Erik Della Penna

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Erik Della Penna
Erik Della Penna on stage.jpg
Background information
Born (1965-06-02) 2 June 1965 (age 59)
GenresAmericana, folk, musical theater, pop, rock
Occupation(s)Musician, composer, lyricist, songwriter
Instrument(s)Guitar, banjo, mandolin, lap steel, voice
Discography Erik Della Penna at AllMusic
Years active1992-present
Website erikdellapenna.com

Erik Della Penna (born June 2, 1965) is an American musician, composer, and lyricist. He is known for co-composing the musical Dead Outlaw [1] with David Yazbek, and for being the principal guitarist for pop singer Natalie Merchant. [2] [3] In 2024 he was nominated for three Drama Desk Awards, winning one, for Outstanding Lyrics. [4]

Contents

Early life

Della Penna was born in The Bronx and grew up on Long Island, New York. He received a degree in Classical Guitar from the Mannes School of Music. [3]

Career

In 1994, Della Penna began touring with the pop singer Joan Osborne on the Mercury Records label. Later, he toured and recorded with American singer-songwriter Natalie Merchant in support of several studio albums. During this time he also toured with folk singer Joan Baez and joined the international band Hazmat Modine as a guitarist and songwriter. [5] Della Penna also has his own band called Kill Henry Sugar, [6] a "metropolitan folk" duo with drummer Dean Sharenow. [3]

In February 2024, his musical Dead Outlaw opened at the Minetta Lane Theatre. It became a New York Times critic's pick [7] and earned eleven Drama Desk Award nominations, winning three. [8]

Awards and Nominations

YearNominated WorkAssociationCategoryResultRef
2024Dead Outlaw
Drama Desk Outstanding LyricsWon [9]
Drama Desk Outstanding MusicNominated [10]
Drama Desk Outstanding OrchestrationsNominated [10]
New York Drama Critics Circle Best MusicalWon [11]
Outer Critics Circle Outstanding New Off-Broadway MusicalWon [12]
Outer Critics Circle Outstanding ScoreNominated [13]
Outer Critics Circle Outstanding OrchestrationsNominated [13]

Composer Credits

Theater and Film

YearTitleCreditCategoryProducerref
2002Toby and the Big TopComposer, LyricistChildren's musical Walden Media [14]
2015Kitty HawkComposer, LyricistChildren's musical Adrienne Arsht Center [15]
2015Tree ManComposerFilm scoreJon Reiner, Brad Rothschild [16]
2023 Dead Outlaw Co-composer, Co-lyricistMusicalAudible [1]

Recorded Music

YearTitleArtistCreditref
2000 Righteous Love Joan Osborne Guitars, Composer [17]
2001Damascus David Yazbek Guitar (Electric), Lap Steel Guitar, Composer [18]
2001Popular Music for Today's Active LifestylesKill Henry SugarGuitars, Vocals, Composer [19]


2003Sell This PlaceKill Henry SugarGuitars, Vocals, Composer [20]
2004Love BeachKill Henry SugarGuitars, Vocals, Composer [21]
2007Swing Back and DownKill Henry SugarGuitars, Vocals, Composer [22]
2008Evil Monkey Man David Yazbek Composer, Guitars [23]
2009Hot MessiahKill Henry SugarGuitars, Vocals, Composer
2011Cicada Hazmat Modine Guitar, Vocals, Composer [24]
2016Extra-Deluxe-Supreme Hazmat Modine Composer, Guitars, Vocals [25]
2020An Evening in New YorkRachelle Garnier & Erik Della PennaComposer, Guitar, Banjo, Vocals
2020Box of Breath Hazmat Modine Banjo, Composer, Guitar, Vocals [26]
2020The Mojo Manifesto Mojo Nixon Composer [27]
2021RainyErik Della PennaComposer, vocals, instrumentation [28]
2023Bonfire Hazmat Modine Vocals, Guitars, Composer [29]
2023Stop TimeKill Henry SugarVocals, Composer, Guitars

Other Credits

YearTitleArtistCreditref
1997 Chocolate Supa Highway SpearheadGuitar [30]
1999 Tears of Stone The Chieftains Guitar [31]
2001 Motherland (2001) Natalie Merchant Banjo, Bazouki, Guitar (Classical), Guitar (Electric), Lap Steel Guitar, Oud [32]
2003 The House Carpenter's Daughter Natalie Merchant Guitar, Lap Steel Guitar [33]
2003Seeds: The Songs of Pete Seeger, Vol. 3 Pete Seeger Guitar [34]
2005 Bowery Songs Joan Baez Banjo, Guitar, Lap Steel Guitar, Vocals [35]
2009 3 Balloons Stephen Lynch Guitar [36]
2009Saints and Tzadiks Susan McKeown Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Humming, Tres [37]
2010 Leave Your Sleep Natalie Merchant Guitar [38]
2014 Natalie Merchant Natalie Merchant Guitar (Acoustic), Guitar (Electric), Lap Steel Guitar [39]
2021 I'll Meet You Here Dar Williams Guitar (Electric) [40]
2023 Keep Your Courage Natalie Merchant Guitar (12 String Acoustic), Guitar (Electric) [41]

