Marita Brake: News

October 18th TheatersCool hosts Girls Night Out and I will be hosting. It's from 8-11pm. An Open mike with several students from the Music Shoppe participating plus a few songs from moi. Hope you can be there!

Starting Oct. 11th - 25th. Magic 100.7 will be airing my Mission Mart Commercial. I wrote it, did all the vocals and the voice over.

So if you live in our region, check it out.

 Just back from Billboard Magazine's Music and Advertising Conference in Chicago. It was a chance to meet and greet some of the best advertising, licensing and music supervisors in the business. What a whirlwind of activity. I met people like Gary Calamar who is the music supervisor for True Blood, ad exec, Stump Mahoney and Zac Brown from the Zac Brown Band. Everyone I met was helpful and gracious. But the best part, I signed with Music Dealers, LLC, a music licensing firm. Many thanks to Rob Lindquist in A&R at Music Dealers and Billboard Magazine.

I just finished recording a new Delta Airlines Commercial that I'm pretty proud of. It should be accessible on this site in a few days. Other recording news...... just finished a jazz original, Woman in the Moon, at Eclipse Studios and I am set to record my first Christmas song in June. Christmas in June.....Yeah!!!!

Stay tuned for more info........

What a wonderful magazine this is. It is available on the web at www.studiomagazine.biz  The latest issue features a fairly good sized article on me. Amreen Khan (editor)touches upon several projects of mine you may not know about. All in all, I always read it cover to cover.

This week has felt like manna from heaven falling everywhere around me! Two HUGE advertising agencies purchased "Country Miles" for use in commercials.

AND Rosemarie Ashley of Positive Music Association did a great review of The Celtic Rose. Part of it will appear on my "reviews" pg.

WOW!!!

Go to: www.positivemusicassociation.com

 

 

 

Marita is now being played in rotation on Rawa radio (www.rawaradio.com)

They play music that is spiritually and socially uplifting. Innisfree from The Celtic Rose is the track they have chosen.

RAWA stands for Renaissance Artists and Writers Association.

I've had a long standing relationship with the Sister Cities Program here which includes Vladimir, Russia, Canterbury, England and Bloomington/Normal, Illinois. It is hard to believe that this group has been together before the fall of the Soviet Union. I have performed for many of their events, including performing in Canterbury, England for The Canterbury Festival. None have been more touching then the two events commemorating the 20th Anniversary. Creating peace one person at a time has profound and dramatic results. I have found that we are all basically the same in our hearts. We meet: "Face to face heart to heart dream to dream." From - The Sister City Song Marita Brake

Tonite I am so saddened and wistfully wishing I could step back in time to the first time I heard Mary Travers sing. It was as magical a moment as I will ever recall. This iconic folk performer, one third of Peter, Paul and Mary,
opened a whole new world for me when I was only twelve. She inspired me, motivated me and made me believe in the richness of life. I once met Mary backstage at an outdoor event. She was getting herself together to sing before a very raucous audience that would be a tough crowd for anyone to have to sing for. Yet, even in her nervousness, she took time to remind me that the path in music
has at times, its ups and downs, wrong turns and disappointments, a richness that can't be bought and a soul that can't be sold. Thank you Mary for all of your lovliness. Youwill be sorely missed.

I am delighted to announce that I am now affiliated with Sonicbids.
Sonicbids provides performers and promoters a chance to see what each other is doing. An EPK, an electronic press kit,
helps facilitate projects. performances and media related events in a way that no other website on the web even comes close to.
I am excited to be a part of this venture.

This is the 20th anniversary
for the YWCA's Women of Distinction Awards. I have the distinct pleasure to be performing at these awards.
(I won way back in 1996) They celebrate women who have made a significant contribution to our community in all walks of life.
The awards take place May 21st at Illinois State University's Brown Ballroom.
Put on your dress up clothes and come out to hear me sing a song I wrote just for this special event.

I am honored to announce that Angelic Music's UK competition "In Her Own Words" chose one of my songs as a finalist. They chose "On Me Mother's Grave" from The Celtic Rose CD. It will be featured on a compilation CD to be distributed in the UK and Europe. For more information go to: www.angelicmusic.co.uk

Millikin University asked 1300 artists to give their interpretation of Abraham Lincoln with art on a postcard. 60 made it into the show. I entered two into the show and they are in it. It is amazing what people came up with. Mine are #'s 13 and 14.
Abe at Cinco de Mayo and Abe as a beatnik. The site is: http://picasaweb.google.com/millikincenter/LincolnPicturePostcards?feat=directlink. Hope you have a chance to go look, it is totally cool.

