CINCHA is fire onstage. She puts her beautiful voice, a silken piano, and some wicked humor, to an amazing array of original songs. Likened to Sarah McLachlan, Joni Mitchell, and Bonnie Raitt, still she has an entirely original sound that hooks every audience she plays for. What do the fans say?
"The stuff I've been trying to get to my whole life. "
"Oh, Cincha, the lullabye you wrote was the prettiest thing I've heard in years.
I'm over the moon."
"I didn't have a favorite tune, I liked them all."
CINCHA'S music ranges from the mystical tenderness of "Stars Down to the Ground" to the humorous groove of her award-winning "Groundhog Sunday Stroll". She performs in New York City's premiere singer/songwriter venues and across the US, solo and with her band. Her self-named solo CD is scheduled for release in fall 2008 with Blond Coyote Records.
A singer/songwriter, pianist and vocalist, prolific composer and lyricist, and teacher of music, CINCHA, aka CYNTHIA HILTS, is originally from Arizona, now in New York City. Her life has always been music. She started playing at the astoundingly young age of two, then started classical piano at six. CINCHA played folk, rock, blues and show music through her teens. Then studied jazz composition and performance at Berklee College of Music and revved into high gear with her career.
CINCHA'S CD, "Stars Down to the Ground" , was released in 2000. Montana Artists Refuge's first release , it is music that CINCHA wrote during one of several summers' residencies there and recorded with Montana musicians. As the Refuge's first composer, CINCHA established a lovely precedent, weaving Montana's beauty into her music. Her songs are "... evocative of the Montana landscape both in lyrics and instrumental work", according to the Lively Times, who also noted "Among my favorite tracks, 'Stars Down to the Ground,' a poetic ode to the clear nighttime Montana sky."
Performing jazz as "Cynthia Hilts", CINCHA has performed solo and led several ensembles over the years, playing mostly her original compositions. Her jazz groups have included many masters of jazz. She has played festivals, concerts and clubs in New York City, around the US, Europe, Mexico, Madagascar, and Tunisia, and recorded with the French and Swedish National Radios. Her jazz trio CD "Second Story Breeze" was just released by Blond Coyote Records. She has also recorded free-jazz, music of Tunisian guitarist Mamdouh Bahri, and big band music with the Spirit of Life Ensemble.
Lyric Fury is the eight-piece group she formed expressly to play her most venturesome jazz and new music works, with an incredible roster of world-renowned musicians. They perform in festivals and concerts in New York City. CINCHA also writes children's music, including the collection "Cat Musique" and her lullabies, featured at the Children's Museum of New York and children's fairs.
CINCHA recently received an award from the Great American Song Competition. She has received grants from Meet the Composer, US West, NY Council of the Arts, and the Montana Arts Council, and commissions for pieces for festivals, Montana Artists Refuge, and for dance works. She has played and conducted for documentaries, and been musical director and arranger for several theatre productions. She also teaches private piano, voice, and harmony, and in clinics in the US and abroad.
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