DREAMERS, LOVERS, OUTLAWS: The Personal Data

Siobhan Quinn & Michael Bowers

Gracious and gritty songs brimming with seamless harmonies. Excellent music finely crafted with precision, emotion and beauty. This is Siobhan Quinn and Michael Bowers.They never create the same performance twice and there is a focus and continuity in their shows that leaves you with little doubt that these two are truly partners. Siobhan brings the audience directly to the emotional center of each
song and entrances you with her vocals. Michael draws you in with his warmth, humor, and makes observations of life with a wry twist. Together Siobhan and Michael paint dynamic and colorful stories with rich original, contemporary and traditional music.

Siobhan

Siobhán Quinn is originally from Berkeley, CA, & upstate New York, and was born of immigrant parents. With a voice of powerful texture and variety, some refer to her as a “pyrotechnic folk & blues singer.” She can rip into exuberant blues, bring tears to your eyes with a soulful ballad, or bring an audience to complete stillness with a centuries old folk song. Siobhan's English and Irish family experience comes out in her songwriting; along with that occasional twist into the blues she loves so much.

Michael

When he witnessed history in the making as a young boy in Selma, Alabama, Michael Bowers realized that his most prized possessions were not in boxes or on paper, but in his mind and his voice. He's known for his strong, sophisticated lyrics as well as cut-to-the-chase songs. The lessons of his storied southern roots sometimes surface in live performance and his lyrics range from the heartfelt to humorous. To add even more spice to his vocals and guitar, Michael often uses a Paul Beard resonator & Veillette Gryphon guitar to create a certain texture to various songs.

Together

Siobhan (pronounced shhh-vawn) and Michael's first recording together, “Dreamers, Lovers & Outlaws” (DLO), is filled with those gracious and gritty stories and observations of the human experience. Co-producer Tom Prasada Rao lends his musical chops throughout the disc. Listen, too, for Jerry Marotta, David LaMotte, Chris Rosser, Charlie Pilzer, and Steve Symanski. Roman Klun, who has worked with Sarah McLachlan and others, mixed the disc.

Both artists have individual reputations earned from five collective recordings, national touring and radio play reaching international levels prior to their partnership. But their collaboration brings out the best in each. The duo has been awarded spots at the prestigious Kerrville New Folk Competition and Falcon Ridge Emerging Artist Showcase along with multiple regional, national and international main stage showcases stretching nearly to 2009. Their songs have staying power and they continue to write as they prepare for their next release.

Simply put: Siobhan Quinn & Michael Bowers sing and create songs with an intimacy and universality that truly resonate with persons of all experiences in life. They move the listeners' head, heart, hips and feet.

Details

VENUES
Boston to San Diego, from D.C. to the U.K. Just some of the venues Siobhán Quinn and/or Michael Bowers have performed separately or together:
Birchmere Music Hall, Rocky Mountain Folks Festival, Washington Folk Festival, Boston Folk Festival, Caffe Lena, Swannanoa Gathering, Alexandria First Night, Troy Savings Bank Music Hall, Institute of Musical Traditions, Sanctuary Concerts, Carriage Barn at Waveny Park, Circle of Friends, Sand Lake Center for the Arts, Guthrie Center, Good Folk Coffeehouse, Concerts at the Crossing, Eddie's Attic, Fast Folk Café, Acoustic Brew Coffeehouse, Ploughshares Coffeehouse, Blackrock Center for the Arts, House of Musical Traditions, Moore Music in the House, Vic's Music Corner, Shenandoah Coffeehouse, Summer NAMM Show/Winter NAMM: Taylor Guitars Showcase, Fiddle & Bow, Front Porch Music, Urban Campfires, Uncle Calvin's, Bosque House Concerts, Summersongs, Empire State Plaza, NYS Fleet Blues Festival, Fenimore Cooper Museum, Glens Falls Blues Festival, Gotta Get Gone Folk Festival, Mountain Culture Festival, Old Songs Festival, Riverfront Arts Festival traditional folk & electric blues stages, Takoma Park Folk Festival, NYS Egg Theatre, Night Eagle Coffeehouse, Northern Virginia Fine Arts Festival, Northeast & Southwest Regional Folk Alliance Official Showcases, Official International Folk Alliance Performance Alley Showcase. Siobhan & Michael have also performed at many other coffeehouses, libraries, Unitarian chuches, house concerts, arts centers, performance halls, colleges and universities, conferences, and workshops.

