Andreja Volenec* (Vocals, Acoustic Guitar, Electric Guitar, Mandolin)
*Pronounced: Andrea Vo-LEN-ets
Influences
Profound influences:
The Beatles, Jeff Buckley, Paul Simon, Suzanne Vega, The Smiths/ Morrissey, Dead Can Dance/ Lisa Gerrard/ Brendan Perry, Bijelo Dugme/ Goran Bregovic
Other influences and people I listen to:
Natalie Merchant, Nick Drake, Leonard Cohen, Neil Young, Crosby, Stills & Nash, Tim Buckley, Sting, Bob Dylan, Dunja Knebl, R.E.M., Indigo Girls, Joan Osborne, Eva Cassidy, Elvis Costello, Sinéad O'Connor, Portishead, The Cranberries, Beth Orton, Fiona Apple, The Cardigans, Aimee Mann, Alison Krauss, Ella Fitzgerald, Nina Simone, Billie Holiday, Otis Redding, Van Morrison, Stevie Wonder, Tom Waits, Pink Floyd, Dire Straits, The Kinks, The Doors, The Stranglers, David Bowie, Lou Reed, The Cure, Joy Division, U2, The Pretenders, Cocteau Twins, Peter Gabriel, Kate Bush, Eurythmics, Björk, Nirvana, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Radiohead, Echobelly, Coldplay, Green Day, Josipa Lisac, Vlatko Stefanovski/ Leb i sol, Jacques Brel, Edith Piaf, Antonio Carlos Jobim, Astrud Gilberto, João Gilberto, Amalia Rodrigues, Cesaria Evora, Astor Piazzola, Buena Vista Social Club, Andres Segovia, Django Reinhardt, Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, Ali Farka Toure, Amadou & Mariam, Paolo Conte, Jan Garbarek, Kurt Elling, Norah Jones, Madeleine Peyroux, The Mystery of Bulgarian Voices, Lado, Lidija Bajuk, Legen, Loreena McKennitt, Lúnasa, Solas, Doc Watson, Tommy Emmanuel, John Renbourn, Bert Jansch, Davey Graham, Stefan Grossman, Kelly Joe Phelps, Ben Harper, Jack Johnson, traditional music (Eastern European, Balkan, Middle Eastern, African, Latin, Celtic, Scandinavian), Tallis, Allegri, Albinoni, Vivaldi, Handel, JS Bach, Mozart, Chopin, Smetana, Dvorak, Elgar, Mahler, Satie, Rachmaninov, Prokofiev, Michael Nyman, Ludovico Einaudi
Writers/ Painters/ Directors:
Italo Calvino, Thomas Hardy, Emily Dickinson, Franz Kafka, Sartre, Chekhov, Gogol, Joyce, Beckett, Camus, Kerouac, Hesse, Dickens, Thomas Mann, Plath, Dostoevsky, Saint-Exupéry, Jane Goodall, Oliver Sacks, Joan Miró;, Paul Klee, Wassily Kandinsky, René Magritte, Kryzsztof Kieslowski, Andrei Tarkovsky, Emir Kusturica, Jean Vigo, François Truffaut, Luchino Visconti, Ingmar Bergman, Wim Wenders, Alfred Hitchcock, Orson Welles, Akira Kurosawa, James Ivory, Sergei Eisenstein, Mark Donskoy, Alejandro Amenábar, Jan Sverák, Clint Eastwood, Siddiq Barmak
Sounds Like
Myself. However, my singing/ sound/ lyrics have reminded others of Suzanne Vega, Jeff Buckley, Ella Fitzgerald, Joni Mitchell, Natalie Merchant, Dido, Björk (don't ask me why!), Katie Melua, Michelle Shocked, Sarah McLachlan and Cole Porter.
‘I left my home and my family in Zagreb, Croatia, almost by accident -
I had an opportunity to study in Italy and since then I’ve been on the move, so
sadly I never
went back to live at home again.’
After Andreja finished high school in Italy, she has been living in the US and
the UK up until her recent move to Ireland.
