Rose Polenzani (born March 7, 1975, in

Waukesha, Wisconsin Waukesha ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Waukesha County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 71,158 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located along the Fox River (Illinois River tributary), Fox River adjacent to th ...

) is an American

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes #Traditional folk music, traditional folk music and the Contemporary folk music, contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be ca ...

ian. She was raised in the

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

area and attended Knox College before leaving to pursue a singing career. She is currently living in

Boston, Massachusetts Boston is the capital and most populous city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Massachusetts in the United States. The city serves as the cultural and Financial centre, financial center of New England, a region of the Northeas ...

. She plays

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

and, less frequently,

piano A piano is a keyboard instrument that produces sound when its keys are depressed, activating an Action (music), action mechanism where hammers strike String (music), strings. Modern pianos have a row of 88 black and white keys, tuned to a c ...

. Her lyrics often blend obscure images and emotions. Polenzani has performed in

Lilith Fair Lilith Fair was a concert tour and travelling music festival, founded by Canadian musician Sarah McLachlan, Nettwerk Music Group's Dan Fraser and Terry McBride (CEO), Terry McBride, and New York talent agent Marty Diamond. It took place during ...

in 1998, and the

Sundance Film Festival The Sundance Film Festival is an annual film festival organized by the Sundance Institute. It is the largest independent film festival in the United States, with 423,234 combined in-person and online viewership in 2023. The festival has acted ...

in 1999. She has opened for the

Indigo Girls Indigo Girls are an American folk rock music duet (music), duo from Atlanta, Georgia, United States, consisting of Amy Ray and Emily Saliers. The two met in Primary school, elementary school and began performing together as Secondary school, hig ...

, David Gray,

Vic Chesnutt James Victor Chesnutt (November 12, 1964 – December 25, 2009) was an American singer-songwriter from Athens, Georgia. His first album, Little (album), ''Little'', was released in 1990. His commercial breakthrough came in 1996 with the rele ...

Patty Griffin Patricia Jean Griffin (born March 16, 1964) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician.Griffin, Patricia She is a vocalist and plays guitar and piano. She is known for her stripped-down songwriting style in the folk music genre. Her songs ...

Joan Baez Joan Chandos Baez (, ; born January 9, 1941) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and activist. Her contemporary folk music often includes songs of protest and social justice. Baez has performed publicly for over 60 years, releasing mo ...

Jonatha Brooke Jonatha Brooke (born January 23, 1964) is an American folk rock singer-songwriter and guitarist from Massachusetts, United States. Her music merges elements of folk, rock and pop, often with poignant lyrics and complex harmonies. She has been a ...

Kristin Hersh Martha Kristin Hersh (born August 7, 1966) is an American singer, guitarist, and songwriter known for her solo work and with her rock bands Throwing Muses and 50 Foot Wave, 50FootWave. She has released eleven solo albums. Her guitar work and comp ...

and

Shawn Colvin Shawn Colvin (born Shawna Lee Colvin, January 10, 1956) is an American singer-songwriter. She is best known for her 1997 Grammy Award-winning song "Sunny Came Home". Early life Colvin was born Shawna Lee Colvin in Vermillion, South Dakota, and ...

. She has been reviewed positively in the

Utne Reader ''Utne Reader'' (also known as ''Utne''; , ) is a digital digest that collects and reprints articles on politics, culture, and the environment, generally from alternative media sources including journals, newsletters, weeklies, zines, music, and ...

, BUST Magazine, and the

Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe,'' also known locally as ''the Globe'', is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes. ''The Boston Globe'' is the oldest and largest daily new ...

. Polenzani performed as part of

Voices on the Verge Voices on the Verge was an American folk, country, and rock band formed as a collaboration between four young, formerly-independent, female musicians: Jess Klein, Erin McKeown, Rose Polenzani, and Beth Amsel.Voices On The Verge Ready To Tour', ...

, a collaborative musical project with Beth Amsel,

Jess Klein Jess Klein (born 1974) is an American singer-songwriter. A native of Rochester, New York, Klein learned to play acoustic guitar and started writing songs as a college student in Kingston, Jamaica, while working on a thesis "documenting dub po ...

, and

Erin McKeown Erin McKeown (pronounced ) is an American multi-instrumentalist and folk-rock singer-songwriter. McKeown's music encompasses pop, swing, rock, folk, and electronic music, as well as several other genres. Music career They grew up in Frede ...

. Voices on the Verge toured together in 2001 and 2002 and released a live album, ''Voices on the Verge: Live In Philadelphia'' on the

Rykodisc Rykodisc is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, operating as a unit of WMG's Independent Label Group and distributed through Alternative Distribution Alliance. History Claiming to be the first CD-only independent record label ...

label. In 2004, Polenzani toured with Sharon Lewis of the British band Pooka, whom she cites as a major musical influence. Opera singer Matthew Polenzani is her brother. Her grandfather was Lynn Hauldren, known as "The Empire Man" for his work as a pitchman for Empire Today.

Discography

Albums

* ''Dragersville'', self-released in the summer of 1998. * ''Anybody'', released July 20, 1999 from

Daemon Records Amy Elizabeth Ray (born April 12, 1964) is an American singer-songwriter and member of the contemporary folk duo Indigo Girls with Emily Saliers. She also pursues a solo career, releasing ten albums under her own name, and founded the independent ...

. * ''Rose Polenzani'', released June 5, 2001 from

. * ''August'', self-released on October 6, 2004. * ''When the River Meets the Sea'', self-released October 1, 2008 (with

Session Americana Session Americana is a Boston-based folk/rock band/collective. History This six-member group of musicians came together in 2003 for informal shows at Toad (a pub in Cambridge) on Sunday nights, with Sean Staples (mandolin, guitar, vocals), J ...

). * ''The Rabbit'', self-released on August 23, 2011.

Compilation appearances

* "

Ellen West Ellen West (1888–1921) was a patient of Dr. Ludwig Binswanger who had anorexia nervosa. She became a famous example of Daseinsanalysis who died by suicide at age 33 by poisoning herself. Life Ellen West was born to a Jewish family in 1888. When ...

" with Sharon Lewis on '' Hot Hands: A Tribute to Throwing Muses & Kristin Hersh'' (Kuma-chan Records, 2003)

Trivia

* During her "Distillation 20th Anniversary" concert,

revealed that her song "Didn't They" referred to a crush on Polenzani.

References

External links

Rose Polenzani official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Polenzani, Rose 1975 births Living people American folk singers American women singer-songwriters People from Waukesha, Wisconsin Knox College (Illinois) alumni Daemon Records artists 21st-century American singer-songwriters 21st-century American women singers Singer-songwriters from Wisconsin