Janel Leppin (born 1981)[1] is an American singer, jazz cellist and multi-instrumentalist. She has performed at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art, the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts[2] and at many international festivals worldwide including the High Zero Festival, the Swedish Women in Jazz Festival, DC Jazz Festival and Washington Women in Jazz Festival. She has acted as curator for works shown at the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts and the ISSUE Project Room.[3]
Janel Leppin | |
|---|---|
 Ensemble Volcanic Ash performing at the Bohemian Caverns, led by Leppin | |
| Born | 1981 |
| Occupation(s) | Cellist, composer |
| Musical career | |
| Genres | Jazz, Experimental, avant-garde, modal jazz, free jazz, classical, ambient, rock, punk |
| Instrument(s) | Cello, vocals |
| Labels | Wedderburn Records, Cuneiform Records |
| Website | janelleppin.com |
Leppin has released three solo recordings, Mellow Diamond (2016), Songs for Voice and Mellotron (2016), and American God (2017). She collaborates as part of Janel and Anthony with her husband, American guitar player Anthony Pirog.[4] Recordings of her work as a composer and side musician appear on Sacred Bones, Bella Union, Touch, Tzadik, Sub Pop, Editions Mego, Sister Polygon, Dischord Records, Ideologic Organ and Cuneiform Records. Her work uses experimental, avant-garde, jazz, free jazz, classical, ambient and rock influences.[5]
Janel and Anthony edit
Leppin recorded two albums with Anthony Pirog as "Janel and Anthony": one self-titled and self-released recording in 2007, and Where is Home, released by Cuneiform Records, in 2012. A Fifth Anniversary Collectors Edition LP was released of the duo, recorded in 2010. In March 2016, they released the single "Sweet and Sour".[6]
In February 2016, Leppin started a label called Wedderburn Records which releases "music which has a magical or mystical essence."[7] The label's first release was "Sweet and Sour" by Janel and Anthony, followed by Leppin's first two solo albums, Mellow Diamond and Songs for Voice and Mellotron.[8]
Solo Recordings edit
In April 2016, Leppin released two solo recordings. For the first album titled, Mellow Diamond, Leppin drew from far and wide, from avant-garde pop to ambient style. She recorded analog synthesizers, a harpsichord, pedal steel, a cello, mellotron, found sound samples, and radio frequencies. Several political messages are found in the work, notably in "Belly of the Beast" which is about living in Washington D.C.,[9] as well as in "Cast in Gold."
The second album, originally titled Songs of the One-Armed Woman, Songs for Voice and Mellotron, was written in 2015, when Leppin injured her right elbow and was unable to perform solo concerts on her primary instrument, the cello.[10] The EP-length recording includes politically-charged music, such as "Paris," which calls for people to remember all victims from terrorist attacks after the deaths in Paris in 2015 and brings attention to the possible effects of American drone strikes. The second track, "In A Dream," is about global warming. Most tracks were recorded live with Leppin singing and playing the M4000D (mellotron) simultaneously, with very little overdubbing.[11]
Leppin's most recent album, American God, was released in April 2017. This album continues with political themes, as Leppin put it together with the 2016 Presidential Election in mind.[12]
Jazz Works edit
Leppin leads Ensemble Volcanic Ash, jazz group including harp, cello, alto saxophone, tenor saxophone, guitar, bass and drums. The group was premiered before a sold-out crowd at the legendary Bohemian Caverns in Washington D.C. to rave reviews, being called "Aaah-vant Garde [sic] at its finest."[13] The ensemble has included Luke Stewart, Kim Sator, Sarah Hughes, Mary Lattimore, Kim Sator, Brian Settles, Anthony Pirog, Larry Ferguson, Amy Frasier, Jacqueline Poullaf, Betsy Wright and Jaimie Branch.
