Asha Mevlana | |
---|---|
Birth name | Asha Mevlana Clayton-Niederman |
Origin | Boston |
Genres | Rock, classical |
Occupation(s) | Violinist, violist |
Instrument(s) | Violin, Viola, 7-string electric viper violin |
Website | Official Asha Mevlana Website |
Asha Mevlana (born Asha Mevlana Clayton-Niederman) is an American violinist and travel presenter. [1] [2] [3] She is known for playing an electric 7-string viper violin and for performing with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra. [4] [5] She has released two albums with the string quartet Invert and one with the Australian rock band Porcelain.
Mevlana attended the New England Conservatory Preparatory Division and went on to graduate from Wellesley College with a degree in viola performance. After graduation she moved to New York City, where she began working in public relations for Zagat Survey. In 1999 Mevlana was diagnosed with breast cancer at the age of 24. [6] [7] She underwent surgery, chemotherapy and radiation and left her job with Zagat and began working as a music teacher and as an outreach coordinator for the Young Survival Coalition. Mevlana was presented with the Gilda Radner Award by The Wellness Community in 2004. [8]
While in New York and undergoing chemotherapy, Mevlana began performing with the alternative string quartet Invert, with whom she released two albums. [9] In 2003 she moved to Los Angeles to pursue a career as an electric violinist and has since performed with artists such as Alanis Morissette, Enrique Iglesias, Roger Daltrey, Dee Snider and the Jonas Brothers. [10] Mevlana has also performed Crazy with Gnarls Barkley. [11] [12] Mevlana's TV appearances include The Tonight Show with Jay Leno Show, The Ellen DeGeneres Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live, the Grammy Awards, the MTV Movie Awards and American Idol.
Mevlana was also part of Porcelain, an Australian rock band signed to Universal Records [13] which toured around North America. [14] In 2009 the band's first single, The Last Song, was named the Daily Telegraph's 'single of the week' and was aired on national radio in Australia. [15] In 2011 Mevlana was hired as the string director and soloist for the Trans-Siberian Orchestra West Coast Tour and has toured around North America and Europe. [16] [17] [18] [19]
Mevlana has also worked as a director and her debut documentary short Driven was released in 2011. [20] She was also featured in the Travel Channel pilots Lost Weekend [21] and Destination Showdown as well as the Travel Presenter for Viator.com's web series. [22]
Her "Amplified Tiny House" was featured on Tiny House Nation on March 4, 2017 on FYI Network. [23]
The Electric Light Orchestra (ELO) are an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1970 by songwriters and multi-instrumentalists Jeff Lynne and Roy Wood with drummer Bev Bevan. Their music is characterised by a fusion of pop and classical arrangements with futuristic iconography. After Wood's departure in 1972, Lynne became the band's sole leader, arranging and producing every album while writing nearly all of their original material. During their first run from 1970 to 1986, Lynne and Bevan were the group's only consistent members.
Trans-Siberian Orchestra (TSO) is an American rock band founded in 1996 by producer, composer, and lyricist Paul O'Neill, who brought together Jon Oliva and Al Pitrelli and keyboardist and co-producer Robert Kinkel to form the core of the creative team. The band gained in popularity when they began touring in 1999 after completing their second album, The Christmas Attic, the year previous. In 2007, The Washington Post referred to them as "an arena-rock juggernaut" and described their music as "Pink Floyd meets Yes and the Who at Radio City Music Hall." TSO has sold more than ten million concert tickets and over ten million albums. The band has released a series of rock operas: Christmas Eve and Other Stories, The Christmas Attic, Beethoven's Last Night, The Lost Christmas Eve, their two-disc Night Castle and Letters From the Labyrinth. Trans-Siberian Orchestra is also known for their extensive charity work and elaborate concerts, which include a string section, a light show, lasers, moving trusses, video screens, and effects synchronized to music.
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Christmas Eve and Other Stories is the debut studio album by American symphonic metal band Trans-Siberian Orchestra. It was released on October 15, 1996, through Lava Records and Atlantic Records. It is the first album in the band's "Christmas trilogy", with The Christmas Attic (1998) and The Lost Christmas Eve (2004) coming afterward. All three albums, as well as their The Ghosts of Christmas Eve DVD, were featured in the box set of The Christmas Trilogy. The album's cover art was created by Edgar Jerins.
Al Pitrelli is an American guitarist, best known for his work with the Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Megadeth, Alice Cooper and Savatage. He has performed with various acts as a band member, session musician and touring member, including Michael Bolton, Celine Dion, Asia, Dee Snider, Kathy Troccoli, Taylor Dayne, Blue Öyster Cult, Exposé and Joe Lynn Turner.
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Mark Winthrop Wood is an American electric violinist and the founder of Wood Violins, a company that manufactures his electric violin designs. His music education program, Electrify Your Symphony, has been featured on news programs nationwide. He is also an Emmy-winning composer and the original string master of the Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
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Johnny Lee Middleton is an American musician, best known as the bass guitarist for the heavy metal bands Savatage and Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
The Christmas Attic is the second studio album by the American rock band Trans-Siberian Orchestra, released in 1998. The cover art is by Edgar Jerins.
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Paul O'Neill was an American composer, lyricist, record producer, and guitarist. He was the producer of the progressive metal band Savatage, and the founder of Trans-Siberian Orchestra.
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