8/12/2019 Laura Cortese

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"Ambition often follows talent,

and Laura Cortese has an

embarrassment of both. Her

open-armed approach to her art

reveals a determination to spread

the word about folk music and

dance without watering down

their distinctiveness."

- John Wenzel, The Denver Post

Laura Cortese has a vision for her band's sound: bold and elegant, schooled in the lyrical rituals of folk music and backed

by grooves that alternately inspire Cajun two-stepping and rock-n-roll hip swagger. It 's appropriate then that the trio,

featuring Cortese, call themselves Laura Cortese & the Dance Cards.Laura Cortese & the Dance Cards.Laura Cortese & the Dance Cards.Laura Cortese & the Dance Cards.

Since appearing on Cortese's most recent album, Into the Dark(2013), Valerie Thompson (cello/vox) and Mariel

Vandersteel (f iddle/hardingfele/vox) have paired their sophisticated string arrangements and rich vocal harmonies to

Cortese's poignant and powerful singing. Seeing the trio on stage, you get the sense that they might snap some f iddle strings

or punch a hole in the bass drum. This is post-folk that seriously rocks.

On Into the Dark, Cortese doesn't shy away from heavy subjects or rely solely on her own experiences. On "Brown

Wrinkled Dress," she writes from the point of view of a woman who discovers her husband's infidelity; on "Vi llage Green"

she sings in the voice of a servant who yearns for something more. Both songs echo traditional themes - "Brown WrinkledDress" is a murder ballad in the most classic sense - but others have an undeniably modern cadence. You can hear pop in

Cortese's deftly-written hooks and rock 'n' roll in the syncopated pulse that propels even her gentlest melodies. Her cover of

Laura Veirs's "Life is Good Blues" perhaps captures this spirit best: when Cortese sings, "Life is good when the band is

smokin' hot," it 's easy to believe her.

This trio is in line with Cor tese's collaborative style; her last several projects have featured the finest of the Boston folk-pop

scene. 2010 saw the release of three EPs: Two Amps, One Microphone, a duet with guitarist and singer Jefferson Hamer;

Simple Heart, a collaboration with five other female vocalists; and Acoustic Project, which provided the seed for the

fiddle-based arrangements of Laura Cortese & the Dance Cards.Laura Cortese & the Dance Cards.Laura Cortese & the Dance Cards.Laura Cortese & the Dance Cards.

CorteseCorteseCorteseCortese grew up in San Francisco and moved to Boston to study violin at Berklee College of Music. She has since

immersed herself in the city's vibrant indie music scene and enjoyed a busy sideman career, which has included

appearances with Band of Horses at Carnegie Hall, Pete Seeger at Newport Folk Festival, and Patterson Hood and

Michael Franti for Seeger's ninetieth birthday celebration at Madison Square Garden. She performs frequently with JocieAdams formerly of The Low Anthem and can be heard with Adams's new band, Arc Iris. Cortese also performs

frequently with Rose Cousins, and plays on her 2012 release "We have Made a Spark"

Valerie ThompsonValerie ThompsonValerie ThompsonValerie Thompson and Mariel VandersteelMariel VandersteelMariel VandersteelMar iel Vander steel bring their own multi-genered credentials to the mix. Thompson has

shared the stage with acclaimed jazz pianist Fred Hersch, indie-rock icon Amanda Palmer, multimedia artist Christopher

Janney, and CMH Records' Vitamin String Quartet (including a guest appearance on Gossip Girl.) Vandersteel came of age

musically nurtured by the Bay Area's rich revivalist traditional music scene. She attended Berklee College of Music and

studied hardingfele in Norway, that country's national instrument. In 2009 she released a solo album, Hickory. She was

invited as part of a select group of 20 young musicians to Savannah Music Festival's Acoustic Music Seminar to study with

Chris Thile, Edgar Meyer, Zakir Hussein and Mike Marshall.

True to their adventurous spirit and wide-ranging influences, the g roup was recently selected from a pool of 400 b ands to

tour with the US State Department's American Music Abroad program. From January 22 through March 3, 2014, they set

off to India, Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan and Bangladesh to perform and teach as artist ambassadors. Such a mission wasperfect for this trio, whose music communicates the depth and soul of American roots music, using their own uniquely

modern voices.

ra Cortese: About Laura http://www.lauracortese.net/about

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8/12/2019 Laura Cortese

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ra Cortese: About Laura http://www.lauracortese.net/about

2 19-06-2014 12.18