A few days ago, one of America's true living treasures passed on, Studs Terkel! I was honored enough to be one of Studs radio show guests and I will never forget it. Being with this great man and genius thinker was an amazing experience. At that time his Pulitzer Prize winning book, The Good War, had just
been published. He gave me one and inscribed it with: "Here's to peace, grace and beauty - the first we hope for - the second and third you got."
A fond farewell Studs-you will be missed!

October will be bringing new performance opportunities to me. Among them performing for the American Association of Pastoral Counselors. Yes, that's right, they are ALL counselors. So if I get a little neurotic, ok....more
neurotic I'll be in good company.

Wow! I don't know if you are familiar with one of the best writing tools on the net. It is www.winningwriters.com They have featured me on this month's opening page and have my poem "Hattie's Christmas Ballad" winner of Christyfest 2008, in this issue, as well. If you are a writer and love great writing and market news, check them out!

Finally, I have a video on You Tube. Doesn't everybody? Entitled "Miss the Mississippi and You"
(which is the song being sung) there is absolutely gorgeous footage of nature in all it's stunning glory.
This was shot on the Mississippi at various locations. It was originally made for an eco-film.
Either type in my name at You Tube or the name of the song and it should come up.
It is a beautiful tribute to nature.

Want to see me at one day old? Second grade? My first PR picture? My maternal Grandmother right off the boat?
Go to photos and keep scrolling.
These are some of my personal favorites.

It will be a great honor for me to perform before the Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress of Canterbury, England during their visit to Bloomington, Illinois this coming week.
Since I have sung in Canterbury, it will be my delight to perform for the new Lord Mayor and Lady Mayoress.
Singing in the UK is one of my fondest memories!
Here's to a royal performance!

This is a thoughtful, healing and much needed site. I hope you have time to visit. This site is devoted to music appropriate for memorial services, funerals or anyone in the grieving process. Right now it features "On Me Mother's Grave" from my Celtic Rose CD. We all know what a healing force music is in our lives. Visit www.memorialmusiclibrary.com to find out more.

I am so honored to announce that my poem "Hattie's Christmas Ballad" was chosen as the winning poem in the annual Christyfest Fiction and Poetry Contest for this year. Thanks goes out to all who voted for me and to the hardworking Christyfest Team. Christyfest, is held every year in the Great Smokey Mountains, in honor of the book, Christy which was also a television series. My poem was based on the character, Hattie, played by Judy Collins. She was a blind mountain singer and songcatcher in the series. I imagined Hattie retelling the Christmas story in the old, mountain way. Anyone know Judy Collin's e-mail? I'd love to share it with her. If you would like to read the poem go to: http://coveguest.bravehost.com/08main.html

What timing! I found out only a few days ago that Road Trip Nation had chosen my music to highlight an interview with Rev. Samuel Kyles, the last person to be with Dr. Martin Luther King. You can view it on MSN now or wait for PBS to air it in your region. Today being the day Dr. King's birthday is officially celebrated made it doubly meaningful. This is the second piece of music that Road Trip Nation has used of mine, the other being in episode #9 during the interview with the man who invented the game, Cranium. Hats off to RTN!!!

That's the best way to describe it! Today I was a guest at the 2008 Ignite Your Passion VIP Camapign for Easter Seals. As many of you know, myself and Gretchen Meyer have been collaborating for the past 6 years, writing songs that define the message that Easter Seals inspires. Our sixth song, "I Wish You Love" was featured during a very moving video and the best part........ I got to meet and talk with Abbey Curran, Miss Iowa USA 2008. Abbey is the first person with special needs to make it into a national pageant. She gave an awe inspiring speech about competing with her disability (Cerebral Palsy) and her life's journey. One thing that stayed with me, besides her obvious ability to challenge the status quo, was one of the thoughts she left us with, "don't miss the point of your life." Thank you Abbey. April 11 Abbey will compete in Las Vegas on NBC for the title of Miss USA. Abbey is also slated for an appearance in People magazine.

More airplay!!! Tune into:
www.onevibrationradio.
com
www.pianoworld.com www.ncradio.us ncradio has had my music in rotation on their New Music Program and also features me on their Dreamtime program which runs 8pm to 3am nightly.

Today I received news that I am now one of the official indie artists whose music has been chosen for the Fall series of Road Trip Nation on PBS. Yes!!!!!!! I love that show! My music is featured for a looooooong time during episode #9 (Fall 2007) They used "Gypsymoon" from the CD of the same title and it is featured while they interview the man that invented the game, Cranium...really interesting! On my PBS affiliates it airs at Sat./Sun 11pm CST.Check it out.For more info go to: www.roadtripnation.com/