Annie D - Born To Grace The Stage

At 15, Annie D has chosen to battle the odds of stardom and, by all indications, she appears to be well on her way.

She has played guitar and piano since the age of 12 and has been singing for as far back as she can remember - sometimes keeping the family up at night. Her parents, James and Mary Davis, soon realized Annie held a special talent.

Annie cites Christina Aquilera and Gwen Stefani as two of her primary musical influences but adds that "everyone I meet or want to learn about has some sort of influence on me."

Tony Award winning vocalist Karla Burns realized Annie's potential after seeing Annie perform and that lead to training in both stage and vocal performance under Burn's direction. This training paved the way for Annie to secure roles in local musicals including Bye, Bye Birdie, How To Eat Like A Child and The Wizard of Oz. She is also frequently asked to sing the National Anthem at various events throughout the area.

Annie is currently a regular voice and diction student of Ginny Kopf. "Annie is becoming quite a performer," Kopf said. "She's finding her voice, and finding her stage personna. She is a joy to work with, because she works very hard on everything I give her."

She has also worked with Mark Goff who has trained international talents Britney Spears, N'SYNC and the Backstreet Boys.

"Many would try to write Annie off as just another teenage girl with a dream of making it big," Nick Nanton, Annie's attorney said. "I could say that couldn't be further from the truth. Annie exhibits a level of maturity way beyond her years and has talent and tenacity - the 2 key ingredients that you must have to be successful in the music business and in life."

Locally, Annie would like to see more venues specifically for teens. "There are so many clubs and every once in a while they will have a teen night," she said, "but the ages are so different. Maybe something like a teen club with different kinds of music every weekend" would benefit the area.

"Right now, Annie is seeking management to represent her and help negotiate a few potential deals and hopefully many more," her mother, Mary said.

"Performing is where I can really get into a song. It' just so different when your singing to real people who want to know what your singing about," Annie explained. "The butterflies never go away. They get less intense but right before I go on stage, but they always come whether there is a ton people or just one, but once I start performing, they're gone!"

To listen to audio clips and learn more about Annie D, visit her myspace site.

Nils - "I'm Ready to Play"

"One of the main reasons I got into jazz was because I loved playing jazz guitar. My pop sensibilities are there in the songwriting, and my R&B background is the force behind all the grooves," Nils said recently. He will be performing at Cranes Roost Park in Uptown Altamonte on Saturday, June 21 from 8 - 10 pm.

Nils was born in Munich, Germany and learned to play guitar while he was a teenager there. Originally following the music of Deep Purple and Led Zeppelin, he was later exposed to funk and practiced endlessly to create his own style. It was not until he mastered that style that he was booked for jobs in Germany. However, realizing that the music climate there was not conducive to his emerging aspirations, he moved to Los Angeles in the mid 1980's.

Surrounded by the movie industry, Nils accepted the task of learning the concepts of film and television composition. He produced music for the independent film "Beyond the Ring" and served as music editor for the Fox sitcom, "Undeclared." He also began teaching guitar at the Valley Arts Music Store and has never given up his passion for teaching young talents. It was also in Los Angeles that he learned his production and studio engineering skills.

This exposed him to many established artists and he was able to perform with George Benson, Rick Braun, The Temptations and others. Nils co-wrote "Keep Rollin'" with Benson and the famed guitarist returned the favor by appearing on Nil's 1998 album, "Nils."

Although he enjoyed studio recording, Nils realized that live performances were absent from his musical career. He started performing at concerts and festivals and discovered he had been "missing the ying to my yang." Nils further explained that he "enjoyed the travel and the opportunity to play for so many people who enjoyed what I do."

"Florida has been very good to me," Nils said. "We performed last year to 9000 people at the Clearwater Jazz Festival, and played Sarasota and the Seabreeze Jazz festival in Destin Beach. We also went to Fort Meyers and performed twice in Melbourne," he continued. "I have already returned once to Melbourne this year."

Nils also said that "Florida has great stations with WLOQ in Orlando and WGRV in Melbourne. They seem to engage the audience very well and the programming seems fresh. We are always enjoying playing for Florida audiences and are looking forward to performing in Altamonte."

"I started making music in the first place to communicate," Nils said. "It's been so enjoyable to bring my music to a wider audience."

To learn more about Nils, visit his website and his myspace page.

Nora Ricci - Subtly Climbing Into Your Soul

With over 75 original compositions, Nora Ricci enjoys a wide repertoire. Writing music since the age of six, Ricci said that "it seemed as though life could be no other way."

Since an early age, Ricci has been exposed to several different genres. She payed special attention to each instrument on the songs she heard and began to define her own style.

Born in Washington D.C., Ricci now resides in Winter Park with her two dogs, Ever (a silky terrier) and Cody (a Mastif/Bernard mix).

Ricci explained that her "piano compositions usually float loosely between adult contemporary and jazz. The guitar pieces are usually a bit more percussive, and have a taste of acoustic alternative, southern rock, country and pop."

Ricci studied at the University of Richmond School for the Performing Arts, earned a degree in Philosophy and Poetic Analysis and Composition at Salem College, and studied percussion at Wake Forest. She also studied film writing at the North Carolina School of the Arts and music composition at the University of Siena in Italy.

Ricci explained that "there is an elusive, innate and intangible drive that has been present deep within my being, even as a child." She said "it is almost as if I have no choice in writing and performing music." Ricci also cautioned that if "if I do not regularly write or play music, I become very, very irritable. So it's in every ones best interest that I continue."

Locally, Ricci would "thoroughly enjoy seeing the Orlando music community come together, instead of working against each other, which is what I see beginning to happen." She said that, "perhaps it is not so much the fault of the musicians, but some of the establishments for which we play."

Ricci performs regularly at the Salt Island Chop Shop, Faces on Edgewater and Cricketer's Arms in Orlando. Her full schedule and music clips can be reviewed at her myspace website.