Ramana Viera and Ensemble

Ramana’s rich, musical artistry combined with her unconventional original style has transported audiences throughout the world with highlights that include receiving being quoted in the New York Times about her influences and fado music. “Amalia Rodrigues is in my DNA, but so is Kate Bush, and I started out in a new-wave band,” Ms. Vieira said before a recent performance in New York. “My purpose is to open up the fado and keep exploring it. My group doesn’t have a traditional fado configuration, so we’ve had to evolve.”

Recently, Ramana and the Ensemble were introduced by Dr. Nuno Mathias, Consul General of Portugal in San Francisco in a featured concert at U.C Berkeley. In front of a standing-room only crowd, the band performed three Fados that paid tribute to the great Amalia Rodrigues, as well as Ramana’s own composition “Este O Meu Fado” from the album “Lagrimas De Rainha” (which reached #43 on the world music charts). Soon after, the group traveled to the Oregon for a pair of performances, including a sold-out show at the beautiful Cohelo Winery in Amity.

2013 promises to be an exciting year of new growth and extended reach, including a trip to Hawaii for a summer tour. The Ensemble is hard at work on the recording of their third, full-length album title, “Luso Sol,” a record that the band hopes will illustrate their many facets of their original music and sound, and help catapult the band into the front row of the world and popular music scene. The band consists of Ramana Vieria ? leader, lead vocals, piano, Michael Mc Morrow ? Portugese guitarra and 7-string guitar, Alberto Ramirez ? electric bass, Laura Boytz ? cello, and Steve La Porta ? drum kit, percussion.

http://lapena.org/event/ramana-viera-and-ensemble-2/