Lauren Kinhan

For the past 15 years, Lauren has been best known as a member of New York Voices. Always a goal of her musical pursuits, to use her voice and writing skills in challenging ways, she won the coveted spot with NYV in 1992. NYV is an extraordinary opportunity to work with 3 other exceptionally talented musicians. They are celebrating 20 years in the biz and a career that shares a Grammy Award with the Count Basie Orchestra on a live CD recorded in 1997, and one with Paquito D'Rivera on a CD they recorded in 2003; both on the MCG Label. The group continues to rise in it's notoriety as interesting commissions and gigs continue to come their way. You can find two of Lauren's original compositions on their most recent CD, A Day Like This. To learn more about NYV, go to www.newyorkvoices.com. Before she sang those beefy charts, Lauren was writing and producing her own music. In 2000, she was signed by the legendary Phil Ramone. He put together a crack-shot team of producers to help Lauren launch her original solo CD entitled "Hardly Blinking." Frank Filipetti (James Taylor) gave the CD its rich, rootsy heartbeat while showcasing Lauren's voice and songs. Rob Mounsey brought a pop perspective, and closed the CD with a chamber piece orchestrated for piano, strings and oboe. The CD has a story to tell at every turn and lets the musical styles be the whim of Lauren and the song. Lauren has just finished production on her follow-up CD with the working title, "Avalon." It melds more closely her love of the Jazz Standard and the Pop Song. Both an extension of each other, her new songs speak of the current day events and woes, often depicting the immediate lives around her and posing them in relatable ways. The musical palate is hearty, yet not over produced. Lauren produced it with the singer/songwriter "whisperer," Ben Wittman. His chops go above and beyond as he plays drums, percussion, keyboards, arranges, records, mixes and makes a mean cup a joe - a mandatory requirement of a modern day producer. Talents such as Jonatha Brooke, Romero Lubambo, Donny McCaslin and Andy Ezrin make guest appearances. The CD will be released by Koch Records May of 2009. Lauren is also busy working with a new vocal group called Moss. When Luciana Souza and Peter Eldridge (of New York Voices) were talking about creating a local voice collective, they put together a short list of five people they would most like to collaborate and eat food with. The other members of the group are Kate McGarry and Theo Bleckmann. So began Moss. First titled the Voice Collective, they soon decided to faun a group and give it an unusual green name. The music is defined most often individually, and tends to feature random voices in group or sparse ways. It was meant to be a sounding board for ideas, and soon found itself in the care of Sunnyside Records and in the studio October of 2007. The CD is comprised of originals from the members as well as covers. All five singers have full-fledged solo careers, so the CD is a chance to capture their ideas and book special engagements when time permits. "Moss" was released in April of 2008 to rave reviews. To read the feedback and learn more, go to Mossproduced.org.Over the years Lauren has sung with Bobby McFerrin, Ornette Coleman, Kenny Rankin, Jonatha Brooke, Nancy Wilson and Donna Summer. Her range is part of the charm of her resume. Please contact Lauren if you'd like more info on the release of the new CD. You can buy Hardly Blinking at newyorkvoices.com.I edited my profile with Thomas Myspace Editor V4.4 (www.strikefile.com/myspace)