Veteran composer and multi-instrumentalist, Gina Leishman is best known in NYC as co-leader of KAMIKAZE GROUND CREW, and as a theatre composer (Ellen McLaughlin’s Iphigenia & Other Daughters, Joseph Chaikin’s Firmament, Paul Zimets Black Milk Quartet etc.) For her first solo concert in 5 years, she has been collecting songs, of hers & others, under the general heading Songs of Loss and Laughter. (Other writers include Michael Mantler, Brecht/Eisler, and Noel Coward). Accompanying herself primarily on piano, accordion, glass harmonica and sampler, she will be joined by special guests Doug Wieselman clarinet, Dave Tronzo slide guitar and Kenny Wollesen percussion among others.
Gina Leishman is a composer, arranger, multi-instrumentalist and performer, British born but resident in the US since seemingly forever, having fled the goldfish bowl of Old Europe. She composes for theater, opera, dance, film, television and concert stage, and has garnered numerous awards. Collaborations with other artists include directors Karin Coonrod, Robert Woodruff, Lisa Peterson and Joseph Chaikin, writers Ellen McLaughlin, Tony Kushner and Naomi Wallace, choreographers David Gordon, Bebe Miller and Deborah Slater, composer Doug Wieselman, and performance artists Rinde Eckert and John Kelly. Her ensembles include the long-standing septet Kamikaze Ground Crew, a vehicle for original composition; the Mr. Wau-Wa band, a quintet dedicated to the songs of Bertolt Brecht; and various quartets in support of her solo work. Recordings are available on Koch Jazz, New World Records, Busmeat and GCQ Records. She is also an award-winning narrator of audio-books. She lives in New York City. –Bio as of 2019