Rosemary directing Essentia Vocal Ensemble, Heliconian Hall, Toronto, Dec. 2012 ---
Pictured, L to R: Rosemary, Jane Lewis, Taivi Lobu, Marianne Girard,
Tricia Brubacher, Mary Bennet, Mary Bugyra, Nancy Martin, Wendi Hunter, Nancy Dutra, Grainne Ryan, Laura Bird, Clela Errington, Eve Golberg, Anne Lindsay ---
(at piano: Emilyn Stam)
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Latest News: Rosemary is one of The Lucky Sisters, along with Tannis Slimmon and Allison Lupton.
Their forthcoming recording for Patio Records is due to be released in April, 2015.
Their forthcoming recording for Patio Records is due to be released in April, 2015.
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"... an incisive lyricist... songs that deserve a close listen." David Francey
"There is something in Rosemary Phelan's voice and songs that moves me to tears each time I hear her; even the happy songs. Her voice and words go straight to my heart, and my response to her work is involuntary; I simply surrender." Ian Tamblyn "Amidst an identity challenged folk music industry desperately enamoured with cuteness, nostalgia, and escapism, Rosemary Phelan reminds us the true folksinger's vocation: to sing out, with love and moral conscience, our happinesses and our sufferings." Jon Brooks |
Rosemary Phelan has run the musical gamut, from calling dances in the hills of northern
Vermont to warbling Mozart in the halls of the Royal Conservatory; from wailing blues in dusty border towns to whispering lullabies for patients in pain. Somewhere beyond the barn and the recital hall, the pub and the sickroom, she found the music of her heart. The grace and losses encountered during a tumultuous, nomadic childhood, time spent eking out a hard-won living in the bush, and her years as a community nurse in the urban core live in Rosemary's original songs. She sincerely hopes the goodness she unearthed at the root of it all can be found there, too. Rosemary is also a poet and author. She writes under the pen name Mari O' Faolain. Her work can be found HERE. |
Rosemary is a recording artist with several albums to her credit, and also performs solo, in a duo with multi-instrumentalist Jason Laprade and is a frequent harmony vocalist for fellow artists. She also coaches voice and songwriting, and runs workshops in both. Rosemary is the founder and creative director of Essentia Vocal Ensemble and The Song Sanctuary. She'd like to mention that she wakes up and falls asleep every day counting her blessings, yet has never made it all the way to the end of the list. She wishes the same for you, with all her heart.
Rosemary, Jason LaPrade, and Ian Bell at The Wee Folk Club in Toronto (click image to enlarge).
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