| Artist | Albums | Instrumentation | Label | Year |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Janel and Anthony | Janel and Anthony | Cello, Electronics, Voice, Loops | Self Released, Cricket Cemetery | 2007 |
| Janel and Anthony | Where is Home | Cello, Electronics, Voice, Voice, Mellotron, Harpsichord, Bowed and Struck Vibraphone, Prophet Five Synthesizer, Piano | Cuneiform Records | 2012 |
| Mellow Diamond | Mellow Diamond | Vocals, Cello, Koto, Pedal Steel, Arp 2600, Prophet 5 Synthesizer, Korg MS-20, Modular Synthesizer, Optigan, Mellotron, Mini Moog, Grand Piano, Upright Piano, Harpsichord, Bowed and Struck Vibraphone, Electronics, Drums, Bass, Guitar, Radio Frequencies, Footsteps, Record Collage, Struck Pan Lids, Tape Loops | Wedderburn Records | 2016 |
| Mellow Diamond | Songs for Voice and Mellotron | Voice, Mellotron M4000D, Vibraphone, Electronics, Prophet 5 Synthesizer, Modular Synthesizer | Wedderburn Records | 2016 |
| Mellow Diamond | American God | Voice, Cello, Electronics, Prophet 5 Synthesizer, Baby Grand CP70, Mellotron, Bass Drum | Wedderburn Records | 2017 |
| Susan Alcorn | The Heart Sutra (arr. by Janel Leppin) | Arranging, Curation, Conductor, Cello, Modified Cello, Cover Art | Ideologic Organ/Editions Mego | 2020 |
| Janel Leppin, Susan Alcorn, Meghan Habibzai | Sister Mirror | Cello, Pedal Steel Guitar, Voice | Atlantic Rhythms | 2020 |
| Anthony Pirog | Pocket Poem | Cover Art, Co-Production | Cuneiform Records | 2021 |
| Anthony Pirog | Inside | Photography | ASG Recordings | 2021 |
| Janel Leppin | Ensemble Volcanic Ash | Composer, Cellist, Arranger, Bandleader | Cuneiform Records | 2022 |
| Janel Leppin | The Brink | Cello, Composition, Art | Shiny Boy | 2023 |
| Anthony Pirog | Nepenthe Series I | Producer, Pedal Steel | Otherly Love | 2023 |
| Janel Leppin | Ensemble Volcanic Ash: TBA | Composer, Cellist, Arranger, Bandleader, Art | Cuneiform Records | 2024 |
| Janel and Anthony | TBA | Cello, Keyboards, Vocals, Art, Photography, Lyrics, Composition | Cuneiform Records | 2024 |
Also Appears On edit
| Artist | Album | Label | Year | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Skysaw | Great Civilizations | Dangerbird Records (LA) | 2009 | |||
| Ignorant American | Ignorant American | Sonic Mass Records | 2009 | |||
| Anthony Pirog | Trio/Sextet | Sonic Mass Records | 2011 | |||
| Oren Ambarchi | Audience of One | Touch Records (UK) | 2012 | |||
| Eyvind Kang | Visible Breath | Ideologic Organ / Editions Mego (FR) | 2012 | |||
| Eyvind Kang | Grass | Tzadik Records | 2012 | |||
| Anthony Pirog | Trio/Sextet | Sonic Mass Records (DC) | 2012 | |||
| Rose Windows | The Sun Dogs | Sub Pop (WA) | 2013 | |||
| Orion Rigel Dommisse | Omicron | What a Mess! Records (FR) | 2014 | |||
| Marissa Nadler | Remembering Mountains: Unheard Songs by Karen Dalton;
plays cello on "So Long and Far Away" |
Tompkins Square Label (SF) | 2014 | |||
| Laughing Man | Be Black Baby | Bad Friend Records | 2014 | |||
| Priests | Nothing Feels Natural | Sister Polygon Records | 2017 | |||
| The Messthetics | The Messthetics "The Weaver" | Dischord Records | 2018 | |||
| Marissa Nadler | For My Crimes | Bella Union (UK), Sacred Bones (NY) | 2018 | |||
| Priests | The Seduction of Kansas | Sister Polygon Records | 2018 | |||
| Beauty Pill | Please Advise | Northern Spy Records | 2019 | |||
| Eyvind Kang | Ajaeng Ajaeng | Ideologic Organ/ Editions Mego | 2020 |
References edit
- ^ Richards, Chris. "Poised and prolific, Janel Leppin is just getting started". The Washington Post. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
- ^ "Janel and Anthony". www.kennedy-center.org. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
- ^ "Susan Alcorn in Residence | ISSUE Project Room". issueprojectroom.org. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
- ^ Cohan, Brad. "Q&A: Janel And Anthony On D.C.'s Experimental Music Scene And Their New Record, Where is Home". Village Voice. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
- ^ Leppin. "Leppin Website". www.janelleppin.com. Retrieved 6 April 2016.
- ^ "Janel and Anthony". www.janelandanthony.com. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
- ^ "About". Wedderburn Records. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
- ^ Julia. "Episode 6: Signing the Ladies". Femchord. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
- ^ "One Track Mind: Mellow Diamond, 'Belly of the Beast'". Washington City Paper. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
- ^ "With One Textured Album And An EP Born From Pain, Janel Leppin Pushes On | Bandwidth". bandwidth.wamu.org. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
- ^ "After A Four-Year Wait, Janel Leppin Debuts Two New Albums At Songbyrd". DCist. Archived from the original on 11 September 2017. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
- ^ Gotrich, Lars. "Cellist Janel Leppin Desperately Seeks Healing In Mellow Diamond's 'Ashes To Breathe'". NPR Music. NPR. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
- ^ "Live review | Janel Leppin's Ensemble Volcanic Ash: 'Ahhh-vant garde' revelations -". CapitalBop. Retrieved 7 April 2016.
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