Artist description Courage in overcoming seemingly impossible odds is a central theme in the musical Little Italian Girl. The main character, Rosa, faces many trials, and gathers strength from her faith and from those who stood behind her during her ordeal. This same theme was played out in the writing of the musical itself. The original idea for the musical was conceived 10 years ago by Jenna Vescio, one of Rosa’s biggest supporters and confidants throughout her trials. Jenna brings a wealth of experience to the project. Her performing career in opera led her to perform before Queen Elizabeth and the late Princess Diana. Performances like these continued until Jenna’s health dictated that she leave the stage. In an effort to share her knowledge and experience in the music industry, Jenna decided to identify and assist up-and-coming artists in reaching their goals. She couples her own lyrics and poetry (or those of others) with the right combination of music writers, vocalists and producers with the help of the popular musician’s networking website Tonos.com. After working with many people on Tonos, she happened upon a few individuals that inspired her, and gave her the tools to bring her idea of 10 years ago to fruition. In June of 2002, Jenna met a talented writer/producer known as LohnRiver, who had previous experience producing a CD for a Christian group called OneHeart. LohnRiver also began collaborating with others on Tonos in December, 2001. After many projects with other Tonos members, LohnRiver was invited to participate in one of Jenna’s projects called Little Italian Girl. This was a single song detailing Rosa’s plight and escape from a tragic situation. Jenna and LohnRiver had no idea at the time that the song would eventually be expanded into an entire musical containing over 30 original songs. But soon they found the missing piece to the creative puzzle that inspired Jenna to revive the 10 year old project. Bree Noble, a versatile songwriter, producer, and outstanding vocalist joined Tonos in June, 2002. Her background is diverse including classical vocal training as well as stints performing with alternative rock and Christian Contemporary bands in the 90s. After releasing her solo CD as a singer/songwriter, Overwhelmed, in early 2002, Bree decided to join the Tonos community so she could work with other talented musicians. She began by looking for a male vocalist for her beautiful love song Can You See The Stars (now in the musical) on the Tonos bulletin board. Although she did not find a vocalist, her work caught the eye of LohnRiver, who recommended Bree as a vocalist for some of Jenna’s projects. After a few projects, the performance that solidified the partnership of the three musicians was on the song Little Italian Girl. Bree’s vocal was amazing, and incorporated a “Phantom of the Opera” style ending that was awe inspiring to the other two collaborators. The synergy created while working together on this song gave Jenna the confidence to expand Rosa’s story into a entire Broadway style musical. She felt she now had the team in place to produce something very special, and she was right! The three began working together almost exclusively over the internet. Many songs began with Jenna’s lyrics, then adapted by Bree, and put to music by LohnRiver and Bree. Jenna was always the ultimate critic, and helped them find their musical direction. LohnRiver and Bree both had experience in programming music, and their talents complimented each other. Lush arrangements and beautiful melodies emerged, surprising even the three collaborators. To help with the daunting task of writing over 30 songs, they found other collaborators whose songs or lyrics could be adapted for use in the musical. All songs were ultimately produced by the team of three for uniformity. Bree was the featured vocalist, singing lead vocals on 22 of the 34 songs. She also was the recording and mixing engineer for all of the tracks on the double CD set. Near the end of the writing/recording process, the team stumbled upon a talented writer/male vocalist whose powerful voice provided the icing on the cake. Jerry Allen, an established artist in his own right, performed with Bree on the duet “Don’t Cry For Me”. The pairing of these voices was a match made in heaven and the duet became one of the highlights of musical score. Jerry went on to contribute 2 of his original songs to the musical as well as lead vocals on 3 other songs. It was a stressful, but triumphant three months, often working feverishly till the early hours of the morning. The final product is a diverse collection of music that vividly tells the story of Rosa’s journey, her arranged marriage that caused her physical hardship and mental anguish, and her ultimate redemption and return to her faith. When listening to the score from beginning to end, one cannot help but be moved by the deep emotional impact of the lyrics and music. The vision and talent of Jenna Vescio, LohnRiver and Bree Noble, with the help of Jerry Allen and the other collaborators, have produced a timeless collection of musical gems. The team plans to continue collaborating and capitalize on the creative chemistry discovered through their work on Little Italian Girl.

Music Style Crossover classical musical

Similar Artists Celine Dion, Barry Manilow

Location New Carlisle, OH - USA

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