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by Jessica Brandon
Terry Kitchen, winner of the First Prize (Country Category) at past year's competition - makes the spotlight, Songwriter of the month
Terry Kitchen is a contemporary Folk/Country singer-songwriter. His songs tell stories that keep the listener interested right till the very end. With those skills, he won the first prize of the 2000 USA Songwriting Competition in the Country category last year with his song "Right Now".
He's been writing songs since grade school as a way of making sense of himself and the world around him. Terry studied music at the Guitar Institute of Technology in Los Angeles as well as majored in music. He also fronted the original pop/rock band "Loose Ties" in the mid 80s, whose video was played on MTV. Terry has now settled for the intimacy of acoustic music as the most natural setting for his songs. He is a prolific singer-songwriter performing in little towns around Boston that have coffeehouses and churches. He shared the stage with such artists as John Gorka and Cheryl Wheeler. Notable artists such as Barbara Kessler also covered his songs. He has won numerous songwriting contests as well. His CD is 'Blues for Cain & Abel' is released on Rounder Records.
Quotes:
"One of New England finest songwriters"... Dirty Linen Magazine
Hear His Songs:
MP3
Dyana Dafova - winner of the First Prize (World Category) and Overall Third Prize at past year's competition - makes the spotlight, Artist of the month
This Bulgarian Singer-Songwriter won the First Prize in the world category last year as well as the Overall Third Prize. She also became the first songwriter in Eastern Europe to win an award in the USA Songwriting Competition. She writes and performs in a mixture of New Age, Pop, Spiritual, Modern Classical with Bulgarian Folk influences. Her songs sounds like a more exotic version of Enya.
Dyana began to study piano playing at 5 years of age. She graduated the Music School "Lubomir Pipkov" in Sofia, specialising classical piano and the Bulgarian National Musci Academy, where she studied singing and piano.
Dyana started her solo career in 1985. Only within several months songs as "Happiness Is Difficult to Get", "Love Is Never Late", "Different Worlds" became television and radio hits in her country. She was awarded a special price in the Melody of the Year competition. She also performed at the 2000 SXSW Music Showcase in Austin, TX.
Her songs are popular because of the high perfection of her unconventional artistic solo interpretation. Dyana is outstanding for her graceful and magnetic stage and screen image. She became the first European artist to be invited by NASA Space Centre in Cape Canaveral for the viewing of the Live Launch of shuttle Columbia and to have the music from her CD "Sounds of the Earth" to be utilised for the occasion. Former First Lady Hillary Clinton, who complimented Dyana for her music as a wonderful reminder of her visit in Bulagria. The CD is kept as part of her personal music collection.
Hear Her Winning Song:
Taliesin