CMRC Seminar with Olivia Chaney
Event details
Olivia Chaney joins us to share her work and delve into her creative process, exploring creatively explosive tensions between the drive to innovate and the weight of tradition, honest expression and technical sophistication, and ‘classical’ and ’folk’ approaches. She also reflects on the challenges, and indeed the advantages, of forging an artistic career out of diverse stylistic influences, in an age of hyper-categorisation.
Meeting ID: 974 1147 1887
Passcode: 030134
Olivia Chaney
Born in Florence to a writer and painter-turned-academic, Olivia Chaney grew up listening to everything from Prince to Henry Purcell. This eclectic mix of influences sparked a passion for songwriting that she nurtured at Chetham's School of Music and The Royal Academy. After showcasing at SXSW and a stint as lead singer for electronica outfit Zero 7, Olivia signed with Nonesuch, leading to collaborations with Kronos Quartet and a Grammy nomination for Offa Rex, a collection of Fairport Convention-era classics made with The Decemberists.
Olivia’s first solo album (The Longest River), produced by Leo Abrahams, received rave reviews. Following this she recorded Shelter in NYC with genius producer-pianist Thomas Bartlett. These records established Olivia’s reputation as the author of an unmistakable brand of luscious and sophisticated music that explores inherited trauma, the clash of tradition and modernity, and the paradoxes of falling in love.
Circus of Desire, released in March 2024, is the much anticipated third studio album from Olivia Chaney. Worked up over five eventful years, this collection of lovingly wrought songs was recorded in NYC with long-time collaborator, producer and musician Thomas Bartlett. Featuring an all-star line-up of friends old and new, including Sam Amidon, Nico Muhly and remixes by Dave Okumu, Oliver Coates and Vessel, Circus of Desire is Olivia set free.
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Federico Reuben
Senior Lecturer
Contemporary practice research cluster lead