Michela Musolino

Peter Covino, PEN America prizewinning poet, and U of Rhode Island Assistant Professor of English summed up Musolino’s appeal on both sides of the Atlantic:: "Can you imagine the wild soulfulness of Tina Tuner and the earthy yet ethereal voice of Neapolitan songstress Teresa De Sio combined? Well imagine that; then think even more vibrancy, more urbanity, in songs that somehow also feel impossibly intimate.... No wonder Michela Musolino has such a devoted underground following; full divahood seems scarily within reach."

Sicilian-American Michela Musolino is an internationally-acclaimed folk singer specializing in traditional and contemporary Sicilian music- turning world fusion songs into timeless pieces and infusing her music with the emotions of life. Selections from her first CD, Songs of the Trinacria have been widely broadcast on radio stations throughout the US and Europe, including NPR’s All Songs Considered Open Mic, and the BBC’s Paul Sherratt’s Global Jukebox. Her music has been featured in Anthony Fragola’s Un Bellissimo Ricordo, a film documenting the anti-Mafia work of Felicia Impastato and her son, the legendary Peppino Impastato, and served as the musical backdrop for the 2009 FringeNYC Festival run of Terranova, a moving theater production depicting the controversial murder trial of sixteen-year old Sicilian immigrant, Josefina Terranova. She has performed live in the USA in landmark venues such as the Rainbow Room at Rockefeller Center and St. mark’s Church in the Bowery and in Italy as a frequent participant in the “L’Evento in Memoria di Pino Veneziano” the summer arts and cultural festival held in the temples in Selinunte, Sicily.

Musolino was one of the contributing artists on the compilation CD, “Di Questa Terra Facciamone un Giardino,” a tribute to the Sicilian folk musician, Pino Veneziano. Whether performing in Sicily with La Banda di Pacheco, the Palermo Arte Ensemble or here in NYC with the Tuesday World Jam Band, Michela enjoys singing with her good friends to keep her music true to its roots. Recent projects include a performance in Salt Lake City, where she was a guest vocalist at the US debut of world-renown Sicilian singer-songwriter, Pippo Pollina, and the North Atlantic Tour of Sempri amMari, a concert of Sicilian music in homage to the sea performed by AcquAria, a musical and performance group founded by Musolino and Sicilian percussionist and folklorist, Vincenzo Castellana, dedicated to researching and performing the traditional and roots music of Sicily.

Musolino is currently working on a new CD and an accompanying stage show. She’ll also be touring the MidWest with Sempri amMari in Spring of 2013.