Diamanda Galas

Paper Summary:

This paper discusses how Diamanda Galas is one of the most intriguing American artists currently working in modern music who revered by musicologists, music critics and fellow artists worldwide. Through a review of her life, it shows how she is a highly intelligent, well read, multi-lingual person with an extraordinary knowledge of history, literature, philosophy, psychology, science and music. It also looks at how she is a firmly opinionated, outspoken, die-hard political activist who rallies against social injustice and how her opinions and politics are reflected in her stylistically diverse body of work.

From the Paper:

"She "had an extensive classical music training as a child and played gospel and jazz piano with her father's band" (Sherman). She also played with the San Diego Symphony. Galas is quoted as saying "I started out playing Beethoven, Brahms, Fats Waller, Greek music, Arabic music, everything" (Penman). "I had been trained as a classical and jazz pianist; later I became involved in the music of Albert Ayler, Ornette Coleman, and John Coltrane1" (Avena). After many years of basic classical piano lessons she studied avant-garde piano works in university graduate school."

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