven sounds, rootsy, honest lyrics, and warm vocals that completed the story behind each song.

MACY MEDFORD
Macy Medford is a Katy, Texas girl who spends a lot of her time in Los Angeles. She has been singing, acting and dancing her whole life and is now a 13-year old artist writing and performing her own songs. She just recorded 8 songs with multi award-winning writer and producers Jonathan George and Anthony Mazza. Her songs can best be described as pop with a jazz edge.

MIDORI LONGO & EZRA BOY
Eighteen-year old Midori Longo has already rocked the stages of WARPED Tour, BuFest, MethodFest, RockStir, Choochokam Arts Festival, The Raven, The Knitting Factory, The Mint, and a number of other top festivals and venues around the country. Her Revo/Rock style is fresh and full of energy. Her second CD, set for release this summer, will reflect an old rock feel and a new band name - Ezra Boy.

Her Better With You video ran in the pre-show at theaters throughout California and Nevada. The Indie Charts currently ranks Midori as the #5 Pop Artist, with a number of her songs climbing the charts and receiving high praise from the music industry. For instance, Motionless won Mike Pinder's Song Wars Best Pop Song in 2010, and Go was nominated for the Best Pop Song 2008 at the HOLLYWOOD MUSIC AWARDS.

NOBODY GETS KILLED
Nobody Gets Killed is a distinctive  duality-turned-quartet featuring   the   soulful   voice   and inspired  melodies  of  pianist  and guitarist   Mo   Nabulsi,   with   the raw,   cadenced   flow   of   guitarist Michael  Overton.  Having  played together  for  a  year,  Mike  and  Mo had    developed  the artistic chemistry that many groups never find.  With the addition of Alex Seilstad holding down the bass lines, along with the soulful rhythm of Anthony Holguin, their music has evolved into a synergistic dance of melody and rhythm. With inspired songwriting and unforgettable sound, they are the voice of Intelligent Pop.

PATRICK JOSEPH
Patrick   Joseph   is   a   gifted composer arranger, songwriter, and multi-instrumental performer from Pittsburgh, currently residing in Los Angeles, Ca.  Joseph describes his music as “Electro-infused angelic dirty-old folk” . In 2009, Patrick Joseph’s song Arsonist Blues won first prize over two thousand other entries in an online contest on musicnation.com.  The contest was based on fans voting and was sponsored by Spin Magazine, Hennessy, Epic Records and Gibson Guitars.

In 2010, Joseph finished his debut full-length release, which is now available on iTunes, Amazon and his site, patrickjosephmusic.com. The album was mastered by Grammy Award-winning engineer Adam Ayan (Foo Fighters, Incubus, Rolling Stones) at Gateway Mastering in Portland, Maine. Patrick Joseph currently has his sights set on performing in the Los Angeles area as he practices with his band in Burbank.

REGE LARK
It’s hard to say whether Rege chose Reggae or Reggae chose Rege, but it’s obvious that they were meant for each other. Rege started singing at the age of nine while being raised by his Grandmother in the Caribbean. Forty-five years later, his songs Reggae Music a nd Rubba Dub Style still reflect that Calypso soul with messages of love, loss, caring for the Earth, and being kind to one another.

Rege’s U.S. career began when he moved to New York, signed with Entertainment Unlimited and formed The New Generation Band, which performed Reggae music up and down the East coast in the late 80s. Rege released his first official U.S. CD ‘It's Only Love’ in 2004. From this album came the song Have Caution, which won first prize in the ReverbNation ‘Show Me the Music’ contest in 2011. Rege also won first prize in the 2010 ‘Show Me the Music’ contest with his original song, Call Me.

ROGER NUNCIO
Roger Nuncio was born in Monterrey, Mexico, and at the age of seven, started to play drums and love jazz. He studied music in Mexico at both UANL and NYC. He has played in Jazz Fe stivals in Mexico and Cuba, as well as the Big Band of Monterrey, with artists like Dave Samuels, Tom Coster, and Ted Piltzecker, and has made many recordings with jazz combos, pop and rock music, and classical percussion. He is currently the percussion teacher at UDEM and just released the album A map of a dream with his Trio. His new album, Inner Silence Quartet, featuring Roberto Verastegui on piano, Li Xiaochuan trumpet, Ryan Hagler on bass, is coming soon.

RUBY SUMMER
Ruby Summer is two sisters from Encinitas, California. They surf, dance, act, play guitar, dulcimer, and other various sundry things with strings. They record in a studio in their garage, which they call “The Glitter-Box”. Their house smells like surf wax, camp fires, and lilies. They grew up on the records of Joni Mitchell and the artistry of their own parents. They walk around barefoot, make daisy chain bracelets, and eat California burritos. They rarely get haircuts, have sandy toes, and love anything that sparkles.

Previously signed with Lyrics Street Records, Ruby Summer made the move to Seany Records in 2010. Their EP Mermaids & Poets was released in Spring of 2011. They play the local coffee shops by night, write songs with their dad by day, and are now recording and telling their stories. They hope to inspire and unite people with their music, the way that music unites and inspires them. PEACE. LOVE. UNITY.

THE WORSTIES
The Worsties are a high energy, female - fronted rock band from Nashville, TN that takes its influences from 70’s era punk, 80’s pop and glam, with new wave dance beats thrown in for good measure. With 4 EP's under their belts and another on the way, the band has toured consistently since 2008, and has generated quite a stir in the local and regional touring circuit, sharing the stage with such acts as Bon Jovi, Kid Rock, Big Boi, Cage the Elephant, American Bang, Saving Abel, Candlebox, Marcy Playground, Theory of a Deadman, Pop Evil, and a slew of others.

WIRES IN THE WALLS
The story of LA-based indie-rock band Wires in the Walls is one that is quintessentially American. Coming from towns big and  small and all corners of the country as far-flung as Virginia and Oregon, Wires in the Walls balance hopeful, earnest lyricism with a dar ker reality. Southern rock swagger blends with intricate guitars. Focusing on storytelling, catchy melodies and powerful beats, they connect with listeners of all ages, backgrounds, and shoe sizes.

YUKIKO NISHIMURA
Yukiko Nishimura, Composer/Pianist, was born in Japan. She graduated from Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and Music in 1990. Among her honors are: Special Mention at the 15th and 26th International Competition for Original Composition for Band in Corciano, Italy; the 6th Aoyama Award; and second prize at the Concerto Competition at University of Miami as a pianist. Yukiko Nishimura has received numerous commissions. She has also been active as a pianist and an arranger. She has studied composition with Teruyuki Noda, Atsutada Otaka, Yuzuru Shimaoka, Dr. Alfred Reed, Dr. Richard Danielpour, and Giampaolo Bracali. Her compositions are published from Edward B. Marks, Carl Fischer (New York), Southern Music Company (Texas), Music Eight (Tokyo), and Brain (Hiroshima).  Since 1996, she has given concerts consisting entirely of her own music in Japan. In 2003, she gave a solo piano recital at the New York Public Library, Donnell Library Center.

MORE TO COME!