WORKSHOPS & MASTERCLASSES
Day, weekend, and week-long Master Classes, Arts Education, Conference & community workshops in voice, songwriting, creative writing, & arts administration. Kerrville Folk Festival, Rocky Mountain Song School, Swannanoa Gathering (Warren Wilson College), WUMB Summer Acoustic Music Week, Great American Masters Music Industry Workshop, vocal performance coaching at Summersongs & Wintersongs retreats.

RADIO
Alaska to Florida, Boston to Belgium! Just some of the stations on which their voices have been heard separately or together:
XM-The Village, Fifty-one percent (WAMC/Northeast Public Radio's National Productions, heard on public radio stations, ABC Radio Network stations, Armed Forces Radio stations around the world), Midnight Special (syndicated), WYSO, WYEP, WYCE, WXPN, WVPE, WUTC, WUMB, WUKY, KSFR, KZSC, KVNF, KUWR, KUNC, KTAO, KSUT, KSMF, KRVM, KRCL, KOTR, KNBA, KFAN, KFAI, KEOS, KCRW, KBAC, KAXE, KMCQ, KXCI, KANU, KPFK, WTRI, WTMD, WTBQ, WSPN, Acousticafe, Acoustic Accents (Syndicated), World Café (syndicated), New Hampshire Public Radio , WRVG, WRSI, WRPI, WRNR, WNKU, WNCW, WNCS, WDOT, The Point, WMWV, WMUA, WUMC, CITR, WFER, WKSD, WMUC, WAER, WCVF, WDBX, WDCB, WETA, WFCF, WFIT, WFMT, WIUP, WNUR, WORT, WPRB, WPSU, WRFG, WTSR, WVUD, WMNF, WMKY, WMFO, WKZE, WKSU, WJFF, WHUS, WGWG, WGLB Metro Milwaukee, WGCS, WFUV, WFNB, WFHB, WFCR, WEYL, WERU, XM Radio (via “Midnight Specia”) WDIY/WMU, WDET, WBJB, WAPS, WAMU, WAMC, Kansas Public Radio, Radio Paradise, Wyoming Public Radio (Morning Music with Don Woods), Folkscene, Folkalley.com (syndicated), DMX, European Broadcasting Corporation (Euro Radio/Slovene Nat’l Radio), BBC-2 Folk Show with Mike Harding, Lyric-FM (RTE Ireland), Clanrye Radio (Ireland), Highway 61-Italy (Massimo Ferro), Australia Radio (Laurie Nitschke), Belgium Radio (200,000 listeners), etc.

AWARDS & SHOWCASES
2008 FARM Official Showcase
2007 Kerrville New Folk Finalists
2007 Falcon Ridge Emerging Artists
2007 Int’l Folk Alliance Conf. Showcase
2007 NERFA Official Showcase
2007 SWRFA Official Showcase
2006 WAMMIE Trad. Folk Vocalist (SQ)
2006 South FL Songwriting Finalist (MB)
2005 Kerrville New Folk Finalist (MB)
2003 Top 5 Songwriting Finalist Boston Folk Festival (SQ)

INCLUSIVE GENRES
Roots, Adult Contemporary, Singer Songwriter, Celtic, Americana, Folk, Acoustic Blues Touring everywhere from the US eastern seaboard with valid US & Irish/E.U.
Passports

GRANT RECIPIENTS
from Meet the Composer, New York Foundation for the Arts, Alexandria Commission on the Arts

REGULAR VOICE LESSONS

Siobhan teaches individual vocal students in Alexandria, VA, the greater Washington D.C. area and nationally in in workshop form. She is is a funny, serious, caring and encouraging teacher who will truly help you to bring out the best parts of your voice within each song you sing.

Using classical/modern technique as a foundation for vocal flexibility, the first lesson is a vocal evaluation. In lessons we cover 1) vocal/breath warm-ups to advanced workouts 2) physiology of the voice & how to use each part—knowledge crucial to getting to most out of your instrument & to deal with vocal health issues. 3) Specific issues & exercises for songwriters/guitarists such as posture with instrument, lack of breath, singing flexibly within your range, positioning and strengthening exercises to shake out the unsteady parts of your voice will be covered early in our study.and as they arise. And 4) we'll work on putting your emotion into a song effectively. You'll develop a personal regimen to maintain skills you learn in the workshop. We'll work on all issues as they arise in your work towards a more flexible voice.