equivalent of the Mercury Music Prize) for her self-produced debut album on which she played most of the instruments herself. She combines her “mesmerizing stage presence and eccentric pop genius” (Hot Press) with her unquestionably original sound, and her innovative, avant-garde approach, while rooted in classical music, straddles both the pop and theatrical worlds. For her recent sell-out 10 show run in New York City, the New York Times said of Julie, “…intricate, articulate…draws on sources across centuries…Ms. Feeney's songs don't shout. They tease, ponder, reminisce, philosophize and invent parables, and she sings them in a plush, changeable mezzo-soprano that usually holds a kindly twinkle”. The New York Times concluded, “…a brainy adventurous songwriter lives within the flamboyant theatricality…with songs that set character studies and philosophical musings in elaborate musical confections, often with long, internally rhymed lines… Theatrical on the shell, intricate at the core”. Sharp witted, unpretentious and fiercely passionate, Julie Feeney is a genuine artist and a hugely enjoyable performer.

Her third album will be released in Spring 2013 in the U.S. Surrounding the Irish release she will undertake an extensive Irish tour in November and December, with an avant-garde approach to her performances by scoring music for ten different choirs to part-accompany her at each concert. Her third album was crowd-funded by 209 fans who pledged a total of 24,000 Euros on Fundit.

Currently composing her first co-commissioned opera, the first developmental stage of this will be shown in 2012 at Dublin Theatre Festival. It has been commissioned by Dublin Theatre Festival, Galway Arts Festival, Cork Midsummer Festival and Kilkenny Arts Festival. She is a true artist with immense vision.

Hailed by The Washington Post as “The Emerald Isle's Original,” Feeney's music is widely broadcast on TV and radio and her sold-out performance at Ireland's premier concert venue, The National Concert Hall received a 10-minute standing ovation. The Observer (U.K.) gushed that Feeney's debut album, '13 songs,' was “the blossoming of a major talent,” adding that “Feeney towers over her contemporaries.” The NY Times has also called her music “charming, urbane and dreamy” and The Guardian (UK) simply said “the world will listen.” The Village Voice in New York described her music as “blending the pop ambitions of Gaga with Elvis Costellian wordplay”. She has performed many other sold out shows in America, Canada, Ireland, England, France, Italy, Germany and Holland solo; with her own ensemble or with numerous orchestras for which she orchestrated and composed for.

For her last album 'pages', her second album, she constructed a subtly complex masterpiece in a genre-spanning symphony. After composing the record entirely on her own, Feeney then got to work recording the album by conducting an orchestra of clarinets, flutes, oboes, bassoons, trombones, French horns, trumpets, strings, sticks, harp and percussion from the Irish Chamber Orchestra, and then singing over what she just conducted – all in one six-hour session. A true perfectionist in the vein of Bobby McFerrin, Feeney’s supreme talent in composition and arrangement is matched only by her gorgeous, soaring voice. On her award-winning self-produced debut album she played most of the instruments herself.
The ‘pages' album artwork that she designed herself incorporated her unique hand-stitched ‘pages' dress sculpted from the actual pages of the album's orchestral score; and a tree house which she had painted in specific colours reflecting the tone of the album. Her award winning video for ‘Impossibly Beautiful' features 18 different head dresses designed by Piers Atkinson, and is one of 3 videos she made for ‘pages'. Julie puts on a stunning show that combining her songs with elements of theatre and performance art, often wearing head-pieces.
Julie has performed extensively around the world as a professional choral singer and has extensive experience as an educator in Ireland and abroad. She has worked as a movement actor, a model and composer for contemporary dance projects.

Julie Feeney Highline Ballroom New York 24th October 2012

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