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References

  1. 1 2 Bahr, Sarah (March 20, 2024). "'Dead Outlaw,' a Mummy Musical, Is So Strange It Can Only Be True". The New York Times . Archived from the original on March 22, 2024.
  2. ↑ "Natalie Merchant (2014)".
  3. 1 2 3 Vellucci, Justin (November 13, 2018). "The "Antique-Garde" Songwriters Of New York City". American Songwriter.
  4. ↑ Russo, Gilllian (June 10, 2024). "2024 Drama Desk Award winners announced". New York Theater Guide.
  5. ↑ Smullen, Sharon (April 13, 2023). "At Spencertown Academy, Rachelle Garniez and Erik Della Penna to play old and new music of New York City". The Berkshire Eagle . Archived from the original on September 23, 2024.
  6. ↑ Joyce, Mike (July 3, 2003). "KILL HENRY SUGAR "Sell This ..." The Washington Post . Archived from the original on September 23, 2024.
  7. ↑ Collins-Hughes, Laura (March 11, 2024). "'Dead Outlaw' Review: Not Much of a Bandit, but What a Corpse". The New York Times.
  8. ↑ Cullwell-Block, Logan (June 10, 2024). "Stereophonic Leads 2024 Drama Desk Awards With 7 Wins Including Outstanding PlayStereophonic Leads 2024 Drama Desk Awards With 7 Wins Including Outstanding Play". Playbill.
  9. ↑ "2024 WINNERS". 2024 Drama Desk Awards.
  10. 1 2 Rosky, Nicole. "2024 Drama Desk Awards Nominations- The Full List!". BroadwayWorld.com.
  11. ↑ Miller, Deb (May 14, 2024). "Winners of the 2024 New York Drama Critics' Circle Awards". DC Theater Arts.
  12. ↑ Miller, Deb (May 13, 2024). "Winners of the 2024 Outer Critics Circle Awards for Broadway and Off-Broadway". DC Theater Arts.
  13. 1 2 Eckmann, Sam (April 23, 2024). "2024 Outer Critics Circle nominations: 'Stereophonic' and 'Suffs' receive an end-season boost". GoldDerby.
  14. ↑ "Toby and the Big Top". Cast Albums.
  15. ↑ "Kitty Hawk returns to the Arsht Center for its third season". Biscayne Bay Tribune. October 10, 2019.
  16. ↑ "Erik Della Penna | Composer, Actor, Music Department". IMDb. Retrieved January 22, 2025.
  17. ↑ "Joan Osborne-Righteous Love". Discogs.
  18. ↑ "Damascus-David Yazbek". ALLMUSIC.
  19. ↑ "Kill Henry Sugar-Popular Music". Discogs.
  20. ↑ "Kill Henry Sugar - Sell This Place". The Washington Post. July 3, 2003.
  21. ↑ "Kill Henry Sugar-Love Beach". Discogs.
  22. ↑ "Swing Back and Down-Kill Henry Sugar". ALLMUSIC.
  23. ↑ "Evil Monkey Man-David Yazbek". ALLMUSIC.
  24. ↑ "Cicada-Hazmat Modine". ALLMUSIC.
  25. ↑ "Extra-Deluxe-Supreme-Hazmat Modine". ALLMUSIC.
  26. ↑ "Box of Breath-Hazmat Modine". ALLMUSIC.
  27. ↑ "The Mojo Manifesto-Mojo Nixon". ALLMUSIC.
  28. ↑ "Erik Della Penna: Rainy EP (Album Review)". www.popmatters.com. July 13, 2021. Retrieved January 22, 2025.
  29. ↑ "Hazmat Modine-Bonfire". Discogs.
  30. ↑ "Chocolate Supa Highway-Spearhead". ALLMUSIC.
  31. ↑ "The Chieftains-Tears of Stone". Discogs.
  32. ↑ "Motherland-Natalie Merchant". ALLMUSIC.
  33. ↑ "The House Carpenter's Daughter-Natalie Merchant". ALLMUSIC.
  34. ↑ "Seeds: The Seeds of Pete Seeger". ALLMUSIC.
  35. ↑ "Bowery Songs-Joan Baez". ALLMUSIC.
  36. ↑ "3 Balloons-Stephen Lynch". ALLMUSIC.
  37. ↑ "Saints and Tzadiks-Susan McKeown". ALLMUSIC.
  38. ↑ "Leave Your Sleep-Natalie Merchant". ALLMUSIC.
  39. ↑ "Natalie Merchant-Natalie Merchant". ALLMUSIC.
  40. ↑ "Dar Williams-I'll Meet You Here". Discogs.
  41. ↑ "Keep Your Courage-Natalie Merchant". ALLMUSIC.
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