‘My background and experiences have been instrumental in shaping
my music and lyrics: leaving home at an early age; being a foreigner away from
home; being
unable to share my language and cultural background with others; experiencing
the tragedy and divisions of the Yugoslav war both remotely and first-hand;
witnessing the
dissolution of the country I grew up in and, with it, a large part of my own
identity.’
Andreja’s songs draw from her own life and empathy with others ‘on the
outside’, as well as from a fascination with nature’s laws and patterns. Themes
have included
emigration, displacement, identity and belonging, loneliness and old age, war,
transience, hope and aspirations, acceptance of change, and the human
struggle and search
for meaning.
As a kid, she played in a mandolin band. In her teens, she performed with a
choir in Italy, Vienna and Budapest. She went on to study guitar and singing at
three well-
known music schools: Vocaltech and The Guitar
Institute in London, and the Old Town School in Chicago,
where she also played
guitar with a traditional Bulgarian group. It was in Chicago that she began to
develop ideas for her first songs.
A down-to-earth yet distinctive singer-songwriter. Her lyrics are clear and
accessible yet woven with ambiguities, subtlety and insight. She aims to deeply
move both emotions and minds.
‘In America’:‘...fabulous. ... an amazing feat. To write a song with lyrics like this is
really a special thing. Andreja has a fabulous career ahead of her. If there is
anybody from a record company in the audience ...you should call her up.’ - Richard Niles, guitarist, composer, songwriter, arranger, producer, BBC presenter
Prince of Wales, North-West London:
Performing alone with her guitar, she completely silenced the pub with her song, "I'll be alright." The audience were shouting for more when she finished her set.
The Orange Club, London:
Andreja's song ‘In America,’ about 19th century emigration, was described in a review as ‘simple and beautiful’ and a highlight of the concert.
Oxjam Kingston Festival:‘I genuinely mean it when I say that one of the highlights of that night for me was hearing your songs. I can imagine you playing them on Jools Holland one day.’ - Trickswitch’s Olly Chapman
Hey, Andreja, that was sooo lovely to hear from you! Hope all is going great with you. Always love to pop by and listen to your vocal. That's my second full album release. Need to dig in with my new novel now. Lotsa love Kelv x
Thanks for the friendship and the kind comment! I like your Voice, the song is good as well. Quite a shame you only uploaded one song though..hint hint;) Peace n lööööv
Cheers for the feedback Andreja are you playing shows in Dublin now? Do you have anymore tunes in the pipeline or recordings? Ha too many questions! What ive heard before sounded good, Cheers, Chris
Bonjour Andreja ! Merci pour ton message...yes, I'm fine and you ? So, I've to confess that I often allow myself to use "Waiting both" on my page. It's because, as I told you before, I really love it a lot and I find it goes very well with my paintings, isn't it ? I know I should have ask you before if I can do that or not (OUPS...). Tell mee... I send you sunbeams from South of France. See you. Frédéric
Hey just to let ya know the Kong is back on! Every Monday in the Village on Wexford. Free entrance, free for bands to enter. Amazing prizes. Drink promos! ''''kome do a Kong! Thank you for supporting local music....
We are back in the UK for a bit. Back to Korea in late Jan 2010. Going to do a little tour of europe, I'll be in Dublin for a bit seeing some mates, it would be good to catch up, I'll let you know the dates and if you're free it would be mint. Hope all's going well with the little one. All the best.
THANK YOU SO MUCH ANDREJA:) I AM ACTUALLY THE MANAGER OF THE BAND, AND THEY WILL SEE THIS WONDERFUL COMMENT YOU LEFT FOR US. I WISH YOU ALL THE LUCK IN THE WORLD, AND ONE NICE THING ABOUT MUSIC IS MEETING NICE PEOPLE LIKE YOURSELF. I HAVE NOT HEARD ALL YOUR MUSIC YET, BUT TODAY IAM GOING TO MAKE IT A POINT TO DO SO. HAVE A NICE SUNDAY OK ? MANY HUGS FROM MYSELF AND YESSONGS
